Powder Room DIY Re-remodel and new Mirage Hardwood Flooring

When last we spoke, I shared with you that there was another flood here in

the house just two days after Christmas and that we were in the process of

replacing the damaged hardwood floors. I say another flood because less

than a year after buying this house and completing our first remodel, a burst

pipe in the garage flooded the house and ruined the new flooring. Faced with

having to replace the hardwood floors again, I decided to go a step further and

refresh/update the powder room and all the other rooms affected too! Below is

the powder room the day we made the offer on the house. Remember what I

have said many times before; we did not buy this house because we loved it! In

fact, I hated it the moment I saw it. However, coming from Monterey County in

California, where our home sat on just a 5,000 sq. ft. lot and shared a fence with

five other neighbors, it was the acreage we fell in love with. Everything inside the

house could be changed but the property was the property of our dreams... Minus

the rocky Pacific Coast views and mom and dad, who lived just around the corner!

This is the powder room five seconds after we moved in. The

wallpaper and everything in it just had to go! The last trip we

took as a family in California was to San Francisco where we

explored Alcatraz and went inside some of the prisoner cells...

We often joke that Alcatraz had nothing on this bathroom! After removing

all of the wallpaper, my sweet handy-husband repaired and painted the

walls in my favorite color... White! The toilet, 1971 vanity, complete with

laminate counter and broken faucet flew out the door and into a dumpster!

To maximize the space in this small bathroom, I chose a pedestal

sink and matching toilet. Both from Kohler's Memoirs collection

Before the original owners that built this house added a solarium off the

kitchen, (which we replaced with a more modern version) the window in

this bathroom looked out over the backyard. However, since the solarium

stands on a fully elevated foundation to match the house, the window in

this bathroom provided a full view of anyone using it! Nevertheless, without

the window, the bathroom would be terribly dark and feel even smaller than

it already is. So, since I don't do curtains, we decided the best way to retain

the natural light and provide the necessary privacy, was to fill the window

opening in with clear wavy glass block and frame it in. And, it worked!

After installing new vinyl over the old vinyl floor and a new door, we were

happy with this update and called it done. Buuttttt, I realized pretty quickly,

there is a huge difference between being happy with what a room looks like

after you rip out what you could never have lived with in the first place, and

getting a room that resembles something you might see Chip and Joanna

create on their show, Fixer-Upper! You know, the room of your dreams...

What I have realized over the years, while trying to bend this ugly old house into

something I can love, is that it is much better to stretch yourself and if necessary,

your budget, to get what you really want the first time. Looking back, it actually

makes me sad for the money and the time I wasted asking my husband to paint the

cabinets and tile over the Formica counter tops, instead of just going for the Carrara,

subway tile back splash and cabinet fronts I wanted for the kitchen in the first place!

Honestly... What was I thinking?!

So, just like when we re-remodeled the hallway bathroom a few years ago, I

decided that this time when we replaced the hardwood flooring, I was going to

choose the floor I really wanted. Not something that most closely matched what

we had and were accustomed to. Also, because we had this opportunity to update

the hardwood, I thought it was the perfect time to update the powder room too!

Above is the floor we almost put in. It was a compromise between what we chose

last time, which I knew was a mistake the day it went down and what I truly wanted...

Something a bit more rustic without that glossy nail polish finish the old floor had!

But did you catch that word compromise? It was a compromise because in my

heart I knew I really wanted a darker floor and I wanted it to be a gray floor

too. I compromised on the counter tops in the kitchen, settling for a Carrara

marble look-alike with Corian's Rain Cloud and I have always regretted it...

So... We took every sample of Mirage hardwood our flooring design center

would let us haul home and we compared them all. We compared them to the

kitchen cabinets, to our furniture and to the hardwood in the library and the

living room, which we would not be replacing. In the end, it came down to two...

The safe, more traditional floor on the left and the totally different and darker

option on the right. In the end, I went for the one I wanted most. This one!

But more about the hardwood later... Right now, I want to finish telling you

about the powder room re-redo! See this photo below? It was sent to me by

my darling husband who wanted to ensure I would be completely happy with

the way he was laying the tile while I was at work. As you can see, I was not

at all shy about pointing out where I believed adjustments were needed!

We traded photos like this for a while. However, in the end, having a second

pair of eyeballs on the project helped him along. And, it helped me to see

the progress being made while I was stuck at work wondering about it!

I have said this in other DIY posts involving tile before and I am happy

to offer it as a warning again... Do not get all crazy about your tile work

before you grout. I mean, do straighten things that are crazy-crooked, but

don't get crazy about a little space here or a little tilt over there, since not

all tile is the same. Natural tile has natural variations in size and shape...

So let it be and grout it. Because once you grout your tile and it dries...

It will look crazy-fantastic and even be close to

perfect where it didn't look perfect at all before!

Since we were updating the floor in the powder room with

tile, I decided it was a good time to repaint as well as update the

switch plate and outlet covers, plus all the other hardware too!

In the end, we... We being my husband and the mouse in my pocket, painted

the entire downstairs; to include baseboards, crown molding and all the doors!

I also replaced all the outdated brass knobs on the cabinets and drawers in the

office/laundry room, which was an inexpensive way to update that room too!

You know what a fan I am of everything Pottery Barn so

they were my first choice for new bathroom hardware. I started

with this Mercer magazine and double-roll paper holder

and then added the matching towel bar and robe hook!

Of course, I cannot get out of Pottery Barn without something

monogrammed so I also picked up these linen hand towels!

The final touch on our powder room re-redo was to add some artwork...

But I didn't want just anything hanging on the walls. I wanted something

that meant something to both of us. So, since we enjoy riding our bikes

and because I miss California so much, I sought out this antique-style

map of California bicycle trails and vintage bike-related advertising!

The fact that my name is there on the bottom made me love it even more!

If you love this print as much as I do, you can buy it here. And, since

it comes in standard frame sizes, it was very inexpensive to frame!

The other piece of artwork I chose is this reproduction of

a beautifully patriotic war poster. Again, patriotic needs no

explanation and since gardening is my husband's thing, it fits!

Also available in standard frame sizes, it cost me next to

nothing to have it framed, (using one of their weekly 40% off

coupons) at Hobby Lobby. Although it took nearly a month to

receive from this etsy seller, I still recommend her for this print!

It's just so special!

The last thing I added to finish the refresh of our powder room is

this cute little enamelware sign I placed onto the door. And, do let me

tell you... This black and white hex tile is not only a classic that will

always fit this house, it feels AH-mazing when you walk on it in your

bare feet! And, you want to know how much it cost? We found it at

our local Floor and Décor store on clearance for $2.30 a square

foot! Now, by the time we found it, they only had two pieces left. But

we had a great sales representative who suggested we order it through

the Floor and Décor website. Ordering couldn't have been easier and

with free shipping, the tile we needed cost just $86! Of course, the sack

of grout I bought cost $76 because I got talked into it by a salesman at

this ridiculously expensive tile store. However, in my defense, it is

Power Grout (the color I chose is Platinum) which already contains

a sealer so it never has to be sealed. It also will not stain or crack and

shrink as it dries.  All very good things! Labor to install my new black

and white hex tile floor and hardware only cost me a steak dinner!

We'll chat more about the hardwood floors next post... But for now I

leave you with a few photos to show how changing the hardware

on the cabinets and drawers in the office/laundry room helped

to update the space and better compliment the new hardwood too!

Knobs chosen by the second/last owner of this home when they

added these cabinets and drawers to the laundry/mud room for the

office space needed by the man of the house that worked from home...

As you can see, the protective coating on these brass knobs to keep them

from tarnishing was chipped and worn off in spots from years of handling...

After the new hardwood flooring went in, I knew the antique

bronze finish on these knobs and drawer pulls would be the

perfect contrast and compliment to its rustic look and gray tone!

Not only did we update the hardware, we also replaced the light

fixtures and switch plates and outlet covers in this room too!

Although it took a little extra effort to countersink these drawer

cup pulls to replace those brass knobs, I think it was worth it!

Overall, I'm really happy with the way everything turned out...

Remember at the beginning of this post when I mentioned Chip

and Joanna Gains and their HGTV show, Fixer-Upper? I love them... So

imagine the thrill it was last week when we went to Texas to visit Ranger

and he took us to Waco, to visit Chip and Joanna's Magnolia Market!

And, the Bakery at the Silos!

Believe me, we made the most of our trip to Texas! I have plenty to share about all

our side-trips to visit the Spanish Missions and The Alamo in San Antonio, the

Pacific War and Nimitz museums in Fredericksburg, two more trips to Magnolia

plus the Dr. Pepper Museum in Waco... Our tour of Southfork Ranch, dinner

at Medieval Times and ride up to the observation deck of Reunion Tower...

And, of course... There is the most important reason we

traveled back to Texas to visit Ranger in the first place!

To be there to see him raise his right hand to defend and protect the

constitution again and trade his Military uniform for a new uniform...

Believe it or not, we are in the process of selecting flooring and tile to re-redo

the master bathroom next! I've already had several contractors visit to give

estimates for a new custom vanity and built-in storage cabinet behind the door

to replace the old custom vanity and built-in storage cabinet behind the door I

had my husband tear out during our first remodel. There will be absolutely no

compromising as we rebuild this master bathroom, which means I will finally

get that Carrara marble counter top I have always wanted and dreamed of!

Stay tuned...

Because as you can see, we are just about

ready to make another trip to Floor and Décor!

#DIY #blackandwhitehextile #powderroomremodel #smallbathroomremodel #miragefloors  #cabinethardware #vintageposters #fixerupperstyle #flooranddecor