Now I know what people mean when they say home renovations always snowball. You start off planning to renovate one area, but the plan quickly “snowballs” (gains momentum) to include other areas until you are overwhelmed (and broke). If this post sounds familiar it is because a previous post complained about RENOVATIONS at our cottage that had the same snowball effect.
On the home front, we started off by deciding to renovate our main floor powder room. Our eldest son is getting married this summer, so that was our (my) incentive. By renovating, I mean totally gutting it, removing everything, then painting, then flooring then installing a new vanity, toilet, mirror, lighting etc. That was the plan, but…
When ordering flooring for this powder room we decided to add to the order so we would be able to use the same flooring in our front hallway. This hallway, between our front, side, and garage doors is a high-traffic area, so we wanted something very resilient, but nice looking. We chose a glueless “Luxury Vinyl Tile” (LVT) called Allure Ultra Locking Tile that supposedly “clicked together very easily.”
The flooring arrived before the vanity, granite countertop, and toilet for the bathroom, so we decided to start with the hallway before we tackled the bathroom.
Hallway Renovation
The first thing we did in the hallway was to remove everything from the hall closet including the shelving there. The piles of coats, jackets, shoes, and boots are now (still) in my living room and dining room.
Then came the fun job of replacing the shelving and repairing the scuffed-up paint in the closet area. Repainting the whole house will come later, to match the color I chose for the bathroom walls…
We used a roll-out underlay on top of the subfloor to cushion the tile and prevent any imperfections in the subfloor from showing through. Sections of this were taped together to ensure they would not shift when installing the tile. Next, we figured out the pattern we wanted the tile to be in. (you do not want your lines to line up) For obvious reasons, it is best to do this before you start laying the tile.
I love the color, (a taupe and gray pattern) the durability, and the comfort of the flooring product we chose, but it sure was a lot harder to install than we were led to believe. Of course, our hallway is not a perfect square or rectangle (lots of indentations/obstacles), and the walls are not perfectly square/straight, which meant we had to measure and cut lots of pieces to fit. This is where the slogan “measure twice, cut once” comes in. Fortunately, I am married to a very precise, handyman.
The hallway flooring is installed and the new closet doors have arrived. The next step in the hallway project is to install rods and shelving, put the clothes back in, and the doors on. New baseboards, door stops, and ceiling lights will be the finishing touches…
Bathroom Renovation
On to the bathroom. Everything was removed; out with the old (vanity, toilet, medicine cabinet/mirror, light, flooring, and paint). The new vanity, granite countertop, back, and side splashes, as well as the sink, toilet, mirror, and lights, are all here, somewhere.
with some repairs and preparation (including rerouting the plumbing because it would not fit behind the new vanity) with plum-colored walls painted a neutral taupe shade…
Next, came the new flooring, the same taupe and gray pattern we used in the hallway…
and finally, in with the new features…
The only thing that returned to the room is a picture on the wall. I think I will pick the deep purple color of the trilliums in the picture as my accent color for towels, soap dish, garbage can etc…
Stage two of our home renovation is now complete! Our main floor powder room has been transformed from drab, boring, and outdated into a beautiful, stylish, and modern room. The snowball is still growing and gathering momentum, while our renovation budget is shrinking. I hope we can convince ourselves to replace the carpeting with hardwood.
That’s it for now, I for one am hoping the snowball keeps growing…
