*Lyrics from Love Is Greed by Passion Pit from their newly released album Gossamer. I first heard Passion Pit in Boston, during my summer of art, and therefore I will always associate them with my darling roommate, the light and happy mood of summer vacations, and creativity and joy. Good on them for releasing another album in the summer, especially when I’m feeling particularly vacation-y and creative. It’s as if they planned it that way.
House Tour: Family Bath
To continue with the grand tour of the home, let’s take a rest in the restroom. At least, the main one on the second floor. This room has been the trickiest one to photograph since all of the corners are occupied with things like, oh, bathtubs, toilets and cabinetry. But it’s efficient, and feels luxurious even if it isn’t ginormous like modern bathrooms tend to be (I mean, how much room does one really need to get ‘er done?). It’s one of my favorite rooms in the entire house, partly because I put in so much sweat equity into it, and partly because we worked with what we had, and took it from blech to beautiful.
BEFORE: The pedestal sink was pretty much the only thing worth saving in the bathroom (and we did in fact save it and use it again at my mom's condo), but the entire room was ill-planned and inefficient. And ugly. There, I said it.
What we started with was clearly the best that the people in the late 1980s thought they could do – vinyl tub surround, square floor tile with dark grout (dark grout is a trend again, and NOT one that I’ll embrace anytime soon), awkward wall and sink placement that made it nearly impossible to get to one of the windows (and created a pocket of dead space), an inefficient toilet, and no counter space, with virtually no storage. We ended up having not only shelves, but also a wall-long cabinet built-in to house toiletries, baskets (as drawers), towels, cleaning supplies, the radiator, and even a spot for magazines and toilet paper. The entire thing was custom built in place, incredibly challenging to paint (my bruised knees, legs and arms did not thank me), and completely worth every back-breaking moment.
AFTER: Halogen recessed and pendant lighting illuminate the crema marfil marble floors, the white built-in cabinet, and the new, highly efficient toilet. So much better.
We also had the shower tiled (the existing surround was so grimy and gross!), put in radiant heating beneath new marble tile floors, installed recessed ceiling lights when we had the whole house rewired, and even splurged on a snazzy pendant to hang above the sink. All in all, with the art from etsy, the striped paint treatment on the walls, and the fresh paint on all the surfaces, we ended up with an elegant, efficient family bathroom that’s welcoming to everyone. I love it, and I hope you do to.
And what’s a tour without pictures? Enjoy! xoxo
