650 square feet: bathroom

Showing posts with label bathroom. Show all posts

Monday, June 11, 2012

More Bathroom Excitement! (Um.)

This weekend Ant and I got back to working on the condo (a little bit)!

Ant fixed the bathroom faucet and installed the new handle trim in the bathroom. If you recall, the trim I originally ordered didn't fit because it was the wrong brand. So I ordered a new handle and tub spout for $38 from Amazon. It was listed as "refurbished" but so far I don't see anything wrong with it.

Here's the old tub trim (notice the purplish picture due to the fact that the bathroom used to be totally purple!):

And here's the new handle! I know it looks weird because the new tub spout isn't on yet. That's because it's a bit big for the space - the spout is really close to the tub. So Ant and I are going to do something magical to it, like grind it down or something? I don't know, but Ant does. So we will do that sometime in the near future. Then things won't look as nickel versus chrome mis-matchy.

I also changed out the way towels hang out in the bathroom. I used to use an over-the-door hanger like this, but the towels were always in my way:

So I bought two towel racks at Home Goods for $10/each, and now things look like this:

And overall it's just much less annoying. Plus Martha Stewart did it, so it must be right!

Only with home decorating though. As far as anything else, particularly in regard to the interests of the American shareholder, do not listen to Martha. Thank you.

Friday, June 1, 2012

Splish Splash I Was Takin' a Bath

Over memorial day weekend I rode horses, saw a beautiful sunset on a mountain, and I made some upgrades to the bathroom. Ha-ha!

To be accurate, my boyfriend (I think I've decided to just call him Ant from here on out, because calling him my boyfriend takes more typing.) installed a bathroom sink faucet and I installed the new showerhead. The faucet was the first thing done, so I'll start there.

I picked up this faucet from Overstock a few weeks back for about $50 shipped (no tax). (Remember the Bathroom Plan?)

Overstock Satin Nickel Classic Two Handle Bathroom Faucet

Pretty! Perfect to replace the yucky faucet that was there when I moved in, complete with plastic handles...

Bathroom with Old Faucet (and old medicine cabinet!)

I considered a few other types of faucets before landing on my favorite one including the cross-handle kind and the kind with porcelain handles. While that would have been a vintage-look that would fit with the age of the condo, I thought it looked cheesy. Many of the features in the condo are very cheap, take the basic square white tile in the bathroom for example. So I have to be careful to not make those features stand out - I want them to sort of blend into the background.

So anyway, back to installation! Ant did it all, and he was awesome. He had one set back when he stuck his finger down the drain and something bit him. Luckily I had pickle band-aids so he felt better quickly. Ha-ha!

Seriously I have no idea what happened. I guess sharp things live in drains? Who knew. But I knew that as I watched his finger go down the drain, I thought, "Hm. I would not do that." But I am not a smart-ass, so I didn't say anything! Just kidding, I am a smart ass. But I still didn't say anything.

With the old faucet off, it was time to clean. Not surprisingly that was my job. Ha-ha!

Dirty Sink & Old Faucet

Clean-ish Sink!

It was so gross. The before and after is kind of remarkable. All of that nasty gunk came off! This makes me think that this is why you caulk around fixtures...so I guess I should caulk around the new one? I haven't yet. I am sure it will take me five months like the kitchen sink did.

Sink with Drain Removed

Here is where you insert all of the energy Ant had to put into unscrewing the old pipes/water tube thingys because they hadn't been touched in what appeared to be many years. And then you end up with the lovely finished product!

Finished Product! Look at that fancy new drain, too.

Not only does this new faucet look better, it also works better. The old one would sort of turn off unexpectedly if you didn't turn the handle far enough around.

Next was the new showerhead. I actually had an entire set for the shower/tub area, but I realized that the installed brand was a Moen and I had bought Price Pfister (my choice for the kitchen sink faucet as well). The set actually came with a new valve thingy, but I (and Ant) did not want to attempt that nonsense. I know my limits...SORT OF. So we decided to just use the showerhead which seemed pretty universal and send back the other parts. The Moen handle/tub spout is arriving from Amazon sometime next week.

Pfister Marielle Shower Trim

Here's the Moen handle/spout that are on their way...

Moen Brantford

The showerhead was a PAIN to install. A total freaking nightmare. For some reason the pipe in the wall would not meet the pipe at the end of the showerhead to screw in. It took literally hours of trying. I worked on it for over three hours after Ant went back home at the end of the weekend. When I got it to screw in finally I was cross eyed and my arms hurt from holding up the pipe that probably only weighs less than a pound. It had just been such a long time holding it up. I ended up putting a ladder in the bathtub so I could get myself closer to the pipe in the wall, and because I was tired of standing on the edges of the tub.

But it was worth it. The new showerhead looks awesome and works great! I can't get the little metal "O" piece to get flush with the tile wall because of the way that the pipe bends. I have to think about that. Suggestions?

It Worrrrrks!

The showerhead is raincan style, which is supposed to mimic an old fashioned outdoor shower (I think). I really like it. (And I even checked inside the wall for leaks...you bet I did, ha-ha! I ain't no plumber.)

With the new medicine cabinet and "trim" (I learned that new plumbing fixtures in the bathroom are called trim...) I think the plain old white tiles take a backseat in this room, in a very good way.

Next up I've got to install the new tub/shower handle and tub faucet, when they arrive. That should be a quick pop off/pop on kind of deal. After that...a new toilet! I am very afraid to install a new toilet. I mean, let's face it, that involves poop. Should I even try it?

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Carty is Done!

I've been really busy this weekend. I spent most of the weekend in the bathroom. No, not like that. Gross. I've been installing Sir Cartwright (whose name officially has been changed to Carty), my $50 Restoration Hardware medicine cabinet.

My boyfriend and I replaced the medicine cabinet that came with the condo, which was recessed and had a plastic cabinet with plastic shelves with Carty! Here's the old medicine cabinet:

Now I'll take you on the play-by-play, all the way to Cartyville! This is what we had to start with, the old medicine cabinet which is recessed - just like the new one - but is much smaller.

Once the old medicine cabinet was out, we could see the rough-in that had been created with boards.

Notice the plaster & lathe walls. Lovely. (Ew.)

I stuck my phone in the cavity and pointed down. This is what I saw!

Then I did the same thing pointing up! That yellow piece you can see is an old cardboard soap bar box.

Next we started making cuts. We ended up using both a jigsaw and a reciprocating saw.

We also used a drill bit in a few places to make holes so that the jigsaw could access the places it needed to cut more easily.

There was a lot of tricky maneuvering involved.

Here we are, almost halfway done with the new opening. The new hole had to be about 6 inches taller and a few inches wider.

The entire cutting process took hours because there were a lot of nails and screws in the way.

Once the hole was big enough, we slid the cabinet in and screwed it in place.

So before I show you how Carty looks, here's a look at the old cabinet again:

Here's the final product!

And the inside!

I still have to paint a little where the paint was messed up and probably caulk around the cabinet, but it looks great. It was really difficult, but it wasn't too bad. I'm really glad I have a shop-vac that I used to clean up quickly. Overall it was an awesome weekend project!

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Bathroom Plan

I've been making plans for the bathroom lately. I recently had a bathroom renovation quote completed by a local construction company and of course I purchased a new medicine cabinet. (It's sitting in the closet.) Medicine cabinets are difficult to install. It will require removing the old one so that I can look inside the wall cavity and see where the studs are. Then I will have to make a joist like so:

I am determined to install it myself, though. I know I can do it. As far as the quote goes, well, let's just say they hit it out of the ballpark. In a bad way. So instead I'm concentrating on the things that I can do myself. I made the mood board below for inspiration. A lot of these items I already own. I am going to get new hand towels and a new rug, however. I've already ordered the tub and shower faucets; they are Marielle by Pfister in Nickel. I am going to order the sink faucet (also Nickel) from Overstock as soon as they send out their next 10% off coupon.

Bathroom Plan by louko on polyvore.com

You might be thinking, "Why the heck is there a pillowcase?" That's because I used Anthropologie's Fred Shand Cloud Sprigs pillowcases as curtains. I got them on sale last December for $15.