Happenings, part three: The Hall Bathroom

Click to see part one and part two first, if you would like!


Ah, the hideousness that was our hall bathroom when we moved in.


If you need any more proof than just my word, take a look for yourself:



Such a lovely green color on the walls....accented, of course, by the 30-year-old toilet and and even older sink, light, and vanity!

I suppose I should have prefaced all of these construction posts by saying, in case you haven't already guessed, that we purchased a fixer-upper when we bought this house. We did this intentionally--we got a great deal on this house, and you know, Shane being a carpenter and all--but of course, that means that we had a lot of work in store for us....

This was actually one of our first projects. Not intentionally....we came in on moving day and cleaned (with the help of my sweet mommy and my unbelievably wonderful friend Sarah) from top to bottom. Sarah scrubbed everything in this bathroom and my mom scrubbed the floor until both of their knuckles were raw, and they both did an incredible job. All of the visible dirt was gone from every nook and cranny.

Did you catch that? I said, all visible dirt was gone.

What I never realized before I moved into our current home was that steam can reveal all kinds of evils. On our second night here, Shane and I discovered that the heat from the shower was bringing all kinds of....let's suffice it to say, nastiness....down our walls. See, the former owners here were smokers, and apparently, even the cleaning agents that we used on our bathroom were unable to cut the nicotine that had been happily residing on the walls for who knows how many years.

So, we dove headfirst into our first project--painting the hall bathroom with 2 coats of KILZ primer--just for the time being, until we could get to the real makeover.

Hall bath after it's mini makeover:

It was much better for the time being, yet, still somehow....hideous.

Old vinyl flooring (nice, huh?)

Old sink, vanity, mirror, and light
Old shower surround and shower doors

About a year after we got here, the real construction finally began. It was an exciting day, to say the least!

Ripping out the hideous old 'fake' wall tile

Old flooring ripped out, and installation of new plumbing just getting started! Just ask Shane....this is his favorite (read with major, major sarcasm) part of projects--the plumbing!

Daddy's big 'helpers'

Installation of new plywood subflooring....Colin felt like hanging out in the tub to watch Daddy for a little while, and of course, help whenever he was needed

Plywood in!

Ripping out old shower surround and old plumbing

Ripping out all the old shower drywall and surround

Installation of new, water-resistant shower drywall (as an underlayment for the tile)

Front half of shower
Back half

Installation of shower wall tile--Shane made up the design himself of course!

Installation of tile flooring

Grouting tile floor

Grout all done, tile cleaned and looking great!

Painting begins--here is the first primer coat

Primer coat is on! I included this picture specifically so that you would be able to see the texture that Shane put on the walls. It is so amazing looking...it reminds me of an old Italian villa, which is right up my alley!

(You will be able to see the "look" even better in the after shots!)

Beginning the faux-finish on the walls

And, because I know someone will probably ask....this is simply a yellow base paint color with a very dark brown glaze applied over the top. The texture "catches" the color and gives a great depth to the look of the walls. You end up not with one color, but several different shades in the same color palette. Awesome results! We love faux-finishing, and you will be able to see more of it in the coming posts!
Walls finished

Wall above the shower

And now, presenting...the finished result!!

Ah, a little Italian getaway every time I take a shower....one of my favorite "afters" of all so far, and well worth all the effort I put in, I must say! *giggle*

Have I mentioned that my husband is awesome?