Movin' On

Since we made a decision to put our fireplace re-design project on hold until spring, we decided it was time to move on to the next project on our 2011 To-Do List. And what project do you think comes next? Well, it happens to be our 1/2 Bath on the first floor of our house. This is the bathroom that most guests use when they visit, but right now it isn't very guest friendly.

So, we intend to change that in the next 2 WEEKS!!! We have set a goal to have this completed by Saturday, February 5th - just in time for our Super Bowl Party! Here's hoping we can get 'er done on time!

Below is a horrible picture of what the bathroom looked like when we purchased the house (I took this on our first walk-through of the house)...

It included gray plastic tiles on the walls, a horrible wallpaper on the upper half of the walls, cracked floor tiles, light blue painted trim, and this awful light fixture to boot...




We knew a gut job was needed, and we actually started some demolition of the space this past summer. We removed the wallpaper and most of the plastic tiles on the walls (except the tiles right next to the toilet) and have been living with this for the past 6 months...




You can say it: It's FRIGHTENING! I hate using this bathroom. This is why it was a high priority on our to-do list this year.

This type of major renovation is way too complicated for me to tackle much of it. So, Joey will be doing most of the physical labor. I have the joy of picking out most everything being used (with Joey's approval) and will probably do some of the painting and the decorating at the end.

With the wallpaper and wall tile (mostly) removed, we (i.e. Joey) are going to start the next phase of this project by demolishing the tile floor. The tile on the floor is a white and black basket-weave pattern. It is original to the house, very vintage, and is a somewhat popular choice of tile right now. The only problem is that it is falling apart, literally.








So, what are we going to put down in place of the old tile?

I went back and forth on different flooring options for this bathroom. Since most of the first floor is hardwood, I strongly considered hardwood for the bathroom floor. Some people might think it strange to put wood flooring in a bathroom, but since this is a half bath, I thought major water spillage (like a bathtub overflowing) would be unlikely. And therefore, wood would be ok. Plus I have never been a huge fan of tile floors.

However, in the end, I nixed the hardwood idea and decided tile was most practical. And the main thing that brought me to this decision was a website called The Tile Shop. I looked through this site and found the perfect compromise for our bathroom floor - a tile known as "Hickory Vintage Tile" in a 4 X 24 inch pattern.

This is a tile that looks like a hardwood floor! Here is 1 piece of it...




And here is a sample picture of a couple tiles laid together. The picture also shows you the under-side of the tile, which will be grouted down. We'll use a dark brown grout to blend in with the tile color.




The reason I wanted this tile is because our brand new kitchen floor is hickory hardwood. So, the 2 will (should) coordinate perfectly. This will help the first floor of the house feel more cohesive.




We've read many great reviews on this tile product and can't wait to get started tearin' up the old and puttin' down the new!

Actually, we already got started. Stay tuned...



Pssst... To see the pre-demo work that was done in the bathroom this past summer along with a picture of my bathroom design inspiration, click HERE!