Monday, November 12, 2012

Bathroom Remodel

We interrupt this blog post about gardening and longed-for chickens to announce that our bathroom remodel is complete.
The New Master Bathroom

Yes, Don Burke, my new husband, promised me the sun, but he promised me fresh, clean bathrooms as well. Our house was built in the 60s, and the bathrooms were so hideously decorated and in such bad condition that Don forbade me to take "before" pictures. But the "after" pictures are gorgeous, so we're both happy to share the results with the universe.

Did I mention the bathrooms were built in the 60s? Don says the only way anyone could have ever enjoyed those rooms was to be high on some illegal substance and to view the rooms under a black light.

Seriously.

The master bathroom was decorated in maroon: maroon in the tiles, a maroon sink, and a maroon toilet. All in a tiny space the size of a closet you could hardly turn around in.

I kid you not! Plus the shower in there never worked, at least not from the time Don moved in over 20 years ago.

Master Bathroom Sink

The hall bathroom was bigger, but it wasn't handicap-friendly, which Don and I want to plan for, since we plan to age out in this house. The door was extremely narrow, too narrow for even the slimmest of wheelchairs. The tub was so close to the toilet that, if you had a broken leg, you wouldn't be able to use the toilet, because you'd have no place to stretch your leg out. So, in effect, we had no more room than in the master bathroom.

Our New Hall Bathroom

And the color scheme was just as hideous: beige and a lighter-than-avocado green in the tile, and the same, hideous green in the sink, the toilet, and the tub.

I actually liked the old tub, but everything had to go, because we had to tear down the bathroom completely to make more room. We decided to turn it into a 3/4 bath with a shower instead of a tub. We tore out a closet to gain some much-needed leg room. The whole footprint of the bathroom changed.

I had gone to the local public library to get some books with some remodeling ideas. We hired a local company with a great reputation, Jerry Harris Remodeling, to do the work. Jerry Harris' team did a great job of making my vision a reality, and they made it look easy.

The Hall Bathroom Finally Has Enough Room!


Don was wonderful. He let me pick out almost everything: the tiles, the colors, the fixtures, etc. He picked out a medicine cabinet and the light fixtures, because he's picky about lighting. But, other than that, he let me do the shopping.

What a great husband!


The Hall Shower Has a Bench










4 comments:

  1. Very nice post.Bathroom remodeling is one of the best ways of preparing a home for sale.

    By
    Paulo Trindade
    Bathroom Remodeling Arlington VA

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    Replies
    1. Paulo, you are right, depending on the remodel. Consumer Reports can usually advise when and where it's best to invest the money. We're not planning to sell, though. We're remodeling to stay. I'm glad you enjoyed the post.

      My family lived in Arlington, many, many years ago, when I was an infant.

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  2. Great job Mary. Can't wait to use the facilities.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Any time, Dad! Just let us know you're coming. xoxoxo!

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