House Remodeling Thread (long)

[ny biker]

So, I'm making lots of progress.

Met with the cabinet person about custom vanity, matching medicine cabinet and wall cabinet. We'll meet again later in the week, will probably see an estimate then. After I faint from sticker shock, I will make decisions on lowering the cost, such as no drawers in the vanity or a beveled glass medicine cabinet instead of one with wood trim.

Managed to compare the wall tile to the Bootzcast tub to confirm compatible shades of white. This was not easy, since Home Depot displays the tubs high on a shelf. Visited three stores before I found one that I could reach to lean the tile next to it. It's hard to tell with their atrocious lighting, but I think the tub color is okay. I might go with the American Olean 9x12 tile instead of the Tile Shop 10x14, because the former is slightly less bright. It's also less expensive.

Confirmed that both the A.O. and Tile Shop tiles have matching towel bars, soap dishes, etc.

Picked out faucets and matching accessories (towel bars and ring, tp holder). Visited Home Depot and Lowe's, took photos, then spent lots of time online. Thought I'd decided on Pfister Pasadena, then Moen Darcy, then chose Delta Lahara. One requirement is that the sink faucet and shower head be low flow/Water Sense. But I also want a handheld shower head. As near as I can tell, I will have to buy a combo tub faucet, on/off handle and stationary shower head, then get a separate handheld and use that instead of the shower head that comes in the combo -- I can't get the tub faucet and handle a la carte. I will confirm this with the contractor, then will buy it all this week while it's on sale. As a bonus, Progress Lighting makes (and Home Depot sells) a light fixture that matches the faucet. Also I prefer a handheld shower head made by Moen rather than Delta -- need to confirm that won't be an issue. Btw, I originally planned to go with brushed nickel for the fixtures, but have decided that chrome looks better with all the white and light colors. This will save me a few dollars, too.

Today I've been researching shower niches, deciding if I want a separate soap dish in addition to a niche. Have decided no on the soap dish. Am hoping I can do a shower niche that's tall enough to divide with a shelf. Also decided on a basic look for the niche -- I want one that blends in, with no frame or contrasting tile to make it stand out.

Next I think I need to choose a top for the vanity. I might end up using the same material for the niche bottom and shelf, not sure yet.

I'm pretty sure this will all cost way more than I'd anticipated. We'll find out more on that this week.

Oh I also got the sample paint from Sherwin Williams.

Having a bad cold that keeps me off the bike is actually helping with this -- giving me the chance to focus on all these decisions and the research necessary to make them. The weather has been great today so I've been out on the balcony with my Kindle, a pen and TE post-it notepad.

I'm going to set up a spreadsheet to list all the materials I need, with their costs, sources, etc.

[ny biker]

Still trying to find the right paint color. The one I bought the other day (Sherwin Williams Lighthearted Pink) is too deep -- too far away from the hint of pink I was going for. On the positive side, it's not too purple or too warm.

I'm thinking of yet another trip to the paint store and yet another sample can. The next one would be a lighter shade -- x% of Lighthearted Pink and y% of white. The question is -- what should x and y be? 50/50? 75/25? 25/75?

I don't think Sherwin Williams has color consultants in their stores. Kinda stuck here, since I don't want to have to waste money on 3 or 4 more samples.

Here are some photos. Lighthearted Pink on the left, Glidden Heirloom Pink on the right. The Heirloom Pink is too purple in artificial light, but it's the right depth, though it looks whiter in the photo than on the wall. The second photo includes the shower curtain.

[pll]

I'd go with the lighter pink. Nice shower curtain!

[Helene2013]

light too. As much as I'm a colour-freak for bikes (as you know hihi), I need some calm in my bathroom and bedroom. hihi Especially if a room is small, darker would make it look even smaller.

[ny biker]

Still busily making decisions, lots of time researching and looking at photos on the internet, plus visits to various showrooms.

Re: the paint for the walls -- the lighter shade in my earlier photos is Glidden Heirloom Pink. It was one of the first two samples that I tried. From the beginning I thought it was very cheerful but a bit too cool and purple-ish at times.

Having now spent hours looking at paint chips for other colors, and testing samples for...8? 9? other shades, I've decided that Glidden's Heirloom Pink is the winner. Is it too cool? Maybe. But everything else is too warm.

I did like the S-W Lighthearted Pink (the darker sample in the photos). It was kind of berry-ish and reminded me of sherbet. But it was too dark, so I got another sample that they mixed at 50%, and that seemed like a whole different color rather than just a lighter shade of the one I liked. So I'm giving up and going back to the Glidden Heirloom Pink. When your first gut reaction is "cheerful," you should probably listen to your gut.

Moving on, I'm almost ready to order the custom vanity and matching wall cabinet. I knew pretty much what I wanted before I first met with them, but there are still many details to consider. The vanity will be 30" wide by 21" deep and 31" high. I could have gotten something a few inches taller (kitchen cabinet height) but decided that wasn't necessary and the shorter height saves a few $$. There will be two drawers on the left and a cabinet door on the right. The door style is Shaker and the color is white. The wall cabinet will be 20" wide by 30" high and 9" deep(!). That's more than twice as deep as I had expected, but I'm not complaining because I need the storage space. There's room to partially recess it in the wall, which will look better than having it stick out a full 9"

I'm going to get a beveled-mirror medicine cabinet instead of one that matches the vanity and wall cabinet. The added cost of the custom medicine cabinet was just too much. I've seen one online that's oval shaped, 24x36, which I think will do nicely.

For the vanity top, I think I will go with a white marble-like quartz from LG Hausys called Viatera Minuet. I can get a remnant of it for a very good price. I also want to have shelves for the shower niche cut from the same remnant. I'm a little worried that it won't look quite right with the white vanity, though, so I'm going back tomorrow to look at it again.

I've also made decisions about the shower niche. I'm hoping it can be 12" wide by 30" or 36" high, with two shelves inside it. I want the back of the niche to have the same color tile as the shower wall tile, but in a much smaller size. BTW did I mention I've decided to go with the American Olean tile instead of the Tile Shop tile? The trim pieces (such as the bullnose pieces) are sold per-piece, and they are much more expensive from the Tile Shop. Since I'm splurging on custom cabinets, I'll go with the less expensive wall tile. Anyway so the wall tile will be white 9x12 in a subway pattern, and I think for the back of the niche I will use 2x2, either in a grid or a diamond pattern. I really wanted a 2x4 subway pattern, but it's not available to match the wall tile. Which is okay, since I've seen some photos of niches that use the 2x2 with a larger wall tile in the same color, and it looks good.

Then there's the grout. All along I had planned on a white grout for the walls, because I don't want the tile pattern to be too in-your-face. But today I'm reading that many people have problems with white grout becoming discolored from sunlight or hard water. So I'm going to use Laticrete Silver Shadow instead. It's a nice soft silver gray -- I used it for my kitchen backsplash. It will also work for the floor tile, I think, which should save me a few dollars.

So I'm almost done with most of the decisions and starting to place orders. I still have a few things to figure out, like the shower curtain rod. I don't want to break the bank on that but also don't want one that rusts in a few years. And I need to pick out door hardware for the cabinets. Also a light switch -- I want a dimmer switch, and I might need two of them because the contractor says he'll install a light over the shower/tub if possible, otherwise he'll put one in the ceiling in the middle of the room.

Did I mention I'm also working on choosing a new hardwood floor for the rest of the condo? I've almost got a color choice nailed down, but am still getting estimates from a couple of installers.

This Old Condo... the saga continues.

p.s. Why I need dimmer switches: because when I have to get up at 5 am for summer bike rides, it's still dark outside, so I need a very dim light until I my eyes can adjust. Seriously, it's about the early bike rides.

[ny biker]

Here are some photos.

This is the quartz counter top I chose for the vanity. I found this picture on another forum; I think it was taken in a showroom. It shows how the counter looks on a white cabinet with white wall tile.



I took this today at the fabricators. This was outside in bright sunlight. The floor tile is top left, wall tile sample next to it, then the wall paint and cabinet samples. They are all perched on the edge of the quartz remnant.



I put a deposit on the counter remnant today. Because it's a remnant I'm paying less than half the regular price.

P.s. wow I really had a lot to say yesterday, didn't I?

[NoNo]

Oh, reading this is making me so excited to move into my house! I close in about 3 weeks, my first home. I'd always rented and been happy with it, but lately I've been feeling crammed in my space what with trying to run a business out of it. I'd always assumed I couldn't afford to buy in my area as it's super expensive. Even my realtor said my price range was really for condos, but I was sure I could find a house that wasn't a total dump. Sure enough, on my third trip out, I found a cute little cape that's in move-in condition. The only real issue is the kitchen, it's the original one from the 50's, including the appliances. I debated over whether I wanted to fix it right away or wait, and I'm going to wait until I can save up the money. I may have to buy an oven, but that can always be put into the new kitchen when that gets done. I think I'll do a few little landscaping changes this summer, and a little painting, but that's it. I need to recover financially before I start making a bunch of changes. But I'm SO SO excited to get in there and make it mine! I need to read through this whole thread and gain from your collective wisdom.