Monday, November 28, 2011

Bathroom Renovation Complete

This past summer the shower in our master bathroom developed a leak, and since we were going to need some repairs, we decided it was time to finally get rid of the black tile that covered the floor and shower. I did not like the tile when we bought our home over four years ago, however we had not yet had an opportunity (or reason) to make that renovation. The shower leak provided a reason and we decided it was the perfect opportunity.

Overall, the bathroom has a nice design - two sinks, a jetted tub, glassed in shower, separated toilet area, and room to move around. Here's how it looked before we started the renovation.



The shower job turned out to be quite extensive - the contractors had to take it down to the studs and completely rebuild the walls and shower floor, which involved a couple of layers of new concrete! Here's how it looked during the renovation.





Although the contractors only took three weeks to complete their part of the job (removing all the old tile & shower, rebuilding the shower, and re-tiling the shower & floor), the clean-up and detail work added another several weeks to the job.

First, we had to order the glass shower enclosure, which required two visits from another contractor - one visit to take the measurements and another visit about a week and a half later to install the enclosure.

Second, we had to clean everything because of the dust disaster. While we had everything out of the bathroom, Robbie and I also cleaned out the P Traps under both sinks (my sink was starting to drain a little too slow).

Third, we decided to have the walls, cabinets and trim re-painted because I wasn't satisfied with how they looked even after cleaning everything several times. Since I also had everything out of the master closet, we had the closet painted as well.

Fourth, we purchased a new toilet, which Robbie installed along with a new water line leading to it.

Fifth, we added solar tinting to the window because that side of the house gets full sun all year. We installed that one Saturday, then hung a new mini-blind and re-hung the cute curtain that my sister made for me a couple of years ago.

And finally, we put everything back in place, adding a new clock and baskets to hold washcloths & hand towels. Here's how it looks now.



I smile every time I walk in and see the new tile. I especially like the small tiles we chose for the shower floor & accent strip. The total renovation took about two a half months, however there were only about three weeks of that when we weren't able to use that bathroom at all. It was a little longer before we could use the shower simply because we had to wait on the enclosure. It was definitely worth the inconvenience to get rid of that black tile (and have the shower completely repaired re-built correctly).

Have you had any renovations done lately? Was the inconvenience worth it when it was all complete?

12 comments:

  1. It looks very smart! I think having two basins is the ultimate luxury

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  2. That new tile is so much brighter and happier! A definite improvement!

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  3. Your remodel looks gorgeous! I remember when we did some remodeling a few years back, the process is tiring, (all the dust and mess), but the outcome is so exciting! Send some of your Christmas spirit this way. I know I will get there, it just hasn't happened yet. Hope you share your upcoming projects. :)

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  4. Love the renovation! Our bathroom has needed one for quite some time now. Maybe, just MAYBE after the first of the year. And yes! All the mess and cleaning up would definitely be worth it! LOL

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  5. Wow, it looks so much bigger with the lighter tile, and that shower is awesome! My mother in-law is re-doing her kitchen and bathroom to be more senior-friendly, and the mess and dust are something else.

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  6. Love how the shower turned out! I had grand plans once upon a time to renovate my bathrooms. I have a tiny stall shower and I HATE it. There is room to make it much bigger so I would have done that....if not for being laid off. The renovations money funded my 2.5 year vacation. So no construction for me. I bet you are so happy to have it done! :)

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  7. I'll let you know when ours is finished if it was worth it! We reach the 18 month mark next week!

    I love your shower tile, it makes a big difference to the room.

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  8. We need to do our main bathroom over too, but I'm not looking forward to the whole process!

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  9. Oh, Melissa, it looks wonderful - the new tile is so much richer and warmer and inviting. I bet you are really, really glad to have it all done. It sounds like did a lot of things as far as preventive maintenance while you were at it - smart! I have workmen coming on Thursday to measure for a new shower door for our master bath. I am assured that it will be a piece of cake. Keep your fingers crossed for me, won't you.

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  10. Your bathroom looks wonderful. I really like the two sinks that are separate - great idea. I hope you are enjoying having that big project done.

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  11. Oh wow, Melissa, it turned out beautiful! I wish we even had the option of redoing ours but because of the design we'd never even be able to get anything out of or into the space. I think it will really hurt when we go to sell in a few years. I want a bathroom like yours :)

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  12. What a transformation! I love the shower tiles as well. Our kitchen was finally finished over Thanksgiving. Just waiting for the blinds to come in.

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Thanks so much for your comment - it's like a ray of sunshine in my day!