Sunday, November 17, 2013

It's done! Bathroom Before & After

This post will be up on my other blog, but I figured you all might like to see it too:

At long last, our bathroom renovation is done!  I could not be more proud of Nick for sacrificing his evenings and weekends all summer and fall, and I think the end result looks pretty great!

[As you know] we live in a mid-century ranch house, and there's not much space to work with, so we did a lot of designing before we figured out how best to utilize the layout.  I also wanted to keep the look modern and fun, but without too any finishes that a future buyer may be scared of.  (It turns out that most people who buy houses think beige is fantastic)

Here was the before shot:



This was the design plan:



And, the finished product (which was REALLY hard to photograph because that room is tiny and the lights are bright):

I decided that gray cabinets would add some contrast to all the white, without blending in with the floor, and a Silestone countertop will offer the same look as marble but without the need for maintenance and no risk of stains.  The existing tub was refinished, and Nick installed white subway tile all the way to the ceiling to make the dark end of the room feel brighter and more open.



To add storage space, we decided to install two sets of drawers opposite the vanity with a matching countertop, and built-in shelves on top of an ikat wallpaper that the next owners can paint over or rip down if they want to be boring.   Several baskets from Homegoods will let me hide things I don't want sitting out, although most of our drawers are empty at the moment.


Overall, I'm thrilled with the end result and am so relieved for this project to be over.  Doing projects like this yourself obviously saves lots of money, but the timeline is measured in months instead of days.  I'm super proud of Nick, but I'm excited for him to be able to relax after work instead of putting in 3 hours of manual labor.

That said, any ideas for amazing Christmas gifts for the man willing to build this for me will be much appreciated.


Source Information:

Mirror - Purchased from the chip and dent room at Horchow Finale (with a small crack), repaired by Malloy Glass in Dallas, TX

Cabinets - Ordered from Second & Surplus in Dallas, made by Shiloh Cabinetry

Countertops - Lyra by Silestone, purchased as a remnant from Irving Countertops

Floor Tile - Exotica Walnut porcelain plank tiles purchased from Floor & Decor.  We have these throughout our living area and kitchen and love them!

Wall Tile - White subway tiles purchased from Floor & Decor

Wallpaper - Soft Ikat by Patty Lonsinger via Spoonflower

Shower Curtain - via Amazon.com

Rugs - Nate Berkus Aztec Diamond rug via Target

Baskets - via Homegoods

Pineapple Thingys - Nate Berkus for Target (on clearance, no longer available online)

Monday, November 4, 2013

21/22 Week Update

So it turns out that weekly questionnaires and pictures are a lot to keep up with.  My 21 week photo is actually a 21 week + 5 day photo, and this will be a 22 week update.  Oops.

The reason: We've had a busy week, and are finally in the home stretch of the bathroom renovation.  We just hung the mirror (harder than it sounds, considering the size), and then he'll just need to add some trim around the built-in, apply some caulk, and I will touch up the paint.  Those of you who recall the old white, always dingy, room will not recognize it!  We'll share some pictures next week, for sure.

 Until then, this one will have to do:


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How far along? 22 weeks

Total weight gain/loss:  Less than most, but more than I'd like.  Thankfully, I had tons of energy this evening and did lots of cardio at the gym.  Hopefully I can keep with my weekday evening routine as the belly grows, and I have to switch to treadmill walking on an incline.
 
Sleep:  Still no problems, but I keep catching myself laying half on my stomach without crushing anyone.  It's easy to do on a Tempur-Pedic mattress, but probably not for much longer.
 

Best moment this week:  On Friday night, Nick and I were watching a movie and little guy starting kicking like crazy.  Nick was able to feel him moving around from the outside!
 

Movement:  Yes, lots.  See above.
 

Symptoms:  Nothing significant to report, just a growing belly and a little bit of the back pain that goes along with it.
 

Symptoms I DON'T have:  The other ones.
 

Food cravings:  Still loving cereal,clementines, and greek yogurt.  I cannot adequately explain how good refrigerated clementines taste to me!
 

Food aversions:  The only salad I want to eat is the California grilled chicken salad that you can get at Super Target in the deli.  All others are gross.  (Totally reasonable, right?)
 

Gender:  Boy!
 

Labor Signs:  Too early for that
 

Belly Button in or out?  Too early for that

What I miss:  This week I packed up another box of non-maternity clothes that don't look right anymore and it was sad.  My closet has never been so bare (I know it's still "full", but I have a crazy amount of clothing).
 

What I am looking forward to:  I am looking forward to registering, but dreading it at the same time.  I want to feel like we're making some preparations beyond talking about the baby at dinner and reading one book. 
 

Weekly Wisdom:  Every time I feel fat, I make myself think of three things I'm excited about.  So far, it's been very helpful!