Love & Hate

Hate: Not being able to use my vintage cabinet in the newly remodeled bathroom........


Because the mister bought a new one (behind my back) that matches the vanity and hung it while I was at work.......


Now I realize that many of you are beside yourself at the sight of my vintage cabinet. But I had plans for it. Nothing a little wire brush and spray paint couldn't fix. Can't you just see it above the toilet?

Oh well.

Secretly, I do like the new cabinet.

Don't tell the mister.

And now I have new plans for the vintage one. Just wait til the laundry room gets an overhaul.

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Love: Sir Chester and amusement parks.......

Sir Chester: He likes to hang out in the kitchen cabinets, since the doors still haven't been installed yet.....


This pastime is coming to a close for Sir Chester as Bob made an appearance last week to work on the kitchen.

Amusement parks: Me likey some roller coasters at night. Especially when the temperature is perfect. And you're with great friends.

More on amusement parks: I also like winning prizes for looking younger than I actually am...........


This amusement park "game" consisted of me standing there while being asked a question or two. Then the worker guessed my age.

He guessed 27.

HAHAHAHAHAHA!

And now I have another, more authentic, sombrero to dress JFK busts with.

In Session

Remember this?


And the panic it created a few weeks ago?

Well, things have gotten a little better.......


Stuff is in its place now. Kiddos have moved in. School is in session. We've made it through five whole days.

Still working out the kinks in this new space. Trying to not hate the buttery walls and orange chairs. Wishing my blue and brown theme was much more obvious.....


I promise I have a theme going on. See that brown rug? Well, I have brown matching curtains too! See those blue shades? Well, there are blue accents on the bulletin boards.

But, alas, what can you do with orange chairs, except squint and pretend they're, well, not orange.

Mirror Mirror

I am thankful for something today.

Actually two things.....

1. Tomorrow is Friday (school started this week).
2. The mister is pretty darn patient with my ever-changing mind.

The bathroom still was mirrorless this week. And after hunting and hunting and hunting, I purchased two beveled oval mirrors without frames.

But after hanging one, I knew I hated it.........


It felt skimpy or something. Not big enough or substantial enough for the vanity. So after all the centering and measuring and leveling, the mister took it down (without grumbling), and we started from square one. That meant another trip to Lowe's. And more receipts to add to the vintage receipt holder too.

But that Lowe's trip was productive. We found mirrors that were the same COLOR and BRAND of our vanity. New stock had been added since the vanity purchase, and boy, were we in business..........


How bout those babies? The jewel in the crown? The cat's meow? The bee's knees?

Completely perfect.

And did you see the towel bars?

And did you notice the matching towels?

And how they match a particular shower curtain?


Heaven on earth, that bathroom.

Over Budget

You might think a vintage receipt holder would make me feel better about going over budget on the bathroom remodel.


Surprisingly, it really didn't.

But it was a handy (and super cute) way to keep all the receipts to Lowe's in one place.

I haven't totaled them up yet. But my dwindling savings account proves the over budget business. And that's okay, vintage receipt holder or not. Because does anyone need a reminder of how bad our situation was?


And how glorious it is now?


I hear choirs of angels every time I walk in the new bathroom.

Forget starting a new school year. I should design bathrooms for a living.

Fixed

And we're back in business.

The geyser has been fixed (knock on wood).

Let the showering resume.

Diary of a Bathroom ~ Entry 3

Regarding paint: My mind changed three times.

I started with this idea for my vintage dream:


Then moved to this, in order to match a shower curtain, after my vintage dream came crashing down:


In reality it looked nothing like this online sample.

So finally, I settled on this:


And on Day 6 ~ August 2, 2010 ~ the bathroom was painted.........


All the tile was grouted too!

On Day 7 ~ August 3, 2010 ~ the vanity and fixtures were installed!


Then on Day 8 ~ August 4, 2010 ~ I came home to an almost finished bathroom. Crown molding and trim were added.......


We thought that all we had left to do was agree upon a shower curtain, hang the mirrors, and install the towel bars.

We soon discovered we were wrong.......

Upon taking the first shower, we were surprised by what I dubbed as Old Faithful. Yes, a geyser of sorts appeared in our new bathroom, with a puddle soon to follow.

Now what?

I'll keep you posted.

Photo Shoot

The fair is in town. And this reminds me of something I never got around to writing about.

A year ago, I had the opportunity to be in a photo shoot for a great photographer (and friend).

In my wedding dress.

At the fair.


It was crazy. It was fun. I loved every minute of it.


Needless to say, we got a lot of attention. Here are some of the questions I was asked throughout the evening:

• Was I a princess?
• Was I the fair queen?
• Was this my prom dress photo shoot? (Hugs to this person. My prom was well over a decade ago.)
  
• Were these my senior pictures? (Um, could I hug this person too?)
  
• Did I just get married at the fair?
• Where's the groom?

Then there was the ferris wheel incident. I got in trouble with the "ferris wheel engineer" for hanging out of the basket a little too far. He yelled at me. More than once. We were just trying to capture a great shot.


This year can't compete with last year.

Unless........I go in my 80's outfit?

Diary of a Bathroom Continued....

July 29, 2010 ~ Remodel Day 4

The shower tile was installed. And.....

I. Love. It.

I know this is very far removed from my vintage dream,
but the whole spa vibe is working for me. Really.

Still begging for showers though,
as the wall hasn't been grouted.

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July 30, 2010 ~ Remodel Day 5

The floor was tiled. I'm very glad we went with 18 x 18" tiles.
Even if they weren't black and white hexagonal perfection.


Don't the shower walls and floor look great together?


But alas, still no grout and a freshly tiled floor you can't walk
on. We might set up a hose and curtain in the backyard.