Monday 10 January 2011

Getting there backwards


The new shower room is taking shape nicely.

Planning and preparation aren't my strong points, so the new room has been cobbled together in episodes, mostly in the wrong order. The plumbing was so frequently interrupted (snow, non-deliveries, damaged goods, plumber's flu) that the Lovely Son had time to put the flooring down after I switched from indecisive to impulsive about it, even if it was all a bit rushed before the end of his visit.

But the sanding and filling, the woodwork, the decorating, the general attention to detail that should have been thought about well in advance just didn't get done, and now I have an almost-finished room to work methodically through, belatedly putting things in order.

Want a look?

Keep two things in mind: this is a budget bathroom, most items bought online (at great prices), and the pictures were taken by the light of suicide bulbs low-energy lamps. And it's not finished yet. Oh, and it needs a damn good clean. Four things to keep in mind.




There has yet to be boxing-in of pipes, sanding and painting of door, fitting of new rim lock and old door knobs. Richie has a hole in the corner to fill and a little sealant to apply, and will be back on Wednesday to do that; I will do the rest, and soften the look a little with pictures and little odds and ends, as yet unchosen. The Lovely Son will replace a length of wrecked skirting board behind the cupboard the next time he comes home.




Things need to go on the walls - a large mirror, a small shelf, once its nasty sticky brown varnish has been painted over. Somewhere to keep my lifetime's supply of beautiful soaps.



All quite satisfactory, I think. I shall try to stop worrying about having sacrificed a bedroom.

But what excites me the most is..... having a working loo. Within reach of my bedroom, and no stairs to negotiate at 4 a.m. How civilised....


The Inspector, of course, has been keeping a close eye on progress; she will be back later in the week to sign it all off. And maybe have a snooze on the towels.

22 comments:

mountainear said...

Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous. If I hadn't got one already I'd want one NOW!

Know what you mean about the loo - having tumbled down a flight of stairs at a friend's house, in the middle of the night, woken the household up and discovered bruises where bruises didn't ought to be, its a brilliant idea.

jabblog said...

It all looks splendid! Very inviting, and an upstairs loo close to the bedroom is definitely a bonus.

Gwen Buchanan said...

Wow!!! all ready to use.. you must be so thrilled and it's so spacious too... Rachel, you are going to love it, but I know, you know that already!!!

ps.. but what about all that exercise you got in the middle of the night,, are you really ready to forfeit it??

Lucille said...

What a transformation. I love it.

annie hoff said...

The new shower room looks brilliant. Lovely and neat and clean. I love the old cupboard. I'm just about to 'tackle' our shower room downstairs, which on the surface was sort of finished but again, on closer inspection, shows there is still work to be done! It all takes time and like you we did lots of things back to front and the wrong way round - but it's all worth it in the end - isn't it?! Well done!

flwrjane said...

Looks lovely, can't wait to see it decorated. My favorite of any project: styling.

Oh for an extra loo!

xo Jane

the veg artist said...

Wonderful - and you will continue to think so at 4am for the rest of the time that you are living there! I love the walk-in-shower,too. All very chic!

BumbleVee said...

wooohooo....it's getting there and it's great!

Fran Hill said...

Looks brilliant. And I love that cat. She looks so like a cat we used to have. Beautiful.

Pam said...

This is excellent. Speaking as a woman with a broken ankle (which I do not recommend) I think it's a very fine idea not to be stumbling downstairs in the middle of the night. It looks wonderful.

lovethosecupcakes said...

Great job. But I'm intrigued by the little door next to the chair. Surely too big for Borrowers?

"Sunshine" said...

I am a person who gets excited over the smallest things in life, but this one is huge...I AM so excited for you, Rachel and wish you many times of rest and "enjoyment" of your new loo with all its amenities.

Anonymous said...

It's all looking fabulous! We had lovely locks and door handles in our Victorian house in the 90s - I still miss it (we had to sell it when we went to Indonesia).

susan frances said...

It looks fabulous! I wish our main/only bathroom was that big!!
No more night time excusions!

Marcheline said...

I think your loo is gorgeous... and as mine is so dismal, I am a bit jealous to tell you the truth.

That space over your toilet is screaming out for one of those twiggy wreaths that stick out in all directions. Or is that where you're putting the shelves?

judy in ky said...

I like the touches you have made so far... the lace on the chair cushion, and the little cabinet... especially with the Inspector sitting on top! The Inspector is very decorative.
This will be perfect for you as you live there, and a real bonus if you ever decide to put the place on the market again. Very wise addition and very nice-looking, too.

Kate on Clinton said...

Oh this is wonderful! I'm amazed it got done this fast - I know you think it was overly delayed, but from what I've seen from renovations and deadlines, you did very well. However, I could not take those energy efficient bulbs, especially at 4am. We put a dimmer switch in the bathroom so I'm not hit with a bright light that wakes me up too much.

Sweet Virginia Breeze said...

It's going to be beautiful! You are really going to enjoy that room.

Val said...

It looks lovely and I think the furry works foreman approves

June said...

I love it in its starkness.
It looks like a Real Simple magazine cover.

Anonymous said...

Perfect! How exciting!

rogern said...

it looks really lovely already! what a lovely addition to your already lovely house :)

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