Guys!!!!
I am so excited to finally get to share
our big home project!
Did you have any guesses on what it might be?
Drum roll please🥁🥁🥁🥁
Our main bathroom!
Notice the large window that cuts into the shower.
What genius decided to put that there?
Weird random nook between the stairs
and the bathroom.
Demo started and boy was it a job!
The first week of demo was outside the bathroom.
Peek a boo!
He's so cute😍
Then he moved to the ceiling inside the bathroom.
Once he ripped it down you could
see the original ceiling from decades before.
Someone came in and lowered the ceiling
2.5 feet at some point.
We were so excited to raise the ceiling🙌
Next he opened up the wall between the
bathroom and the hall nook.
Derek worked for 2 months straight from
morning until night. Some days he
worked until midnight.
Samson missed him so much
he just hung out in the hall watching him
or sleeping outside the door.
Finally he removed the tub.
It was cast iron and original.
Apparently the only real way to remove
a cast iron tub is using a sledge hammer.
Me and the kids were outside playing while he was
busting it up.
It sounded like bombs going off inside💣😬
Next he removed the 2 large windows.
One from the bathroom and one from the hallway.
Filled them in and we ordered a custom
sized window that was much more appropriate
for a bathroom.
All of the plumbing was moved.
Then all of the electrical was moved.
Then our area was hit a few rounds of
heavy storms and our siding ripped off😭
Everyone said it looked like the house had fingers.
A day later we had even more storms
and i kid you not water was pouring down our
INSIDE walls. It looked like our
walls were crying. It was crazy.
There was a small amount of flooding.
Not only were the walls crying but
so was I.
We removed the siding, sealed it, and custom order
more siding to match.
******************************
Derek really wanted to make me a built in above the toilet.
The wall in that area was already recessed.
Of course I asked for an arched top
which just so happens to be very difficult.
Did you know they don't sell
pieces of wood that are curved🤔
He did his research and decided
to use a piece of drywall.
He slit the drywall every inch,
Not all the way through so one whole side
was still intact.
Then he put it in place and he filled in
the slits with compound.
Sub floors and insulation came next.
The jucuzzi tub went in next!
Of course we had to test it 🛁😊
Fun fact!
While tub shopping we did measurements
of course. We found out that our original
cast iron tub was very petite.
Although at that time it was considered
the normal size.
We had no idea that
it wasn't the size of an average tub.
It was skinnier and much more shallow (by several inches)
then the tubs in today's market.
We were able to get a much deeper and wider tub🙌
Now our tub is bigger than today's standard tub.
It makes a HUGE difference!
The cutest side-kick there ever was💙
Now for the really fun stuff!
Walls, paint, window, and
tileeeeeee!!!!
In true Misti fashion, after Derek had
painted half the bathroom I changed the color
to this beautiful light pink💗
Don't you just love that window?
All the heart eyes😍😍😍😍
It's no question, I am not the typical woman.
You've seen my collections right?
Of course I chose the "vintage style"
black and white tile for the floor!
And I love every inch of it!!!
*For the shower grout we used
charcoal grey and for the floor
we used black*
Now, if your mind isn't already blown,
hold onto your seats!
We looked and looked and looked,
for a vanity that fit what design
I had in my head.
None at the typical home stores.
None at the more fun stores.
And you guessed it,
none online that I really loved.
Apparently I am a difficult woman.🙈
I spent so many hours looking
and I almost gave up and settled.
But in comes my bearded man with
an idea💡💡
(LIGHT BULB in my best Despicable Me voice)
He wanted to convert an antique dresser into
a functioning vanity!
We picked it up on craigslist for $25 bucks.
He took the entire inside apart ,tightened everything up,
and added more sturdy support.
He painted the body, stained the top, and
added outdoor water proof clear sealant.
2 coats on the body and about 6 on the top.
He even cut a large piece off the mirror and attached
it to the top back for a back splash
so water can't get behind the vanity and the wall.
Then he cut a hole in the top
for the sink.
He removed the entire small drawer on the left
Cut the drawer part off and glued the face of
the drawer on.
He stained the inside of the of the drawers and
even added wood pieces for
organization compartments.
He also added gliders to the bottoms
of the drawers so they don't sag
when you pull them out.
It's truly so beautiful!!!
Now back to the built in.
I really wanted a nice trim on the
outside to make it pop.
But just as before, they
don't make trim that arches.
(I asked 😆)
I started searching for something
that Derek could convert into trim
and I found these ceiling medallions.
They have tons of designs and sizes so
it was a matter of finding the right size
and the least busy pattern.
Derek did some cut and paste magic
and BOOM!
This was before the last paint.
Outlets,light fixtures, trim and a new door
completed the job.
We went from having 1 light over our vanity
to having a shower light, a dimmable main light complete with
blue tooth speaker, vanity lights, and
a dimmable light in my built in!
Plus we finally got an exhaust fan🙌🙌
We even installed a fan in the downstairs
bathroom since we had the floors ripped up😄
I had lots of fun putting all of
my mermaids and see creatures in
my custom built-in🐟🐠
While doing the plumbing and electric Derek
had an awesome idea for a storage cubby.
He dry walled , painted it ,and even put a light in.
We are going to put a set of doors.
It is located under the once hallway nook floor
and is currently holding lots of toys😃
Can you believe it!?
It's beyond amazing!
Once it was complete, the first few
mornings we actually sat and talked
while drinking our coffee in there🤣🤣🤣
Derek put so much blood, sweat,
and hours into this bathroom.
He put so much time into every
part of creating this bathroom.
After demo he burned all the wood
that he had ripped out of the walls.
I'm talking several days of burning for hours.
At the end of every day he cleaned, swept,
and vacuumed, keeping everything
tidy for my mental sanity.
I can't even count how many bags of trash he
took out. It was nuts.
Home renovations with 6 children,3 dogs,
and 1 wife with
anxiety riddled OCD is not for the
faint of heart.
There were temper flares and plenty of
tears but he held strong.
All of the ideas were in my head
and it is mind blowing to see them
in real life.
Truly a dream come true!
Everyone is enjoying the bathroom.
Thank you x1 million babe for all
if your hard work.
💖💕💕💕💖
*** I wanted to share a side note about this project.
It's the reason this bathroom even came about.
A few months ago we asked our very close friend if
he could help Derek tile the tub surround.
He came over, they did the measurements
and we picked out the tile.
The next morning he came over and said
our tub was just way to small for baths.
He felt that Derek had really opened his heart
to God the last few years and he has said
over and over that he was so grateful for that.
He said that he could never re-pay Derek for
changing his life and really wanted to bless
us with a bathroom renovation.
We tried to talk him out of it but he
wouldn't hear it.
He insisted on paying for the entire bathroom.
He said "God brought our families together
and it has been such a blessing. Baruch Hashem!"
Yea, that's real life!
