bathroom before...part 2

drum roll please.....

are you ready to see the AFTER!?!

ha! me too.

The bathroom project continues! John and I removed all of the tile from our tub surround and bathroom floor. We were anxious to see what kind of damage we were going to have to repair. Much to our surprise the faucet wall, (where we thought the most damage would be) was actually in the best shape, but the back wall left lots to be desired.

Since our plan was to tile all the way to the ceiling, and there was water damage, we decided to remove all of the drywall and replaced any insulation with mold or mildew. Holmes would NOT have approved of the original install!

Tearing things apart is much more fun than putting it back together! Actually, we knew almost nothing about re-tiling our bathroom.  My generous in-laws kindly offered to come help us put our little humpty dumpty back together again. Luckily for us, John's dad is a tile expert! Expertise, help, and great tools were just what we needed.

John and I worked and worked in hopes of getting everything prepped for the tile, but sadly when his parents arrived this is what our tub surround looked like.

Late Friday night John and I took a little detour from our itinerary and broke down at Home Depot. We had a cart full of supplies as well as another rolling cart full of seven pieces of backer board. You learn who your good friends are when you call them late on a Friday night to pick you (and ALL of your supplies!) up! THANK YOU WHEELER! Luckily, just a dead battery, but needless to say that changed our time frame a little bit. AND we learned early the next morning that you can't get in to John's trunk with out the beep beep (like that technical term?) seriously, jeep, put a key hole on the trunk!

Now, for the tile. It was a steal of a deal. Seriously. So low budget it fit in ours. Remember the pig? Not dream tile, but this was clearance material that a client bought and did not need all of it. Since it was clearance it could not be returned, so I bought it from the client. Win win for us both!
 
Wish I had a picture of the two Johns hard at work or meticulously laying out their game plan, but unfortunately(ha!) Jenny and I set out for a day of shopping and fun. Pretty great deal if you ask me!

Progress day one...

progress day 2...

learning from the best, John was able to do this fancy work around our toilet

The floor was complete and the tub surround brought nothing but headaches. They got most of the hardibacker installed, but were worried about the bend in the pipe and thought it would be best to call in a professional. I quickly agreed because the alternative could mean no water in our house. I think you all know how I feel about places with out bathrooms.

Thank you Jenny and John for all of your help AND a wonderful weekend!!

...to be continued

bathroom before...part 1

Shortly after my last post, John and I started a little bathroom "update". This project to me is honestly kind of like playing dress up with a pig. You can fluff and add a little sparkle, but at the end of the day...it is still a pig. Meaning this isn't my dream bath and the "after bath" won't be either. We aren't dealing with dream spaces, or dream budgets, but it sure is fun putting our own little spin on the place we call home.

Sounds ungrateful. Not my intention. I love my house. I am thankful for my house. BUT it is nothing like I imagined myself living in. I'm not much of a cookie cutter "pop-up" house kind of girl, but you've got to start somewhere, and I'm very thankful I got to start here.

I need to find some pictures from when we first bought our house to give you full appreciation for our progress. Y'all know me. I am impatient and impulsive when it comes to my home (and probably everything else). Sadly, I did not photograph the native men and their palm trees (no kidding) on the wallpaper the day I painted over them with left over paint from our living room. The cabinets were builder white with your good ol' contractor special brass pulls.

SO, all that said, before these "before" pictures I haphazardly painted the wallpaper (gasp! oh the shame) with left over paint (you wouldn't want the natives watching you either!), painted the vanity and replaced the knobs to update just a t-tiny bit. Probably not my best idea to post a project that is not yet complete, but surely it will all come together and there will actually be an "after" post to share.

We don't do much entertaining in our bathroom, so odds are you've probably never seen it. Come on in and take a look. You'll be greeted with this B-E-A-U-TIFUL berber carpet. This carpet isn't my favorite (that is another post) but honestly, I just don't understand who had the grand idea of incorporating carpet in to the bathroom. It has seen its day, tattered and torn. This picture really gives it a little more credit than it deserves.

Look at the breathtaking light fixtures above our gi-normous mirror. In all its flower etched, brass glory. We were the proud owners of two of these fixtures and I am pretty sure in the almost four years we have lived here only one of the fixtures actually worked. The dark walls + lights that don't work = not ideal.

disclaimer: this picture wasn't taken until after the demo was well under way = LOTS of dust

Now, to give you a feel for the space this is looking down the room with the vanity now behind you. You entered to the left and the bathtub is to your right. The doors painted the same as the vanity and the lone brass knob. Again. Years. One knob. Easy fix..but SO easy to put off replacing.

The most annoying part of this bathroom is the TILE. Yes I sell tile. I enjoy pretty things, but anyone could tell you this wasn't quite right. Again, builder grade. White matte 6"x6". We can deal. We knew what we were getting in to buying our house...but I would like to shake the hand of the man that grouted our tile. Maybe he ran out of grout and opted for the near by toothpaste? Annoying. BOTH of our bathrooms look this good. Jealous? And, you would think I would be just the one to tell you how to get your grout clean. (enter "get grout clean" joke here) but no luck. It always looked yucky.

NOW, for the real reason this project transformed from a "want" to a "need". The darling hubs fell while showering one morning. Funny. You can laugh. Only now that we know he is okay. Seriously, I thought he died. Not kidding. But thank God he did not. He fought the faucet and he won. The faucet (and the tile around it) were now crooked and broken. Livable yes. But we just knew water was pouring down the wall when this lovely spot started to appear.

There you have it. Vanity, carpet, tile, damaged wall. Our luxurious master bath in a nut shell. So, we did one any impatient and impulsive person would do, and got out our tools. Should have taken a picture of us in our his and hers safety goggles, earplugs and gloves.

Step one! NO MORE CARPET!

Step 2: No more tile! (fear the man feet that destroyed lots of it!)

Sweet Atticus Essig had the honor of being a house guest during all the noise, destruction and chaos. I'm sure he went home and told his mom and dad about how crazy we are. We tried to put him to work, but he just cheered us on from the cold concrete slab.

To be continued... I sure do hope there is progress to show you soon!!

before & after 2

Everyone enjoys a little before and after right?! I do for sure! This treasure of a cabinet was another generous hand-me- down that came to live with us in much need of a little TLC. 

The cabinet had fabric on the back as well as the bottom along with two very thin wooden shelves also covered in the same fabric. It was missing glass on the side and needed a little structural attention. Little dings and scratches from years of love just added "character".

Before

In hopes of using this piece as a bookcase, Dad built these much sturdier shelves out of pine to replace the thin shelves that were original to the piece.  I know these were tricky because the cabinet has a curve to the front and needed to allow enough space for the doors to close. Good job Dad! (not a surprise to anyone!)

The picture below shows the side that had the most damage. There was a large crack that needed to be re clamped and refinished. You can also see where the detail on the front needed a little loving too.

I knew the fabric had been in there for a long time, but I wasn't sure if it was original to the piece. I come from a long line of wild women, so I did not think it was too unlikely someone down the road thought adding a little fabric would be fun.

The VERY first thing I did when I got the piece home was remove the old fabric. I loved the color and pattern, but it was old and mildewed and had to go. I was a little surprised to see that underneath the fabric was unfinished wood, meaning most likely, this fabric was original to the piece.

I would LOVE to say I was able to create the after on my own, but I ended up calling in help from a professional. The VERY talented Michael Dickey picked up the piece and worked his magic. I was floored by the transformation! 

After

I honestly think it is even prettier in person. He recovered the back in a linen similar to the fabric on our headboard, stained the bottom, replaced the glass on the side, stained and mounted Dad's shelves, repaired the damaged wood, and re stained to add new life. phew! 

The cracked side of the cabinet looks brand new! The flash in the picture below brought out spots you can not even see in person.

The bottom corner, before yucky fabric and unfinished wood...now brand "new"!

Didn't Dad's shelves turn out great?! Michael stained them and mounted them were the original shelves once were.

It makes me so happy! Now the hard part is deciding what books are "worthy" of living in it!

before & after

This beauty made her big debut in my Mom and Dad's first home in Georgia over 30 years ago. At the time she was dressed in a fabric my mom fondly recalls as "lemon ice". I can vaguley remember the pale yellow and soft blue pattern of the original fabric pattern from my childhood.

Years later she decided it was time for a new look. What better to represent the early 90s than burgundy flamestitch?! She sat proudly in our home for years among all the navy and hunter green that was all the rage. Years came and gone and the neutrals crept in pushing this classic beauty to the side...until my Mom and Dad generously allowed her to come live in Montgomery with us.

Here she is the day she moved in. Tired, yes. Faded? yes. but still... a classic. We were thrilled to have her!

Before

(sorry poor quality, cell phone picture)

Last week she kicked that flamestitch to the curb and got a full out facelift! She sits a little taller in her new herringbone fabric.

After

After all these years she's still a classic! Never looked better if I do say so myself!

...goin' on a treasure hunt!

Earlier this month I went on a treasure hunt.

My friends Rebekah and Annie hunted along side me.

Huntin' for treasure is a lot like huntin' for animals.

You wake up early. Eat a hardy breakfast. Drive a few hours....and HUNT

When you return home from the hunt you display your trophies proudly.

treasure #1: lamp 

husband's response, "..cool um, I'm surprised you chose a lamp"

darn, well at least it makes me happy. AND he had just worked over 16 hours.

happy shade already feeling at home...collecting dust

treasure #2 fabric

this fabric was love at first site. It yelled for me to take it home. How could I say no?

Scott's, thanks for the hunt and the treasures! I hope to see you again sometime soon! 

deck the halls!

A while ago, my dear dear friend Carrie posted about Christmas decorations....since Carrie loves decorations I thought I would share. Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy! 

This year our gifts have an "International Paper" themed Christmas due to John's work schedule.

 

 now, how many people can say they literally MADE their wrapping paper!?

our tree skirt

ornaments on the mantel

stockings hung by the chimney with care

I love white poinsettias

Christmas mugs just waiting for coffee

Nativity given to me by John's mom

everyone needs a glittery wreath right?

ornaments on the dining room table

Merry Christmas to all! And to all a good night!

Eye Candy

This room makes me absolutely swoon...I came across this image on www.housebeautiful.com and it was love at first sight! I love everything about it. Funny how sometimes something just strikes a cord! The design is comfortable, simple, clean, classic and in my humble opinion has the perfect amount of color and texture.

Our bedroom is "Alexandria Beige" by Benjamin Moore. Pretty darn close if you ask me! Sadly for now, the paint color is about as close as I get to this "inspiration room"!


I am a sucker for neutrals, but I LOVE the touches of orange in the coverlet and arrangement.

Hmm...now I just need a headboard...two chairs...side tables...chest...new lamps..mirror..arrangent. darn. And I would say I need a fabulous chandelier but the good news (for John and our piggy bank!) is that this southern gal requires a ceiling fan(gasp)!

...well, at least I have the (almost)wall color and a bed with cream linens!
A girl can dream right?!

Fireplace Facelift

The Before.....

I made my dramatic entrance and immediately failed the very few readers I have by only writing one post....

BUT...The LJM has been very busy since the last post. One morning after John left for work last week I could not help but notice that the tile on the fireplace was looking at me funny. I have always despised the terrible maroon-ish, cheap, ceramic tile, but this day I hated it even more than normal and decided that I could not take it any more! I started ripping out the tile on the hearth and hoped that John wouldn't be too upset when he got home and discovered that I was destroying his house.

He came home and luckily he was not mad. That night I tore out the tile around the surround with full confidence that this would be a "do it myself project". I was already thinking about how proud I would be when I accomplished such a big task ALL by myself. Sadly, when I tore the surround out I learned that the original installer of the tile applied it directly to the Sheetrock.....so basically I was not only ripping out the tile, but also pretty much the wall! Oops!

I called my Dad and explained the situation. He told me several things to get at Lowe's or Home Depot. With confidence that I still had everything under control I headed to Home Depot to get everything I needed to continue on my little "project". I was so sad as I starred at the shelves and shelves of boystuff starring back at me. Even with my dad's excellent description I had NO clue what I needed to buy. Boo.... I was sad.

I called Dad back and told him I could not find what I needed and for some reason became way to shy to ask for help so I returned home with nothing.....sigh...and Dad said he would come help me the next day! Hooray!!!

Dad got to Montgomery around 9. I think the description of the remains of the fireplace I gave him the day before somewhat lived up to the destruction he discovered when he got here...He poked, tapped and studied the fireplace and told me to get a pen and paper. Immediately he listed several things we would need from the store. I jotted them down and we headed to Home Depot.

Dads are smart, but my Dad is very smart...he can read the labels of the boy stuff at Home Depot and understands what they say! He knew just what to buy. Our favorite purchase was "Wonderboard"....and it is incredible! He asked if I had ever heard of wonderboard and I told him I think I used to have a bra by them but some reason I don't think that is exactly what he meant....Wonderboard fixed the surround I destroyed and made it even better than new!

We worked and worked and worked and worked...Dad left at dark and the fireplace is ALMOST done! I still have to get a wet saw to cut thin tiles for both sides of the hearth and a piece for underneath the firebox opening. Then I will move on to grouting....YIKES! I will post the finished product, but our process pictures will have to do for now!

Barley helped us all day and was very happy with our progress. He loves spending time helping his mom and granddad.

Dad carefully evaluating my destruction......

The Mantle must go....

measure twice cut once

Hooray for Wonderboard!

tiling begins.....

The "Almost finished" after!