Upgrading the house a dollar at a time

My kitchen is fairly run-of-the-mill but I don't have money for one of those 8 thousand dollar makeovers (or more) we hear about on TV. Who does? I have decent cabinets and could use new countertops and a new sink, but the floor screams "80s" with it's cute country lines and flowers. Once upon a time I would have loved the stuff. Now I just try not to look down. It also has indentations that dirt loves to get stuck in, so to get a really clean floor you have to get down on your hand and knees and dry it with paper towels.

Needless to say, it is therefore never "really clean."

I was wandering through Home Depot, I swear looking for JUST a can of spray paint to spiff up a $3 magazine stand I found at the Thrifty Shopper, when I wandered by those stick-down tiles. The premium ones (the ones I can never afford) were on sale at the same price as the cheap ones. I was drawn to a type called "beige slate" and they were ust $30 a box.

Guess what?

Old floor:

New floor:

It looks much better in person.

Since the refrigerator had to be pulled out, you can guess what I found there:

Unfortunately it took up almost all of the weekend to get the floor mostly done. I still have to do the pantry, but that must be painted first. That means there are countless chores still to go.