The Great Bathroom Project and other DIY
June 22, 2006 at 12:13 PM
by Ashleigh
The Great Bathroom Project
We have a lurgy in our house. First Brad was sick with a cold and sore throat, then I got it and still have it.
Seb is coughing away like a hyena and Joe has a sore eye.
The cat vomited on the carpet this morning.
Healthy bunch, us.
This week was meant to be the week of 'finally finishing stripping paint from doorframes' and we are getting there, but I don't think it will be all done this week. This is partly due to the lurgy and also because we're finding it difficult to get motivated.
Monday we went to Ikea and came home 700 euros poorer. And richer by a new Pax cupboard with pull out baskets to go in our study next to the one we have already; a new living room rug; double sink surround and double sinks for our bathroom plus cupboards to go over the double sink. We only have the rug in our possession now, the rest has to be delivered.
Our bathroom has been a state of utter disaster (as you can see from the picture above) since we moved into this apartment a year and a half ago. Who puts a basin inside the shower area? So illogical!
We had intended to fix it up back then, but we spent too much money on our kitchen, flooring and the building work we had done and didn't have enough left over for the bathroom. So we bought a shower curtain and painted the grouting and just lived with it. Now its time for a facelift.
We wanted to fit a bath, but it affects the resale value of the apartment. Most Dutch people prefer a shower. They also don' t like a bath with a shower screen. Weird.
So we've compromised and we have a double sink (so both kids can brush their teeth at the same time), cupboards over the sink, and shiny new single handle swivel taps.
The toilet, an old fashioned high cistern with a ludicrously outdated button halfway down the pipe, is being replaced with a standard toilet with a flush button on top. The basin in the toilet room is being replaced with a corner sink with a tap situated in the sink itself instead of high above it, as it is now. There will be a shiny new tap there too.
Before then, we must finish stripping the doorframes, tile the bit of wall left in the bathroom, paint the bathroom with mould retardant paint, finish cleaning the new grout off the old tiles. After the bathroom furniture and new toilet are fitted we need to paint the doorframes with basecoat and two coats of paint and tile the toilet floor.
The plumber will be coming in two weeks time. Eek.
Sounds like lots of fun - when you're done over there, you can come here and decorate my whole house if you like ;)
June 24, 2006 1:34 AM