Guest Blog Before & After

Please welcome Michele Ginnerty from My Notting Hill!  Michele has been so warm andwelcoming to me as a local DC blogger & I can't thank her enough.  She sent me this post months ago and I had to push it to the end of the guest blogger series because I had formatting issues and she's waited so patiently for me to post...

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A huge thank you to Lauren for asking me to participate in the Guest Blogger Before & After series. I couldn't help but think after she uploaded my post w/these very scary pepto bismol pictures of my master bath that she might have second thoughts about having asked me. (I can't even believe I'm letting people see this!) And, here's what's even scarier - we lived with this bathroom for 10 years (!) although the crazy peeling paint problem happened within the last 6 months.

 
These pictures were taken in the midst of sanding and scraping, just before all the fixtures were removed. The previous owners had leveled the "vanity" with pennies.

 
The room is 4' w x 5' d with a shower off to the right side. The overhang to the shower trapped in steam and made the 30" square shower feel even smaller. For a number of years, we seriously considered having the bathroom gutted and completely redone. These 1950's ceramic wall and floor tiles are set right into mud and typically take close to two full days to bring down to the studs. My husband has already done so much to the house that asking him to do this wasn't an option and contractor quotes for the demolition alone ranged from $1,500 - $4,000. Plus, I really like the look of the old black bullnose tiles. In fact, if the pink tiles had been white I wouldn't have even considered demolition.

 
Since I had a successful experience painting the trim tiles in our hall bath from ugly seafoam green to gray, I decided to paint the pink tiles white. I used two thin coats of Sherwin Williams Prep-Rite Interior/Exterior Bonding Primer and two coats of Benjamin Moore Decorator's White. I know there are specially formulated paints for ceramic but I didn't want to be exposed to the fumes. Plus, these tiles won't regularly come into contact with water.

 
For years I had kept my eye out for a narrow vanity. This year Ikea came out with the Lillangen, which offers both concealed storage and creative two-sided open storage. This model is 24"w x 16"d x 36" h. I bought the beech version because I find the wood finish is easier to paint than the white melamine option.

 
The cabinet is painted Farrow & Ball's Pavillion Gray and the walls and ceiling are Benjamin Moore's Bunny Gray. The floors are 1 x 1 Bianco Carrara honed marble surrounded by a border of 3 x 6 honed subway Bianco Carrara.

 
I don't have it pictured here but we had a Panasonic Whisper ceiling exhaust fan installed. We were so happy with the Toto Aquia Dual Flush we put into our hall bath that we used it again here.

 
The Ikea sink only had one opening and I wanted to avoid a single lever faucet so I chose Porcher's Reprise faucet in chrome. The handles are labeled hot and cold and they have a nice feel to them. Off to the left is a Bombay Saphire gin bottle converted into a soap dispenser. You might notice the faucet is off center by about a 1/2 inch. I forgot to take into consideration the cold water valve when measuring!

 
I have to admit when we first installed the sink, I wasn't sure I liked it. However, it's extremely functional and there's no longer complaints on my end about water puddles left on the sink counter. So in the end, I really like this style for our narrow bathroom.

 
Here it is with the tray - which is how we really use it. It provides a convenient place for toothpaste and to set down things, etc.

 
What's Still Left to Do: A bit of pink still remains! In the spring I will hire the same company that reglazed our hall tub and have them do the shower tiles in white but keep the black tiles so it will be consistent with the rest of the bathroom. I'm waiting till warmer weather because I want to be able to have all the windows open, with fans blowing out all the fumes created when reglazing is done.

The window needs to be treated and I'm planning to have white vinyl plantation shutters installed. Here they are in our hall bath. The gray trim tiles were seafoam green before being painted gray.
 
Since the walls are looking a bit plain, I'm planning to stencil them for interest and am inspired by this bathroom by Phoebe Howard. Still haven't found the right stencil yet.



Southern Accents, July - August 2008, designer Phoebe Howard, photography by Roger Davies

Breakdown of Cost:

Lillangen cabinet and sink: $229
Mosaic and subway tiles: $740
Installation of floor, labor cost: $800
Porcher faucet: $270
Toto Aquia dual flush - $392 from Cowan Supply in Atlanta
Paint: $100
Ceiling exhaust fan and installation: $400

Total cost so far: $2,931.

Estimate for shutter ($250) and reglazing of shower stall ($400):
$2,931 + $650 = $3,581

Hope this post was helpful for anyone considering another option besides demolition of an outdated bath and that you've recovered from those pepto-pink before photos!

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Michele-  you've done such an awesome job so far!!  The floors are incredible and I love the Ikea sink.  You can't even tell the tiles used to be pink and it's so great that you worked and can't wait to see the stencil!!!

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