Learning Patience

Well, 2020 has been quite the ride, hasn’t it? As of writing this, it will be 30 more days before we can look at 2020 in the rear view mirror. I know I’m not the only one to say I’m not sad to see it go. For me, 2020 has been a year to learn patience. I’ve had to learn more patience in almost every aspect of my life: from learning to buy groceries a new way, to having multiple plans of trips and gatherings and events postponed or canceled, to trying to understand and navigate my family member’s mental health issues, to propping up my own morale, to dealing with a dog with autoimmune issues, to keeping everyone minimally healthy and entertained and fed; and, more pertinent to this blog, to getting projects fully completed during a time of unrest and unease.

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As always, the fun and challenge of redesigning and redecorating kept me going through some darker days. I was actually thrilled at the prospect that we could do a pretty dramatic refresh of our bathroom for under $2000, and since we were more familiar with the process from doing the guest bathroom, I knew more what to expect. The biggest expense would be the countertops (which we’d saved two-thirds of by reusing our kitchen granite), followed by the shower door, and then the fixtures (which we got online very reasonably after comparing prices with the big box stores). We figured we could swing that budget, and my husband could do the tile repair, staining, sink and fixture installation, touch-up painting, etc. Though the glass shower door would be big and heavy, the two of us could manage it together.

So, here are some photos of the bathroom from when we moved into the house.

Ridiculous expanse of cold, noisy tile and unwelcoming bathtub

Dated, broken, ugly shower door which minimized access and space within

Formica countertops, damaged mirrors, dated lighting, damaged sinks and fixtures

It was not horrible, but like the guest bath, there was golden oak overwhelm, mirror overwhelm, and Hollywood light overwhelm. We hadn’t used the tub partially because it just felt uninviting to sit in such a sterile-looking space. If we had gone with a complete remodel, we would have reconfigured the vanity entirely, and raised the countertop level to a current standard 33”-36” height. We also would have replaced the huge mirrors, as they are worn and have lost their backing on the edges closest to the backsplash. The sinks definitely needed to be replaced, as one was cracked, and the other had many, many years of petrified “gunk” around the edges and the faucets. The faucets themselves were worn and calcified, and the brass had been damaged. We would have gone with better lighting, too, requiring a full electrical overhaul. We also would probably have ripped out the tub and either replaced it with a slipper tub, or just made it into a large shower, saving the current shower space for storage. But we weren’t prepared to do all that, and we now knew some great shortcuts to truly transform the look and make it more functional without breaking the bank:

Replace the sinks with vessel sinks to bring the functional height of the sink up closer to standard
Replace the three-hole faucet fixtures with more elegant and simpler single-hole faucets
Stain the golden oak with black gel stain
Create a tile backsplash border to cover the mirror damage and add some nuance and elegance to the granite
Replace the dated and damaged sliding shower doors with a clear glass pivot door; place it differently so that we gain another couple of inches of shower space
Add linen shades to the light fixtures and replace bulbs with LED bulbs
Replace the ceiling fixture over the tub with a brass pendant (one that we had bought at Ikea for a different project, but never used)
Deep clean, repair, caulk and seal, touch up and decorate

It’s been four months since the guest bathroom was completed, and three and a half months since we hauled all our towels and toiletries to the guest bath and started tearing apart the master bathroom (or “owners’ bathroom” as it’s now more politically-correctly called these days). Once again, our granite guy, Benny, put us under an initial deadline to demo the vanity, so that first step—the installation of the new (old kitchen) countertops went very quickly.

In his element

My husband is obviously the brawn (and half the brain) of these projects, and he loves the demolition. The laborious and detailed staining of the cabinetry in our new favorite General Finishes black gel stain? Not so much. But he did complete the part that had to be done before the countertop installation. The countertops and backsplash went in without a hitch, and we managed to use all but a small 2’ x 1 ½’ slab of the kitchen granite.

We had to reclaim the granite top from an outdoor table my husband had made, but it was worth it; Benny managed to find us a beautiful slab of white and grey granite to replace it, and finished it for the table for almost nothing.

But my husband is more-than-slightly ADD. Subsequent weekends were spent on random things like ordering new flooring that was on deep discount for our next project. Then there was an ice storm that took down hundreds of large tree branches in our area and he and I spent a couple of weekends and some evenings cutting branches and hauling debris to the curb for some elderly neighbors, then cutting and gathering firewood from other neighbors who didn’t need the wood. Another weekend was spent just running errands. There were a million interruptions, and most of the time, the bathroom looked like this:

And, to be fair, there were also unexpected setbacks. The old plumbing started leaking when we removed the old sinks, and corroded valves had to be repaired or replaced. When he took off the old shower doors and the faucet handle to clean, re-grout, and caulk, the shower cartridge sprung a leak that forced us to turn off the whole house’s water for an entire weekend (plus a couple of days before the plumbers could get to us!); the plumbers had to access it by cutting a hole in the drywall of the toilet closet, another thing for my husband to repair. Then shower door we had ordered came in damaged and we had to send it back and wait for another one.

The glass subway tile we were going to use for a border got broken in delivery and had to be returned.

Everything we did took twice as long as the time we’d budgeted for it. Every bit of progress was hard-earned.

In the meantime I curated and framed prints from some old art books, found some favorite photos and children’s artwork (from both my son and me), plus the artwork from a dear friend, and got it ready to hang.

I ordered a rug that I hoped would both warm our feet and buffer the sound in the cavernous space. I bought a bamboo plant and repotted it. I polished two matching antique silver trays and some silver candlesticks we had found for a steal at the ReStore.

And I waited. On Thanksgiving Day, my husband announced confidently that he would finish the bathroom that weekend. I raised an eyebrow and said nothing. Something would come up, I just knew it.

But, lo and behold, he was good to his word. I hauled all our toiletries back and arranged everything on the trays. And I opened the boxed rug—a surprise for him—and spread it out on the floor. It was perfect. It pays to be patient.

See for yourself: