Before the Nursery renovations began Mr. Fox and our wonderful friend Tony worked for months on the bathroom. The state of the bathroom had been awful when we brought the house and had continued to deteriorate over the two years we have owned the place while we saved.
The floor was propped up underneath due to it being rotten chipboard. It was safe but you could feel the bottom of the bath moving under your feet when showering. I never ever took a bathed in the bath because the bottom was so damaged and never quite felt clean no matter how hard you scrubbed it.
The walls were rotting, growing mould and the worst part was that this winter the slugs were coming in overnight...and not just a few. It was so yucky. The vanity top was maroon (not a favourite colour of mine and featured throughout this wee house!) and the sink was covered in melted brown spots where someone had stubbed out cigarettes. All in all it needed to be replaced.
When we planned out the replacement bathroom we intended to just copy the layout however when we went to the shop they suggested flipping the bath round to go against the back wall. This meant we could have a cabinet over the vanity to increase storage. The other genius space saving idea came from friends who suggested we put in a sliding door. This has meant the room feels bigger and we had a spot for a heated towel rail..bonus!
I wasn't too keen on tiles initially but Mr. Fox liked some porcelain tiles that look like wood. I did too, they add a bit of drama to the small room. This was a big splurge item and took the most effort to install. The tiles look amazing and we adore them. I'm ever so glad Mr. Fox didn't let me wimp out and go for a cheaper finish now. Everything else is pretty standard. Easy to clean and white. The cupboards and drawers are soft-closing.
The heat lamps were my 'must have' item. I just love standing under them and it feeling like the sun. The fan included is not very powerful so the room steams up but I really enjoy the heat lamps. Having warm,dry towels is pretty luxurious too.
This is what the bathroom looked like when we brought the house in August 2012..
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| Note the shower head fixed up with Duct tape! |
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| The lovely maroon bench top with the rotting wall just visible to the left of the vanity |
The guys worked so hard throughout the months, late into the evenings and pretty much every weekend. There were some really tricky and frustrating moments. The tiles are nearly a metre long and standard cutting tools weren't capable. We ended up hiring and buying different tools to get the job done. Thankfully we brought extra tiles as a few were broken in the process of cutting. The boys did
everything themselves in the bathroom (
excluding the electrics). Mr. Fox learnt so much and is now my DIY hero. It so awesome to want something done and he can for the most part figure out how to do it.
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| The new bath goes in! |
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| Tile cutting head-quarters |
The walls were insulated and relined. Then plastered and sealed with waterproof membrane where the tiles were to be. It took many, many, MANY hours to install the tiles and cut them. We grouted with dark charcoal grout and are pleased with the result.
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| The first tile goes in! |
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| The cabinet is up and the wiring in place. More tiles insitu |
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| The vanity goes in and the grouting washed down |
The finished result is lovely and such a joy. Every time I walk in the bathroom I smile. It is bright, clean and looks amazing. I can't believe we did it ourselves. It's hard to tell in photos but the tiles although dark have a lovely warm tone running through them. The walls are bright white too.
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| The finished product! |
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| Our gorgeous and very loved new bathroom |
We have a new toilet and extra tiles so intend to redo the toilet but will wait til after baby arrives. I think Mr. Fox deserves a DIY break for a few months too.
What a gorgeous bathroom you now have. I think that the bathroom is always the hardest room to be without, that and the kitchen. We recently had our bathroom completely renovated, but we got a plumber in to do the work for us. We did do all of the tiling and grouting ourselves though. We too had yucky maroon tiles...everywhere.
ReplyDeleteHomer Collins @ Pinnacle Renovations
Thanks so much. We aren't much of a fan of maroon here either....we have a large feature wall in the lounge thanks to the nineties that I can't wait to remove! Good on you for doing the tiling. I don't think we really appreciated what a big job it is until we started!
DeleteYour new bathroom's a pleasure to behold. It makes it even better knowing you suffered with such terrible conditions beforehand. The slug invasion sounds particularly horrid. It just goes to show that with time, energy, motivation and physical fitness, DIY plumbing tasks are possible! I love the contrasting colour of your warm brown tiles against the white walls.
ReplyDeleteWilfred Andrews @ LB Plumbing and Heating
Thanks so much for your kind comment. It is so satisfying to have done the job ourselves. We appreciate the bathroom so much more I think. We love it now, it is still such luxury to use even months later
ReplyDeleteI feel for the hard work you are putting in to getting the bathroom of your dreams. We recently competed out bathroom renovation and did most of the work ourselves, apart from the plumbing. I wasn't brave enough to install new pipes so we used a plumbing firm that had been recommended by a friend, they did a wonderful job.
ReplyDeleteLovella Cushman @ Perfection Plumbing
For bathroom renovation contractors that specialize in bathroom remodelling and design get the pros at bathroom remodel Vancouver. For great prices and professional workmanship from the plumbing to the tile and everything in between. Serving Vancouver for many years and delivering the best bathrooms in Vancouver area. If you want more info click here link : Bathroom contractors
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