Wow! What a week it has been! It’s only Wednesday and our upstairs bathroom renovation is well underway. Day 2 is complete and I’m here with an update. We started the day with purchasing a new tub and crown molding. Yesterday, I spoke about our decision to demo the bathtub. It was scary to know what we’d find and how we’d address it. But we couldn’t live with it. New floors, planked walls, and a old, custom bathtub. No, thanks! Thankfully, everyone was on board with this decision and it was removed successfully.
Bathtub Before Demo
It was only until yesterday that I came to the realization the WE GUTTED THE BATHROOM! I’ll be honest and say that was not my original thought. However, now that we’ve moved forward with it, there was no other way to do it. If we would have left the tub, we wouldn’t have been completely happy with the project at it’s completion. So, here we are two days into the renovation and I love it all. If the tub wasn’t demoed, I’d be seriously considering why I didn’t remove it.
New Bathtub / Cement Board Installation
Another update to share is the planked walls. Originally, we talked about planking the opposite wall of one of the vanities. There is a ledge that comes over that wall, so it’s unique. Great place to plank a wall, right? Yes! Over the weekend, I thought more and more about the wood planked walls and wondered if that was the only place we should have the wood. We thought it would also be fitting to add wood behind both vanities. That would make three planked wood walls. For now, it’s my favorite feature in the bathroom. Once the floors go down, I’m not sure which feature I’ll love the most. When I say I’ve tried to think of everything, I’ve thought of EVERYTHING. I could do this for a living!
Planked Wood Wall with Ledge
Planked Wood Wall with Ledge
The last update is that we have the makings of a custom vanity in the works. I’m positive that I’ll be happy with the wood vanity. It’s just countertop that we’re not sure about. Butcher block, quartz, marble, concrete…what to choose? The good thing is we don’t have to decide today so I have some time to price options and decide. The bathroom won’t be functioning with countertops so, I better get on it!
Vanity Area with Planked Wood Wall / Custom Vanity in Progress
Lesson Learned
One thing I’ve learned is that when you choose something custom, it’s just that – custom. The vision of what you want may only be in your head. Be open.
There will likely be no images of what you need or what works for your specifications on Pinterest. I had this vision for the vanity, but that wasn’t necessarily accurate. I had these images of vanities I had pinned, printed, even drew out. But still none of them were exactly what I needed. They were just ideas. I thought I’d have this open vanity with beautiful white flooring underneath it. However, with the specifications of the vanity area, it made sense to add a kick plate to the vanity. It would be too difficult to clean underneath the vanity and you wouldn’t be able to see much underneath there anyway. Little decisions that change the design, but that make sense are a part of the custom process.
So, the custom vanity is in progress. I’m confident in the person that we hired to do the work and that helps a ton with the process. I’m a good visionary, maybe a little too much sometimes. But, this custom vanity is making me stay open in the design area. I think I already a small change to it. YIKES!
Vanity Area with Planked Wood Wall / Custom Vanity in Progress
Today is an off day and I’ll probably head to one store or two to get some prices for countertops. I need not one, but two countertops, so I’m not expecting to find anything budget friendly.
What do you think after Day 2? Any suggestions for countertops?
-Crystal