Tag Archives: remodel

06.27.13

Did you know we were smack dab in the middle of a bathroom remodel?  We tore into it on a whim one night, and excitedly tackled the rebuild.  Then we reminded you that we hadn’t given up and now I am here to tell you why.

Tile.  Tile is why our progress has stalled.

At first we couldn’t agree on tile, and then we couldn’t afford it.

Then we decided to focus our attention on the outside of our house while we saved our pennies.  We are still saving by the way, but at least there is a clear winner in the tile department and that gives us a goal to shoot for.  We are now taking donations, kidding of course…but if you know Mr. Trump maybe send him this link.

At least we have learned from our rookie mistake.  Set a budget BEFORE you start a project and don’t start it until you know you got those materials on lock down.

Luckily, T’s dad keeps us motivated when he surprises us by swinging by and Red Guarding our shower. who wants to buy us some bathroom tile Now we really are just waiting on that tile.  Any day now.  I promise.

Have you ever had a project stall out?
Do you have expensive tile taste?
Wanna come tile a bathroom with us?

Written by Christina and Tim
05.16.13

Have you discovered The Bagster yet?

The coolest thing to happen to DIY since the nail gun.

We had a lot of debris left over from our bathroom demolition, as well as mountains of boxes.  According to Christina, it is not ok to hoard empty boxes.  Even if I am just saving them in case we want to return our 4-year-old tv, I guess she has never heard the term “mint-ish in box”.

If you’ve ever rented a dumpster, you know it can be costly.  With lots of restrictions and even more neighbors sneaking their trash in there.  When we saw The Bagster at that one blue store Christina mentioned seeing a few posts raving about it.  So we picked one up, and the rest is history. THE BAGSTER Buying the bag was only $30 and it gave us the motivation we needed to clean up by awkwardly staring at us from the foyer.  We tore that green bag open and got to work. SETTING UP THE BAGSTER Most of the empty boxes were calling the basement home, so I considered it my leg day while Christina broke down the boxes. BAGSTER TAKES CARE OF BATHROOMS After about an hour we had The Bagster filled to the brim. A VERY FULL BAGSTER You have to make sure that the straps can touch for pickup, so I had my beautiful helper “trash surf” and “smoosh” everything down while I zip-tied the hefty yellow straps together. SMOOSH IT IN THERE Once we were done, I was able to schedule pick up online in less than five minutes which cost a bit over $100.  I also called to make sure we could get pictures of it being hauled away to prove how tough these bags are. THE BAGSTER GOT AWAY The first weekend we planned to Bagster my lady took off work on Monday so she could be home for the photo-op.  Too bad we decided that a garage sale and Bagstering in one day would probably kill us dead.  So instead, she spent the day relaxing (and making wind chimes).

When we finally did get all the trash in the Bagster, I told Christina that I would stay home for photos.  Cue the suspenseful music.

I waited and waited.  Bagster gives you a three day window but they were nice enough to schedule ours for that Monday since we told them we wanted to be home.  I stayed alert, I stayed vigilant.

Ok, in all honesty I was playing Angry Birds when out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.  Away to the window I flew like a flash, tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.  When what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a large green truck with our bag in the rear.

In case you missed that, I missed it.

I didn’t want to face the humiliation, so I grabbed the camera and grabbed that one lonely photo of the truck driving away.  I considered chasing him down the street and asking for a reenactment, I’m kidding I would never.

I think it is safe to assume that since there is no trash in our driveway, that the Bagster is a sturdy sucker.  It is also safe to assume that the drivers are speedy and awesome.

We give the Bagster two thumbs way up.  It was easy, less expensive than a dumpster, and we are officially empty-box free.

Have you ever used a Bagster?
Are you a box hoarder?
Craving Christmas poems now?

Written by Christina and Tim
03.21.13

Bathroom inspiration...

Posted by Christina // 4 Replies

You already know that we tore apart our bathroom after a casual trip to Lowes.

And that we are struggling with finishing decisions….to trend or not to trend.

Today, I want to share a whole lot of inspiration with you….just in case you are having second thoughts about that bathroom of yours.

Can we first talk about the “inspiration” you can find on the internet though.  Please raise your hand if you have a bathroom the size of my basement because according to the interweb this is totally normal.  You should have two showers, and a ten foot vanity, and a sofa…and can I get a hot tub.  Somehow we got jipped with just one sink, and no room for a Lazyboy.  Lame.

I think a lot of these inspiration photos can be scaled down, and elements can be used in smaller spaces.  If we are being honest, I am dreaming that the lottery ticket I bought yesterday is a winner so that I can hand the photos below to a builder and say, “I’ll take one of each”.

Come on lucky numbers….

I love so much about this first bathroom.  From the arches creating a “built-in” shower to the mirror that wraps into recessed shelving.  That vanity is right up our alley as well.  Did you notice the sink faucet is on the wall, now that is fancy.

Tim and I are throwing the “horizontal built-in shower shelf” around a lot these days.  We pin them and email them and dream of gorgeous accent tiles in the back of  them.  I love the oversized shower head and T is feeling the “hidden” storage above the toilet.
Am I the only one that hasn’t seen a towel bar on the side of a vanity?  I think it is genius, Tim says that’s old news.  Either way how fun are the insides of that vanity?  Put that on the to-do list.
This next bathroom is not really the look we are going for, and I generally am not a fan of mosaic tile but can you imagine showering in a pearl.  Seriously, that’s what it would be like…a shimmery oyster shower without the fish smell.  We really love the frameless shower doors, keeping our fingers crossed that they are in the budget.
Still in love with herringbone….enough said.
We love all the different tile going on in this bathroom, and how cohesively they mix.  This makes me want a window so badly, I long to hear the bird chirping while I condition my hair.  Maybe one day.
Another image that solidifies my love for subway tile.  Swoonity swoon swoon.
I don’t think I can talk Tim into this but I’m obsessed with those hanging light fixtures.  We looked at tile similar to this but worried that with no natural light the room would feel dark and gloomy.  We are suckers for contrast.
I know this isn’t technically a bathroom….but I wanted to give you a peek at the kindle that started our “glass tile and stainless” fire.
For more of our bathroom inspiration, check out our Houzz ideabooks.

 

Have you stumbled  on any great bathroom ideas?
I got some great ideas from our Facebook fans (thanks guys)!

 

Written by Christina and Tim