More demolition!

They're really moving on the master bathroom demolition! With all the walls down, you can really see how big the room is. We did run into a potential problem, though.

bathtub still in place, buckets covering where toilet used to be

steam shower will go where tub is now, door is to hallway

new built-in closet where toilet is now stored, pocket door will be installed where plastic sheeting hangs between bathroom and bedroom

where storage cabinet used to be

window in what used to be the WC

chimney that is the source of our problem (storage cabinet space on left, WC window on right)

This chimney has been hidden behind a wall. We wanted to expose it as we did in our kitchen. It is a nice decorative element and removing the built out wall gives us more space. However, we thought the chimney was situated closer to the window. The original plan was to build the new WC wall with the chimney visible from both the WC and the main bathroom. The double sink vanity would have extended from the side of the chimney along where the storage cabinet used to be (though leaving about 18-24" for a smaller storage closet next to the front window).

Now that the chimney is more centered in the room, it really shoves the double vanity right up to the window and makes the room look lopsided. Putting one single vanity on either side will not work because of the window shown above--there is not enough room. So our only option at this point is to make room by replacing the current window with a much smaller window (which will still be in the WC) and gain more wall space on that side of the chimney. Then we can put a sink on either side.

It will be more complicated since it involves work on the exterior of the house, but I think it will be worth it in the end. We are still thinking about other options, and may very well come up with something else that works. As usual, you never know what will happen with an old house!

You Can't Stop Progress!

So I haven't been very good at the blogging this time around--sorry! But rest assured some progress HAS been made. We currently have 3 usable toilets, 2 functioning bathtub/showers, and 4 working sinks! However, that is all about to change as demo on the master bath has begun, and that means we will soon be down 1 toilet, 1 tub, and 2 sinks.

By no means does this mean that we have completed bathrooms, either. The powder room door finally has a new lock, but needs a coat of paint; the floor in there needs a threshold; and the AC return in the floor (right in the doorway) still needs to be moved.

In the boys' bathroom, we still need shower doors (which have been ordered and should be here soon); a storage cabinet; and the sink and vanity--I know I said we had a sink, but it is on loan from the contractor just so we can wash our hands!

Both rooms still need the lighting fixtures installed--the bare bulb look, while reminiscent of my favorite Broadway show "Rent", doesn't fly here.

A small problem I didn't really consider: shades of white. There are about a gazillion and I think I have at least half of them in my house. Redoing these bathrooms in true black and white means that my trim whites elsewhere in the house won't match. While they look white enough on their own, in these new rooms they ranged anywhere from slightly creamy to downright yellow. In both the PR and the BB, this means that we had to get creative when it came to the doors and jambs. The inside of the door and inner half of the jamb is bathroom white, and the outside of the door and outer half of the jamb is hallway white. There was no other way to handle it besides repainting all of the trim on the house to match the bathrooms! No thanks.

Some photos:

this area used to be part of a closet

now my new bathtub will be here

door back on powder room with new (antique-style) lock

door open

i love the tile at the base

new mirror

new window

new shower head, love the tile work

waiting on glass sliding door

temporary sink, recessed medicine cabinet

So I think we only have a few more days in the master bathroom, then we will all be sharing the boys bathroom. I think we'll have to make a schedule because it could get crowded in there!