Friday, January 31, 2014

By Jove, I think I've got it!!!

Man, I've been racking my brain to come up with an accent color to go in my our soon-to-be new bathroom.
I thought about every color under the sun, but nothing gave me that "Aha" moment.

That was until now...

This little baby is my inspiration color! The subtle, pale blue of a vintage canning jar.

 photo canning1_zps14deb64f.jpg

Blue canning jars + an old farmhouse = Perfection!

canning2 photo canning2_zpsd4519619.jpg

canning3 photo canning3_zpsbd5f5666.jpg

Here's yet another reason why I love Pinterest!
You get fantastic ideas!
To heck with Facebook! Pinterest is where it's at!



Ooooh, I have plenty of old wooden crates to hang on the wall for shelving.
The wood tones will not only warm up the space it will look perfect with my newly sanded pine floorboards!



Even though I don't have a free standing tub I can still get the look I'm shooting for.
Ooops, the NSA will flag me for that one.
((giggle))


Okay, I've got to get back to work.

Don't forget to swing by Early Work Mercantile after 6pm (est) this evening!

Click on the banner below to go directly to my page.

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:> )








Thursday, January 30, 2014

Well, the tub was delivered...

But with these below zero temps we've been having, it couldn't stay on the porch.
So what do you do with a new tub that isn't ready for installation yet??
You leave it in the middle of your downstairs living area in the way of everything, of course.

I bet ol' Tom or George would enjoy a good scrubbin'.

 photo tub_zps50df49d1.jpg

Also, the window company called and asked if they could start the job on Saturday instead.

Yes I am absolutely thrilled they're starting sooner but now I am making a mad dash to clean, organize and move furniture away from the windows, all while hurdling the new bathtub. Believe me, I am no Lolo Jones.
I'm more like Tim Conway's "The Old Man" character.

These next few days are going to be a little hectic.
So if I'm not back in a few days, call the paramedics. ((giggle))

Happy Thursday, all!!

:> )

P.S.
Did I mention the tub is made in the U.S.A.??
It is!
YaY!!!!


Monday, January 27, 2014

Word of advice...

Never refinish old pine floorboards in the dead of winter. Unless you're crazy like me.

The bathroom floor is done. It took much longer than I expected.
I should have known 150 year old pine sucks up stain differently. I just about had kittens when I rubbed on the "Honey" stain I purchased.

YIKES!!

r5 photo bfloor5_zpsa613f486.jpg

I couldn't grab my sander fast enough to remove it. It was almost black.


I ended up using "Colonial Pine" then applied two coats of polyurethane sanding between coats. I love they way it turned out but...

bfloor1 photo bfloor1_zpsa6b0d2bc.jpg

bfloor2 photo bfloor3_zpse0c41810.jpg

bfloor3 photo bfloor2_zpsa1f9a804.jpg

I'm still woozy from the fumes. Kind of floating around in slow motion like the mad scientist on ether did.



In other "news," to this day I am unable to find a toilet to match the sink. I contacted the company this morning hoping they can point me in the right direction. H*ll, it doesn't have to match exact. Just something close.

The tub is to be delivered tomorrow, but the window guys are coming next Monday and hubs doesn't want to tackle the tub until the windows are done. Of course we can't do the beadboard or any trim in the bathroom until the tub is in. So I feel like I am running in circles.
Or maybe it's the polyurethane "talking".

So for now, I'll just strew everything out on the floor and wait... impatiently.

bfloor4 photo bfloor4_zpsdf229ef4.jpg

Have I mentioned I am no longer a fan of renovating?

Happy Monday, everyone!
:> )


Wednesday, January 22, 2014

It's Nine Degrees Below Zero...

So does anyone else have their window wide open with a fan in it? Or is it just me??

No, I'm not having hot flashes. I'm sanding the old pine floorboards in the bathroom with my trusty little belt sander.

 photo pine1_zps72092d5d.jpg

Man, it seemed so much easier when I sanded the living room and keeping room 10 years ago. Now it's much harder.
It can't possibly be my age. Must be the floorboards. ((giggle))

I also forgot what a horrible mess it makes!

 photo pine2_zpsa23c032c.jpg

I won't show you my upper half. Between the face mask and no makeup on, you may go running off in fear.
I could give Leatherface a run for his money.

We've had a few "mishaps" over the past few days.
Like when I was in my studio and all the sudden a hammer comes crashing through my drop ceiling, narrowly missing me.
The bathroom reno is directly above my studio and as my sweet hubs was hammering in new floorboards the hammer slipped out of his hand and it fell through the hole in the floor. After it landed I heard a faint, "Sorry!"

Hmmm... Now that I think of it, I should check to see if my hubs secretly increased my life insurance policy. Might be why there's banana peels on the stairs too. ((giggle))

Happy Hump Day, all!!

:> )






Monday, January 20, 2014

Punctuation humor.



Chicken humor.
(I know some humans like this too.)


This is why you can't trust a unicorn.


A happy little tree painting Bob Ross.


:> )


It's getting there,

slowly but surely.

We're at a bit of a standstill. I got word the tub I ordered won't be delivered until the end of the month. Ack!
Oh well.

Truthfully, the tub is my biggest worry. I'm worried
(make that terrified) to see what the walls and floor look like around and under the old tub. It was terrifying enough to see the old pine floorboards around the crapper.

Since the upper part of the old drywall was in decent shape, I was able to patch where need be, sand it then prime/paint it with the new wall color.
The lower half looks like h*ll but will be covered up with beadboard, so who gives a rip?
I must thank my dear internet friend Cookie's (Curds and Whey) hubby who is an expert drywaller for his much needed advice. Thanks, Darrell!! ♥

Here's a few photos of the progress.
A "before."

beforebath2 photo beforebath2_zps4cb4e302.jpg

 photo sink2_zps8cb6a3c9.jpg

Just for sh*ts and giggles I asked my sweet hubs to place the sink so I could get a visual.
So far, so good.

 photo sink1_zps38af8e4c.jpg

I do have a bit of a dilemma. Most would probably fluff it off, but I can't seem to.

I bought the pedestal sink and the john at two different stores.

Since most everything sold in the United States these days is made in China because they own us,
(Ooops, did I type that out loud? Silly me.) I assumed the vitreous China used would be the same color. My assumption was wrong.

It may not be noticeable in the photo but they are two different colors. The sink is more bone color and the toilet is definitely white.

 photo sink2_zpsabd8adc4.jpg

The dilemma is, should I return the toilet and purchase one from the store I purchased the sink, hoping it will be closer in color? Or keep the one I have?

Or I could just say "to h*ll with it," return the toilet and use this instead.

bathpot photo bathroom4.jpg

Hey, it's better than the woods.

((giggle))

Happy Monday, everyone.

:> )



Saturday, January 18, 2014

The infamous louvered doors...

Love them or hate them, we all recognize the design.

By using the word "infamous", you can tell I am not a fan of them. Especially the 1970's dark, walnut stained louvered doors. There were plenty of them in our home when we purchased it too.
Here are the bathroom closet doors.

 photo louvers1_zps652a04d6.jpg

Even "Stanley" (Stella's favorite toy) can't bear looking at them.
He'd rather lay there unconscious.


But we have a bathroom budget to stick to and new closet doors are not in the budget.
So it's time to work a little magic and the cheapest way to do that is with...
paint!
(and lots of primer.)

Ta-dah!

 photo louvers2_zps30067440.jpg

I also bought some pretty (budget friendly) brushed nickel handles I'll add when I put them back up.

 photo louvers3_zps1338f8e4.jpg

You know I can honestly say, I like the way they turned out.

Now I just need to convince Stanley.

Happy Saturday!

:> )












Thursday, January 16, 2014

Taking a much needed day off...

Besides the fact that when I looked in the mirror this morning and saw my roots have roots, I also noticed my kitchen looks like a bomb went off in it. Ooops, I probably should not have typed the words "a bomb went off."
Dear NSA,
I'm joking.


Anyhoo, I really need to clean my kitchen and color my roots before I
(all together now) head back to the Home Depot.

Yesterday I spent the day tearing out the sub floor. Man!! What a job that was! I swear there were nails every 2" inches! It took me an hour to do a tiny four foot section.

But I now have forearms like Popeye.
"Ah ga ga ga ga ga!"

pinefloor1 photo pinefloor1_zpsb1457708.jpg

These old pine floorboards are awesome! What character they have! The smell of pine when I uncovered them was wonderful!

We'll need to replace a few. After seeing that adorable little imp, Nicole Curtis of DIY's Rehab Addict fix old wood floors, I'm confident it will look awesome when we're done. If you love to see old homes restored, you must watch Nicole's show. She has such passion for the importance of restoring/preserving old homes and keeping their history. She also always hangs and American flag on her rehabbed homes. A gal after my own heart! YaY!

So when hubs got home from work, he helped with clean up duty.

Look!! A man using a broom!!
It's like seeing a Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat!

pinefloor2 photo pinefloor2_zpscead0e7c.jpg

No, I don't mean he looks like a Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat.
I mean the rarity of seeing one.
((giggle))

Happy Thursday, everyone!!

:> )





Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Houston, we have a problem...

Man, I am so glad I bought samples of paint.

Looks like I won't be thinking outside the box anytime soon.

After slapping the Silver Drop on a large board and holding it up to the wainscoting and sink, it doesn't look good at all.

Even though the sink and wainscoting are white, they are definitely a "warm" white and the colors I had picked just won't work.

After being aggravated and swearing for about 20 minutes, I literally threw the paint chips in the new toilet bowl
(no, it wasn't connected) and said to my sweet hubs, "Go fish out a color you think will look nice."

 photo paintchipbowl_zps652e7c1f.jpg

After literally only 3 minutes, he hands me the paint chips and says, "This one and this one."

Guess what??? They are perfect.
I have to kill him.
What took me weeks to do, he did in a blink of an eye.
Yes, I really have to kill him. But not until after this reno. ((giggle))

So now
(as of right this very moment) the new colors are...

Behr's Hazelnut Cream for the walls.

and Ivory Mist for the door and window trim.

But I'm too tired to look for the colors online and post them.

They really do look nice. I'll grab more samples when I go back to the Home Depot for the hundredth time this week and it's only Tuesday.
I need an orange apron.

Tomorrow I tackle tearing out the sub floor.

:> )

Thinking outside the box...

I have an idea in my head as to how I want my "bathroom on a budget" remodel to look.

But I've actually surprised myself with the wall color I'm leaning towards. I'm 99.999% sure I'm going to go with it.

First here's a peek at some of the new bathroom pretties.

A pedestal sink, new faucet, white vinyl wainscoting (perfect for bathrooms!) and the old/new mirrored medicine cabinet facelift I did on it.

 photo bath_zpsec4cb0d2.jpg

Since I'm going with brushed nickel fixtures I decided to go with a wall color I never thought I'd see in my house. Gray.

Here's a few of my bathroom inspirations.





Yes I understand gray is a hip, hot color these days. But gray is a "cool" color and I am a "warm" color kind of gal.

That is until I found this neutral, warm gray!

It's called "Silver Drop." As I said, I'm 99.999% sure I'll use this color. My only concern is it might be too dark. Our bathroom is "smallish" with only one window. Although this color doesn't look dark, it may be on the walls.
But I think having white wainscoting below it will give just the right contrast and be visually pleasing.

 photo silverdrop_zps494b99e6.jpg

Next is the door and window trim color. I really like this one! Again by Behr.

It's called "Sea Salt."

 photo seasalt_zps815602a6.jpg

I did buy samples. So we shall see.

Well that's it for now.
I'm still waiting on more stuff to arrive. But I'll keep you posted with our progress!


Happy Tuesday!

:> )

Tuesday, January 7, 2014

I've waited and waited...

But unfortunately for me, Matt Muenster and his crew never lurk around my local Lowes.

I kept hoping one day when I turned down the toilet aisle, he'd be there with his cameraman asking if I needed a new bathroom.
Another scenario would be if I turned down the toilet aisle, he'd be there with his cameraman asking someone else if they needed a new bathroom. I would then run full bore at that person, "clothesline" 'em, knocking them out and taking their place.
(Must be my inner fake wrestler)

Now that I know Matt isn't coming to my bathroom rescue, it's up to me and my sweet hubs to try and do a remodel. Nothing too complicated of course. Lord knows, neither one of us knows what the heck we're doing.
Also there's the whole wanting to kill each other in the process when doing home improvements together. ((giggle))
But after many years, I finally got him to agree to tackle this project... together.

A farmhouse built in the late 1800s didn't have an en suite, nor
(in my opinion) should it.
As long as I don't have to walk (or run) outside with a handful of leaves, I have no problem walking (or running) down the hall to take care of my business. I've walked down a hall my whole life to get to a bathroom. No need to change now.


Let's see... We need a new toilet, tub and surround. Ooooh, I'd LOVE a free standing tub! But after pricing them at a home improvement box store
(then rolling around on the floor in laughter at how expensive they were) I stood up and walked over to the regular ol' bathtubs. One of those will do just fine.

We'll also need new shower/tub "trim". That's just a shorter name for handles, showerhead and a spout. I found some lovely ones online for $700.00.
**cough**choke**cough** But after more searching I found a perfect set for less than half and they're prettier than the $700 ones. I also ordered a matching sink faucet.

My goal is to have a charming, farmhouse bathroom. Nothing fancy.
Beadboard is a must. Another must is to get rid of the carpeting. Yes, there is carpeting in our bathroom. Why? I have no idea. It was there when we bought the house and quite frankly it looked brand new so we let it be.

But today, I was tickled pink when I pulled back the carpet in the closet and found the old pine floorboards!! YaY!!!
Hopefully after I pull up the sub floor, the rest will look this fantastic and I can refinish them!! Trust me, for their age they really are fantastic!

 photo bathfl_zpscf17a868.jpg

I'm not sure when we're going to get started. Maybe in the month or two.

This will give me more time just in case on the off chance I happen to run into Matt in the toilet aisle.
But I think I'd have a better chance on "Renovation Realities" than "Bath Crashers." ((giggle))

:> )

Saturday, January 4, 2014

Brrr...

It's so cold...

 photo brr_zps82cb6097.jpg

we had to chop up the piano for firewood.
But we only got two chords.

((giggle))

Stay warm!

:> )

Friday, January 3, 2014

Yippee!


It's official! The ol' Countryfolk homestead will be getting new windows!
I'm so grateful and thrilled, I'm doing back flips and cartwheels!
(Only in my mind. You know how uncoordinated I am)

New windows? Who cares? For most, it may be no big deal.
But for me it is. I have waited a very long time for this.
Windows in a farmhouse built in the late 1800's are either painted shut or barely open. Forget about trying to clean them. It's dang near impossible to do.

But soon, not anymore!!

Ooooh! I will finally get my old fashioned double hung sash over my kitchen sink and be rid of the groovy casements!

♫ Happy days are here again... ♪

 photo kitwind_zps87277694.jpg

AND I'll have those beautiful upper and lower colonial grids!
Or as my hubs "lovingly" refers to them as "Those stupid crisscrosses that block my view."
Yes honey, every single window will have them! You'll just have to stand outside. ((giggle))

Since they install windows all year round, we're looking at February to have them done.

We'll be doubling up on the long johns!

Brrrr!

Have a terrific weekend, everyone!

Start your new year right.
Being positive = Being happy.
Corny but true!


:> )