State of the Bathroom

Been a while since I've mentioned the bathroom, eh? Well the "improvements" have begun. Here is a preview.



Notice the lovely framing on the wet wall. I think a team of monkeys with hammers could have done a better job. This means that I will have to rip out this wall, which is shared with my closet. Boo for having to move my threads!

During the demo we had a fun time that included throwing a sink out of a second story window as well as breaking the waterline heading to the toilet, resulting in water gushing through the pendant lights in the kitchen. Fun times.

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For bathroom vanities I found a couple I like better than ikea, and they are a good deal. I like Exhibit A & B, but they won't be available until mid-July. :-( That leaves exhibit C, which is looking swanky is available now and is similar in price to an ikea set-up. All sets include the vanity, mirror, shelves, countertops, sinks and even the faucets.

Exhibit A:



Exhibit B:



Exhibit C:

Die Wall, Die!

This is what happens when you forget to add some thingamabobbers behind the wall before drywalling and have to cut a hole into your newly painted wall. The 50" uber TV will be mounted this week!

We also ordered the hardwood floors. It will take until Mid-July to arrive, but we think it's worth it. Check out it's Imperial Teak hawtness. We had talked about Brazilian Cherry before but thought they may be a bit too red'ish for my tastes. After that we liked Brazilian Walnut, but the teak was a little bit cheaper, less red, and we just liked the grain better. Who knows, maybe we'll change our mind in another week because we're finicky like that.



The Queen's brother helped out this weekend by painting the ceiling. He succesfully coated the ceiling, and his face with paint splatter. He did a great job on both accounts, and his help was greatly appreciated. :-)

Gratuitous Loki shot!

MCM & Family Expansion

When offered a blank slate of a house, like mine, there are lots of options. At times too many options. As renovations proceed we are forced to determine our own design and decorating. Luckily the Queen and I have very similar tastes. We are not beige walls with brown furniture type of people, thus places like the local furniture store make me cringe.

The style we've honed in on is Mid Century Modern (MCM) and contemporary. One of the great things about this era is that there seems to be a decent supply of MCM furniture that is well made (solid wood construction), in pretty good condition, and for a price that is comparable to the MDF furniture at your local store. Oh, and it looks cool. :-) We decided we aren't farmhouse, bauhaus, or even baroque style people. At least not for a row house. This doesn't mean a few pieces of these styles won't make their way in, but the main theme is MCM.

In following our MCM theme, we've been scouring ebay and craigslist for good MCM stuff. We've thus far purchased a teak vanity for upstairs (not shown), a teak chair and ottoman with white cushions, a teak rocker w/ the bright blue cushion, and some teak nesting tables. Are you sensing a teak theme? We are. We figure the teak nesting tables will come in handy, as we can spread them around the room when company is over, but keep them nested when it's just us around. The Queen has been lusting after a rocking chair, so we had to pick one up. I also ordered a lamp from west elm that looks like it's made from antlers. If it were up to me I'd put a deer head on the wall, but the Queen vetoed this, allowing me the fake antlers for now. :-)



At times I wonder if my parents will find our style funny. Will they walk into the house and think it looks dated? In another 10 years will we look back at pictures and say, "what were we thinking?". Maybe so, but for now I think it will look pretty good, and hopefully the pieces we buy will hold their value.

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In unrelated news, we got a dog from the pound. His name is Loki. :-)

Bad Blogger!

While real life has been exhilerating, work on the house is at a stand still. This weekend the Queen and I tackle painting downstairs and who knows what else. A 50" plasma arrives tomorrow, so we need to get the paint up so we can hang it and move on with life.

Since productivity sucks I can at least show you what Zion looked like. We already want to go back and hike the Narrows and the Subway.











Unfortunately we didn't make it to Antelope Canyon, but after driving uber-hours the day before we didn't feel like being in the car for 8 hours the next day. Hopefully next time we're out there we can stop by. :-)