Jonny has just about finished the downstairs bathroom remodel, and we sat down tonight to pour through the pictures I’ve taken of the process. You’ve seen some of them over the months, but I took pictures of the finished bathroom for the first time today. Backing up: our downstairs bathroom is a high traffic area. It doubles as the laundry room, and is also the main bathroom that our kids use. When we moved in, it had gray tile with a mauve colored grout. We thought it was nice, and it was. But after a few years, those tiles started to crack and the grout starting popping out. Eventually, the floor started feeling spongy underfoot. We lifted the loose tiles and realized that they hadn’t been installed correctly, which is why the bathroom was now rotting beneath our feet. We lived with that spongy floor for a couple of years I’d say. We tried to tread lightly. With mild embarrassment, we warned our guests that the floor was soft. The thought of ripping everything out was daunting. But one day last October Jonny decided he’d had enough, and while I was out doing I can’t remember what, he started the demolition.
He ripped most of the bathroom floor out down to the floor joists. Everything had to be replaced.
The rebuilding was easier, but took FOREVER.
Take special notice of the cabinet on the right.
I remember this day. Beatrix painted her body instead of her paper. Silas was asleep upstairs where the other bathroom is so I couldn’t take her there. The downstairs bath was still out of commission. We made do with the tiny sink.
The final plumbing stressed Jonny out a little. He finally did it thanks to a helpful friend who knows how to solder pipes. He gave Jonny the confidence he needed to finish that part of the job.
But still, we didn’t make it to the actual running water point until one day in February when Beatrix broke the upstairs shower in a major way. Jonny was then forced to get the downstairs shower working. It was great.
Then it was just a matter of painting and putting trim back in place.
I hung a picture and was happy.
And then one day in March I pulled all the clutter out, gave the almost totally finished bathroom a good cleaning, and took some pictures. It’s hard to take pictures in a small room, but I did my best.
I used mod podge to cover the glass on those cabinets with fabric. It didn’t turn out perfect, but it’s better than looking at all the stuff in those cabinets. One of the bottom panels looks wrinkled in the photos, but that is just a reflection. The fabric was really easy to apply smoothly with the mod podge, but it didn’t dry completely clear in a few places. This was my first time to do something like this, and I guess there’s a learning curve.
We’ve got a plan for that wall over the toilet. It’s far too bare.
Beatrix arrived on the scene and wanted to be in the pictures. I told her she’d have to put some clothes on (probably her third outfit or so for the day.) She didn’t want to get dressed.
DONE!–Well, minus some new towels (ours are in such bad shape,) possibly a shower curtain beyond the plain white one, and filling that wall over the toilet. I think that’s it.
Details: white tile and silver grout from Lowe’s, gray paint called Ozark Shadows by Benjamin Moore. It’s a good gray. Not purple. Fabric used in cabinet windows from JoAnn.
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I love it….and the cabinet makes the room! Love the white/grey/yellow combo. Love your blog and hearing about the children all the time. Beatrix is precious.
Good job! Looks great!
WOW! Beautiful.
So very nice! I take comfort in the fact that others live with deferred maintenance, and that everything comes out right in the end. I sometimes feel that my house is falling down around me!!
Well done. I have one of THOSE bathrooms. I just keep the door shut right now 😉
It looks beautiful!!!
Yeah! I have been waiting for pictures… Those teasers… ugh… 🙂
Great job! I saw some “little” hands helping, pat on the back to all of you.
I have to say I too have been playing with fabric and adhesives… and many other things. There is nothing like dabbling in the unknown.
Quilted shower curtains are very sheik 🙂 I am sure you have a few “remnants” here and there.
Many blessings and prayers for your family.
P.S. It is never done… so, carry on.
Oh, Johnny (and you!) did such a wonderful job. It looks so beautiful and full of character in a clean, crisp and vintagey way. Love love love!
I also really like what you did with the fabric on the cabinet. I’m tempted to attempt to do something like that with our front door in our new house, which has four little windows at the top of it that, if you stand far enough back on the front porch, you can see right into our main floor (and I’d rather have more privacy than that!)… Any tips you can share would be appreciated 😀
It’s really beautiful! So clean and fresh and new. It must be such a relief to have that done and useable again!
Holy cow that looks amazing! You guys did a wonderful job!!
Did you ever get the upstairs bathroom working again? 🙂
Your cabinet is so cute! I love the fabric covering.
What a great job you both did!
Oh how wonderful it came out, your husband did a great job probably with your help…
Karin-Ida
Oh how wonderful it came out, your husband did a great job probably with your help…
It looks beautiful! We moved into our first home a year and a half ago and I have to admit that we are currently in the bathroom-floor-is-spongy stage and I am totally intimidated about when we reach that breaking point because it’s our only bathroom! We are currently installing a half-bath in one of our outbuildings (necessary for my husband’s work) so the good news is once my husband starts DIYing in our house bathroom we will at least have a toilet out there we can use!
So thanks for the peek into your life because I am encouraged to hear that a) someone else has been in this stage of willful ignorance and b) you survived and have a beautiful bathroom to boot! We will be redoing everything as well, since the countertops and shower and everything are hideous 1970s patterns and I’m afraid to think about the fact that it’s probably rotting behind the shower walls.
i love it! so clean. the tiles are lovely!
It’s completely, absolutely beautiful! And you did a fantastic job with the cabinet. What a relief to have it done. 🙂 I’m so happy for you.
Blessings,
Betsy
Your “new” bath looks awesome! It must feel so nice having a space that’s so utilized back in order now. I’m lovin’ your mod podge and fabric project the best. I may just have to try that myself!
oooh, lovely! It’s just clean and beautiful looking.
I am so excited to see your fabric covered glass. I have a cabinet that I’ve been wanting to do this with but didn’t know how. I thought I’d have to break out the glass & replace with fabric covered Masonite or something. This sounds much simpler!
What a talented husband! And you are one patient wife. I am impressed with the final bathroom – it looks wonderful and purposeful! Enjoy it!
I love, love it!! This may have given me the inspiration to get moving on our downstairs bathroom that needs much love.
Your bathroom looks amazing!! We are a couple steps behind you in our bathroom remodel and had a question. What is the purpose of the red paint in the shower? Any tips help!!Thank you!!
Amber, the red paint is a product called “Red Gard”. I used it to waterproof the concrete board before putting the tile on. I purchased it at Home Depot.
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Custom-Building-Products-RedGard-1-Gal-Waterproofing-and-Crack-Prevention-Membrane-LQWAF1/100169081#.UUuXQVeMLIc
Totally awesome!!!!
yay! love it! looks wonderful! love the cute pictures with Beatrix in them!!! 🙂
It looks amazing!
Ginny! It looks lovely!!!
It is lovely. I think Jonny saved you lots of money. I know your both proud.
it looks wonderful. i love the bright yellow fabric, it pops! i hope the upstairs bath is working now as well. lol
i love the way it turned out! and i just have to say i love, love, love your blog….. so glad i discovered you a few months ago. seeing a picture of painting going on, with a child eating, and some gathered eggs that haven’t found their way home yet makes me feel a bit more normal. my life often looks a lot like the life i see in your pictures. it makes me smile…. and i must say happy about my life, because sometimes all the craziness doesn’t seem all that great when you are in the midst of it, but, looking at it through someone elses eyes shows me how great it all really is! thank you.
Beautiful…love the fabric on the cabnets, gives just the right pop of color, & the picture & old mirrow!!!
It looks so good! I especially like the floor tiles.
Looks gorgeous! I love the yellow fabric with the grey.
Love the pop of yellow with the gray. All around fantastic job!
Your bathroom looks Amazing! Well Done!
Your bathroom looks AMAZING! Well Done! And a few ‘wrinkles’ in the cabinet are ‘rustic’ *grin*
I love it! I have been thinking of painting our dining room (that is really the living room) gray. I am sick of the 7-year-old mustard yellow. We used to have a gray room we loved, but painted it green when kid #1 moved into that room (his choice). I miss a nice calm gray room!
Love the tile work too.
Lovely! Very classic looking.
I love it! We have a laundry room that needs to be all ripped out too, except my husband has no clue how to do all that stuff. In an old farm house he is learning little by little.
It looks lovely! How marvelous it must feel to have it done 🙂
Your bathroom looks fantastic! The fabric you used in the cabinet is really pretty. This is an idea, I thought you might like. I put fabric in my kitchen hutch recently, and I used velcro just along the edges where you couldn’t see it through the glass. I figured that way I could change the fabric easily if I ever wanted to.
Thanks for such an inspirational blog!
job well done!!
Beautiful! I love all the tile and the cabinet doesn’t even look like the same one!
Wow, what a big job that was. It looks amazing. Well done.
Your bathroom is lovely! Funny….I just posted about our 7 toothbrushes in one bathroom….just last night! We only have one bathroom for the seven of us…it was remodelled last winter (my dream come true). It was originally the ‘front parlour’ room and it was big with a lot of wasted space. So I divided it and there is a built in the wall sliding door between the two spaces. One side has a vanity with two sinks and a big tub and then the other side has the toilet and a shower. It’s working out really well for us. Of course…it still needs trim…and some more towel bars…and some ‘art’. But we do things slowly here too… 😉
It makes me want to re-do our bathroom! Or at least freshen things up a bit 🙂
The bathroom looks beautiful! Lovely pictures to look at:)
my kitchen floor had sponge-itis last summer. It’s not a good feeling… especially when you find out that it’s gone through to you neighbour’s side of the wall too :-/
Gorgeous job you all did, you handy lot!
The bathroom looks lovely!
That looks gorgeous, Ginny. Worth the wait, I hope?
I love the washer and dryer in the bathroom, too – our washer is in the basement (we don’t have a dryer at all!) and I really wish we had room in our downstairs bathroom for it. xo
Absolutely amazing job!
I absolutely love this! You all did a fantastic job. The tile is similar to what we would like to use when we redo our tiny upstairs bathroom that also has a “spongy” floor. I know you are relieved to have it finished.