Showing posts with label bathroom renovations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bathroom renovations. Show all posts

Sunday, May 5, 2013

Renovations

I've been making good progress on my goals this year.  Some of the obvious progress has been on my hobbies (reading, crafts and more recently the garden) but I've also made progress on my spiritual goals, home and family, health & lifestyle and financial goals. It's been hard work but I've managed to pay off two debts and make a very modest increase to my savings and my giving to the mission field. I've only been able to do the latter by eliminating debt. I hope to be able to continue in this vein in the coming years by continuing to do careful shopping, watch my spending and not incur new debts. It is a challenge.  I have some huge financial goals to reach before I hit the magic age of 65.

One big goal I had for this year is to cost out some modest renovations.  This week I will have a renovator come in for a consultation and let me know how much it would cost to attend to the large and small projects I have. The renovator is also an architect and so he can do drawings in addition to the actual work. He came recommended by a woman from my women's group.  His rates are incredibly reasonable because he works alone and as a bit of a hobby after his day job.  I've seen some of his prior work in photos and will try to speak to some of his past clients too.


After the fire a few years ago, all the interior walls of the condo had to be torn down and reconstructed and the insulation replaced. New carpeting had to be laid also.


I've been living in my place now for several years and the cabinetry, tiles and fixtures in many of the living areas are looking rather old and tired. I'm spurred on by the local downturn in the real estate market.  If you want to appeal to today's buyer and make sure your property is highly saleable, then you really need to make upgrades that are more in keeping with the fresh, modern look that most of the buyers are after.

This is what renovations looked like a few years ago.  The main bathroom was the only room that got a major overhaul  (new light fixtures, new tub tiles and flooring tiles) but I don't have a current photo. I don't like the tile flooring we selected so may change this and a few smaller things.

I also want to make the changes for my own sake.  I have never liked the finishing that many condos are made with, such as stock white kitchen cabinetry that are made of some kind of pressed board, marble surround fireplaces, laminate counter tops and tile floors (which are cold and very hard on the feet).  One of my bathrooms was updated after the fire several years ago but the master bathroom was not. It will be a chance to find out what kinds of less expensive changes I can make to give it new life.

Once my reno guy comes over, he will draw up some plans and cost estimates.  I will then know what I can actually move forward with in the coming months and what might have to wait until next year.  I will try to remember to take before and after photos as I think things are going to look very different. I'm excited although it will be a bit of a challenge to "sandwich" the renovations in between travels and visitors.

In preparation for my consultation, I'm decluttering once again. I'm finally getting rid of a lot of fabric I inherited. After holding onto it for 2 1/2 years I know I won't likely be using it. Actually some of the fabric I bought myself quite a long while ago and I no longer  wish to make whatever it was I had in mind. I've also got more books to offload and yarns and crochet thread to someone who can make use of them. Slowly and bit by bit I'm getting through the clutter but still have more to get rid of especially in the crafting department. In this area, I like to sort carefully because it is expensive to replace everything and sometimes hard to find certain things.  The decluttering never really stops as one is always buying something.  But slowly, I am retraining myself not to spend what I don't need to and eventually I'm hoping to get to the point of a more streamlined household.


Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Bathroom Ruminations

Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.
A. A. Milne

Another day has come and gone and I'm happy to report that the decluttering and reorganizing project continues and much progress has been made in the bathrooms and in organizing the master bedroom.

The master bathroom does not have enough cupboards and drawers to keep everything nice and neat. In this country you will rarely find adequate closet or bathroom storage. I'm guessing this is the case where you live as well, especially if you live in some of the older buildings in Europe.

Years ago, I purchased a kitchen pantry unit to address this deficiency in bathrooms. Currently the unit is standing in the master bedroom to keep things organized and out of sight. The pantry unit has served me well for a number of years in this way. It is a simple, plain white pantry. I could paint or stencil it but I like in its simplicity in white.

Right now this unit is housing many items. Mainly overflow items from the master bathroom. For example, it contains a basket of items that I need when I travel like a cell phone for use in Europe/Africa. The phones we use in North America do not work in Europe or Africa though I understand this will change within the year. The basket also holds things like extension cords and converters, passport holders, plastic rain gear, small sized containers for carrying shampoo and lotions, etc. Another basket contains small gifts for those occasions when I have to have a gift item ready on short notice. I also keep a few cds on hand for those occasions when I want to listen to some soothing music in the bedroom. Finally, the unit holds some decorating magazines and some books I placed there recently.

I also placed a wing chair in the corner of the room. My plan is to add a lamp and make a cosy reading nook. The wing chair was one of my excellent thrift store finds. It is in perfect condition and only cost $35 (Canadian). The chair was previously languishing in the front room until I found a good spot for it. Here is a photo of it along with my cherished Pendleton blanket.

Now let's go back to the bathroom shall we? Both bathrooms in the apartment have these generic light fixtures above the bathroom vanity as in the photo below. They are great for throwing a lot of light but I really don't like them because they take too many bulbs and are hard to clean.

The master bathroom in the photo above has not had any decorating attention since I moved in. In fact the shower curtain is 23 years old and the hand towel is from the thrift store. I think it needs a change to liven things up a bit. Do you have any suggestions in terms of colour, pattern, solid, etc.?

Here is a photo of the adjacent bedroom to help you make your suggestions. The wall colour is a deep navy. I know some people find it a "cold" or "cool" colour, but I find it restful. The bedroom is a nice place to be in the heat of summer here. In winter months, I simply add flannel sheets, a mattress pad warmer and more bedding as needed. Since it can get rather chilly here in winter with a lot of rain, I have more blankets than I would actually like to have. But most of the blankets have been purchased to last my life time and I will only need to make the odd purchase of bed sheets and pillow cases when required.

If you have decorating suggestions, just know that the bed covers are not always floral in design and the wall colour will likely stay. In summer, the bedding could be a white matelasse coverlet or a large quilt with blue, gray and off white squares. A lot like this one here except the colours are not as vivid. In winter, the bed sometimes wears a wool Pendleton blanket with geometric design (as in the above photo) or a floral quilt from India in brick red, black and off white.

All the bed coverings, except the floral one in the photo, have sentimental value or have been purchased as investment pieces meant to last a lifetime. That means they will likely remain as part of the decor. This also means that I won't have to spend more money on bed covers.

The main bathroom in the photo below is going through the final stages of re-plumbing, as are other areas of the apartment. The light fixture above the vanity will be changed to a brushed nickel light fixture in a more traditional look. It looks a lot like this 4 light vanity fixture here. This fixture can take energy efficient light bulbs. Yeah! I hope to purchase another one like this for the master bathroom. The old fixtures can then be recycled by taking them to the thrift store.

The bathroom tub and floor tiles, towel bar, toilet paper holder and vanity were all replaced in September and new towels purchased in shades of teal blue, gray, and tan. We still need a waffle weave shower curtain which will likely be purchased in a tan colour (I may sew a contrasting colour like teal blue on it to brighten the room and blend with the towels). The previous towels in this bathroom were all about 16 years old so I think they have served us well. The shower curtain which was a green/burgundy/tan floral and the green soap dish, were still in good condition and they have been taken to the thrift shop.

Besides the organizing described above, the master bathroom was given a good cleaning and a lot of extraneous items were tossed or donated to the thrift store. I dropped off two bags at the thrift store today and several last week. I have a few more to deliver there later in the week. Two boxes of computer discs, old appliance warranties and old video tapes in the living room were sorted and eliminated altogether.

I will tackle the final two unpacked boxes in the living room and the other two in the master bedroom later this week. Once the plumbers are gone, the master bedroom closets can really be culled and a home found for the remaining photos and pictures which have not yet been re-hung. At the end of the month, the master bathroom will be re-grouted and re-caulked and some minor updating done to the fixtures. Then I can see about painting, changing the light fixture and adding new linens. So you have a few weeks to let me know if you have any suggestions. I hope to hear from you!

By the way, watch this blog as soon I will be posting about a giveaway. It will be my first one and I think I have just the right thing in mind. I'm excited and will be telling you more soon.

It Was a Spectacular Day! ~ Skywatch

Hello friends and fellow bloggers, It was a spectacular, sunny day where I live. It's still rather chilly from my point of view but the ...