Now's as Good a Time as Any...

It was about 10:30 last night when I got it in my head that right now would be a great time to start tearing the bathroom apart. I kind of decided that I wasn't going to move forward with the bathroom renovation until I started to deconstruct what was there. I'm one of those that needs to see what the space looks like (more or less) empty before I can start putting it back together again.

Before

One of the beauties of living by yourself in a house is that something like this only effects me. The inconvenience, the noise, the dirt, I don't really mind, and (for now) the toilet and sink still function. Gotta start somewhere and apparently 10:30 was as good a time as any.

Right About Now

Chilly Basement Bathroom

To the left is the bathroom in the basement. This is actually after I clean it up. There were several colors of paint, rusty pipes, wall needing patching, etc. I've painted all the walls (in the rest of the basement too) and pipes one color so - I tell myself - it looks industrial, not just crappy. The color is actually a warm beige, depends on the light though.

This is right outside my studio/office and is currently the only shower in the house. In other words, I use this bathroom a lot. For some reason, the builders of this facility couldn't see their way clear to actually putting the wall all the way to the ceiling. Therefore, when you shower all the heat is gone by the time you step out. This is in the basement and it's November. It's a bit nippy. I needed a cheap, quick, but hopefully not totally unattractive fix for this problem. After much thought of options, I naturally came to draping something. I was hoping for something that wouldn't get yicky too. My cheap solution: a clear shower curtain, sliced up, hole punched and strung on monofilament. I'm happy to report that it works! Because it is accordioned it still lets in some air (good) and light (good), while also keeping the warm air in (also good).

That 50s Bathroom

I don't know if I can say enough about the horror that is the bathroom on the main floor. Let me count the ways: billion year old black laminate; pink sparkly wallpaper (not meant to be ironic), pink plastic tiles; a homemade plywood vanity; a safety bar for a towel rack - with (count 'em) 4 actual towel racks in the tub; the giant, but not very useful medicine cabinet; the buzzing fluorescent light fixture (of the kind found hanging in cheap Chinese restaurants) so great for applying make-up to; the ceramic fishies with gold ceramic bubbles decorating the wall above the tub; and finally, the wooden toilet seat that really brings the whole thing together. The tub itself is a large cast iron thingee that I will have to redecorate around. There isn't a shower - even though there is a shower curtain(?) - and it has this weird little spigot that would be impossible to either take a quick sit-down bath with or actually fill the tub. I have already begun to delaminate. The tub is actually heavily encased in wood. I thought it might be a clawfoot, but I now don't think so. I think the wood is original, as is the laminated rim around the tub. Fortunately, the tub fits end-to-end in the space it's in and I will be able to easily plumb a shower over it. I'm going to tile the tub surround, the face of the tub, and the floor. Add a smaller vanity, a non-tilted toilet*, a real non-buzzing light fixture and some n0n-sparkly paint, a functional medicine cabinet and I will be a much happier camper. If you've got some inspiration for this little room, I'm open to any ideas...

*Yes, I bought the Fun House. Everything has a tilt or angle to it.