Finishing Touches

Done! DONE DONE DONE! The bathroom is done!

I love our new luxurious bathroom.

My friends came back yesterday to put up the shower curtain rod, towel bar, etc., for us. And to collect their tools. But mostly to put the finishing touches on the bathroom for us. Well, actually, mostly to collect their tools. After everything was drilled into place, I hung the shower curtain and some towels. Here's a picture of us totally moved in to the bathroom:

We got a glass shelf to put up above the toilet as a place to hold some extra towels and toilet paper and such:

It goes nicely with the ceramic and chrome towel bar, towel ring, and toilet paper holder we got (and if you can tell, the hinges on the toilet seat are also chrome...fancy, huh?):

Here's another shot of our gorgeous new vanity. I was going to get rid of the makeup mirror, but Joel said you never know when you want a closeup view, so I put it back on the vanity. I also got some apothecary jars with polished chrome tops and a neato glass soap dispenser for some basic vanity toiletries:

I love the new crescent shaped curtain rod and the new shower curtain:

We changed the light on the fan/heater/light unit to a daylight compact fluorescent lightbulb to give the bathroom a less yellowy feel (oh, and to save electricity).

It's totally awesome, and done with one day to spare before the first of our houseguests comes to visit! Perfect timing!

Bathroom Renovation: Fixture Choices

So here's a rundown of the rest of our fixture choices. We decided to get the matching sink faucet to the shower/tub set that we got:

American Standard Williamsburg 2-Handle Faucet

Then I asked the guys to get us a sink that was similar in design to the inspiration picture I had posted earlier:

I knew that there was a Kohler and American Standard version of this sink, and frankly I didn't really care so long as it was similar. They brought a Decolav sink that looked almost exactly like the picture, so I was pretty happy.

And as for the toilet, well, I had no real opinion about the toilet except that ours was a Kohler toilet and still functional, so our old toilet went right back in. It's still being sold today and was one of the more expensive options at Home Depot:

Kohler Wellworth Toilet

Then there is the towel bar, the toilet paper holder, the towel ring, the shower curtain rod, and a new toilet seat. But I couldn't find pictures of what we selected online, so you'll just have to wait until we put those up to see those.

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall...

March 26, Day 9: Vanity Mirror and All the Little Things

So today the baseboard was installed, the laundry closet doors were put in, the trim and paint were touched up, our fixtures were installed, and a lot of the little things were taken care of. And that included the vanity mirror.

Admittedly, I obsessed about the vanity mirror. The options that our bathroom guys gave us were "big glass mirror like before" or "the largest mirror they have at Home Depot." I went to Home Depot, and the largest mirror they had was 30" x 36", which to me was way too small. Joel didn't think it would be, but I was opting towards a big frameless mirror from backsplash to ceiling. I understood Joel's aversion to backsplash to ceiling frameless mirror as being "a crappy apartment mirror," but to me, the proportions of a 30" x 36" ready-made mirror to the custom 5' 8" vanity was just not right. I had told the guys "backsplash to ceiling glass mirror," but they asked me to reconsider, saying that the mirror that size would be too big. So I discussed with them today putting up a "big glass mirror" like before and then putting some molding around the mirror to make it look like a framed mirror. And here is the result:

Doesn't it look good? I love it.

A closeup of our new faucet:

Our vanity, with hardware:

And here is a view of the bathroom from the hallway:

We're not allowed to walk on the tile until Saturday (something about letting the sealant set or something), so the only pics I could get were from the hallway. I have no idea what happiness I will find in the laundry closet, but I'm hoping it will be good. They'll be back on Monday to put the finishing touches on the bathroom. But it's all coming together! Yay!

Ode to the New Vanity

March 25, Day 8: Grout, Paint, & Vanity

I love our new bathroom vanity. I L-O-V-E it. I love that it's made from real wood, not MDF and a bunch of cardboard. I love the color we chose, the design, the drawer layout. I love the gorgeous piece of granite on top. I love that this is a custom made cabinet (all 5'8" of it!) that was made especially for our bathroom.

Today, the guys grouted the floor tile, painted the walls and ceiling, and installed our custom vanity, our granite countertop, and our sink (don't you love the rectangular sink?). We're nearly done. Here are some end of the day pictures:

Tomorrow, they finish up by installing everything and we'll pretty much be done. I'm hearing that our mirror might not be installed tomorrow, but other than that, tomorrow we should have a workable bathroom again!

It's Starting to Come Together...

March 24, Day 7: Floor Tiling

Today our friends finished up the wall tiling around the tub and applied the grout. Gorgeous. Utterly gorgeous:

They then proceeded to tile the floor with the 2" octagon tile we had chosen out:

This bathroom is really beginning to come together. I believe tomorrow they grout and paint, though I'm not completely sure if that's all they are doing. But I hear everything will be done on Thursday, so I think we're towards the end of our renovation ride!

Bathroom Renovation: Floor Tile Choices

When Joel and I originally talked about redoing the bathroom, we had gone to a tile store and tossed around the idea of using big hex tiles for the floor, something like the picture I had posted in an earlier entry:

I'm not sure of the size of the hex tiles in the pic, but to me, it looks like 3" hex tiles. We had asked our bathroom guys about putting in 4" hex tiles, and what we got from our bathroom guy was that 4" hex tiles were available, but a 4-week special order. Phooey. We're unfortunately on a deadline (I have houseguests coming in 7 days) or else I think Joel and I would have seriously considered waiting. They came back with these 2" octagon tiles as an alternative:

2" hex tiles were also available, but the ones that were readily available were unglazed, which, I don't care what anyone says, is WAY harder to keep clean. So it was between standard square tiles or 2" octagon-and-dot tiles. I was really on the fence about having THAT much grout line to worry about, but Joel's design aesthetic ruled the day and we decided on the 2" octagon tiles. Here's a sample pic of what it ought to look like when installed:

They just finished laying the tile today and will be doing the grout tomorrow. I have to say, up until this point I was very worried about our choices. Especially since one of the guys was all like, "Are you sure that's not too much white?" Now I'm very excited after seeing the tile down on the ground. It's going to look awesome.

What's With All the Pounding???

March 23, Day 6: Tub Surround Tiling

The guys stepped up their game today. They showed up at 8:00am today, which was a full half hour earlier than their earliest start yet. Joel and I have decided to let them do what they do; they obviously know more about this than we do. I had a panic moment when I realized I hadn't discussed the width of grout lines with them, but by the time I thought of it, I realized that whatever my choices were, they were probably half done with the wall by then. I think when I said "white subway tiles, brick pattern, glass tile accent line," they knew exactly what to do. After a day of sawing and lots and lots of pounding, we have a tiled tub surround. I never knew a mallet was used to install wall tile, but I guess it's to pound the tile in to make sure all the tile pieces are level with each other. Here are some end of the day pics. The pink tone I think is coming from the red tape and red chalk dust in the tub.

I think the grout and the floor tiles are going in tomorrow. So far, things are moving along!

Primed!

March 20, Day 5: Priming the Walls and Ceiling

Honestly, there was not much change between yesterday and today, except for the fact that the walls and ceiling are now primed and ready for paint. The room looks so much bigger without anything in it, and so much cleaner even with just one coat of primer. But I seem to always think that after the priming coat of a paint job. Here are some end of the day pics (you could also call it the end of the week pics as well!):

Can't wait until Monday!

All Walled Up

March 19, Day 4: Drywall

Today, when the bathroom guys got here (earlier than the previous 8:30am, I might add), they didn't ask us anything. They brought up the drywall, cement, and other such stuff and went straight to work. Between the construction inside the condo and the roadwork right outside our building, it was a noisy, smelly day. They quit way after 5p again, and when I was shown the room, it looked like a whole different place. Some end of the day pics:

Do you notice anything missing? It wasn't until I saw the toilet outside on my balcony that I realized that they had removed it to redo the walls. They also (not that you can see from the pics) peeled up the weird yellow linoleum that was stuck to the floor, so that's almost ready for flooring, too. The ceiling is also all patched up and one smooth piece:

And here is the tub enclosure:

I'm still loving the height of the shower here:

Where the vanity will go:

And our laundry closet:

We get a respite tomorrow. I think we just have to make a decision about paint and that's it. The guys aren't planning on coming until after 2pm to give the drywall mud and the texture they sprayed time to dry. They plan to prime tomorrow and then let dry over the weekend. We'll apparently have our bathroom back in about a week. I'm loving the progress so far.

Let There Be Light!

March 18, Day 3: Electrical/Lighting

This morning, again, Joel and I were faced with decisions we hadn't considered. The more "controversial" ones we made was whether or not to put a medicine cabinet back in and what type of vanity mirror we wanted. The more pissy thing we found out that the tile we wanted (4" hex tiles) were a 4-week special order, and since we have houseguests at the end of the month, that really was not going to do. We discussed the alternatives and decided on floor tile. We also decided on granite and where to put the shower niche/nook/cubby thing.

I questioned the bathroom guys today about adding in another recessed light above the tub, which they said they could do, no problem, but that the bathroom with the 4 lights going in was already plenty bright. I'm glad I was outvoted (by Joel and the two contractors), because the lighting at the end of the day was plenty bright.

They worked really late today, and it looks like besides doing a little more framing around the plumbing that they did, it was mostly electrical work. The lighting, I'm to understand, is pretty much done. You can see the little bath cubby they framed out in the back. I believe they are going to patch and drywall tomorrow. I have no idea what else they are doing tomorrow. It's an adventure. All I know is that they have a schedule, and they are sticking to it.

Bathroom Renovation: Material Choices So Far

In case you were curious at all, here are our material choices thus far. First, there's the tub:

Kohler Villager Cast Iron Tub (right hand drain)

My dad insisted that we get a cast iron tub, even if we had to pay extra. I thought only fiberglass was included, but when the guy asked what kind of tub I wanted, and I said "cast iron," he said, "That's heavy. But very good quality." And they brought us the tub above, which frankly I was pleasantly surprised with the brand name. And now we have the bold look of Kohler in our bathroom. Sexy.

Here is the tub and shower set that we were a little blindsided with yesterday:

American Standard Williamsburg Tub/Shower Set

Joel and I decided that the porcelain handle went with the look we were going for, and he wanted polished chrome, so we just decided to go with it because the contractor had already brought it in and it works with what we were going for. It wasn't cheap looking and there weren't plastic knobs, which were really my two requirements, so I was fairly indifferent. My friend who just rebuilt a house was mumbling something about ceramic discs, and so when looking up what was purchased for our bathroom, I was happy to see that these had the ceramic discs she kept referring to.

Our more permanent choices (besides the tub) are for the tiling and vanity. We're going with granite countertops, and it's been sort of a trial to choose which little square will grow up to become our vanity countertop. We've chosen to go with subway tile with a glass tile accent for the tub surround, and it's been sort of hard to decide on the floor tile and the vanity countertop. Here are the material samples:

And here's a closeup of our subway tile, glass tile accent, and vanity stain finish we've selected along with what I believe to be our finalists for the countertop:

We pre-emptively (hopefully) discussed sink faucets and such yesterday and printed out what we wanted to give to our guy today, so I think there are only a couple more decisions that we need to discuss with him, but in general, we're on our way!

Bathroom Renovation Inspiration Pics

Okay, so just to prove that we're not actually flying by the seat of our pants with this bathroom renovation, here are some inspiration pictures that we're basing our bathroom renovation choices on. I've been collecting these pictures for awhile, so some of the pics, I'm not really sure where I got them from.

First, we stayed at the Hotel Solamar in San Diego a number of years ago and I fell in love with their bathroom design:
I loved the bathroom as well at the W in San Diego when we stayed there:
I think these hotel bathrooms were really the start of my ideas for our bathroom.

I also love vintage-inspired bathrooms, like this one that was featured on Apartment Therapy:

And since we have such a large vanity in there, I had been looking for awhile for a good design that fit into the overall feel of our condo. Here are a couple pics of vanities that I found with the same basic design but with different finishes:


Originally we were just going to change out the vanity and flooring, but I really wanted to change the lighting in the bathroom as well, and then the plumbing needed to be updated, and well, that's where we are today!

Dear Neighbor, We're Turning Off Your Water. Today. Now.

March 17, Day 2: Pipe Work

Man, these guys are efficient. They have a plan and they are going to stick to it whether Joel and I are ready for it or not. At the end of day 1, I was asked how soon they could turn off the water. I said that the HOA requested that we give our stack neighbors (the guys below us) a day's notice and to try to have the water shut off between 10a and 2p. So they asked me to do that and that they would be back in the morning to change out all the pipes. So I typed up a note and promptly forgot to post them on our neighbors' doors until 2a, when I woke up with a start and asked Joel to go tape it to their doors so at least they would know what was going on.

I'm hoping they don't hate us for the short notice.

So anyway, the guys get here at 8:30am, and we're not the type to be up at 8:30am. And we're asked to make a command decision about what type of shower/tub fixtures we want at 8:30am. Because they are installing parts of it TODAY. Grr-reat. Suddenly the questions from yesterday made a lot of sense: "Do you want one knob or two?" He had brought up a shower/tub set and asked if it was OK or if we wanted something different. Joel and I decided it was fine, and apparently it was also Joel's preferred type of finish.

The guys left today saying I could do the laundry if I wanted. Confusing, but OK. It was then that I realized that I had new spouts!!! Non-calcified, non-corroded spouts that don't leak! Oh, we have a new tub, too. A heavy cast-iron one. Aww yeah! I think Joel will also like the 7' height that the shower has been put at. Here are some pictures of today's progress. First, my laundry spouts (am I such a dork that I find this the most exciting thing today?):

Brand new piping for the tub/shower:

New shower height for the shower! It looks a foot and a half higher than before:

Electrical work on the ceiling, which includes holes for recessed lighting and a new fan/heater combination unit:

New shutoff valves for the bathroom faucet (there's one for the toilet, too, that I'm super excited about):

Now we're wondering what tomorrow will bring. Hopefully Joel and I will be more prepared!

Bathroom? What Bathroom?

March 16, Day 1: Demolition

The guys were pretty efficient today. The bathroom is gutted, our custom vanity is drawn out. All the trash has been hauled away. So far so good. Pipe work to begin tomorrow. Here are pictures at the end of day 1:

Bathroom Before

With baby coming in T minus 2 months or so, I thought it was high time to make the bathroom usable again. Our guests had been using it with little complaint (they were staying with us for free, after all), but I knew it wasn't a comfortable bathroom by any means. Here's some before pics. First a general picture (the vanity is falling apart, as you might notice from the weirdly angled drawer):

I hate hate hate the lightbox lighting. So cheap. It's just a couple pieces of wood and some textured plastic. Flimsy textured plastic that breaks or tears every time we change that stupid light. Here it is along with our super ancient heater and EXTREMELY loud fan.

Water damage on the floor. The previous owners put laminate flooring through the entire condo and didn't do a very good job of it in this bathroom. It seems as if they ran out and decided to put a piece of wood down and call it a day. 7 years later, water damage:

More water damage on the side of the vanity. I could never decide how in the world they got water damage here. We just painted over it and decided to ignore it:

Again with the crappy flooring job. Notice in the laundry closet? Yep. They didn't bother to put the laminate wood floor down under the laundry machines, and I decided that it was too much bother 7 years ago when I moved in.

An old roommate of mine broke the towel bar one morning when she was getting out of the tub and slipped. It never really stayed on afterwards, so when the last of the roommates moved out, we just took it off because no one was using the bathroom on a regular basis anymore:

Notice the half inch of caulking around the tub faucet? That's not a poor caulking job, it's how far the faucet sticks out from the wall. The faucet, knob and shower pipe are all loose:

And my personal favorite. A housesitter, trying to alleviate a slow drain, snapped the tub plug while trying to pry it off (it's a twist plug). She crazy-glued it back together, rendering it useless: