Week Five | May 3 | Mid Modern Bathrooms Two Ways
For the Spring 2023 One Room Challenge we are working on TWO bathrooms: finishing our Guest/Studio Bathroom and then tackling our Primary Family Bath.
Be sure to check in on all of the other ORC projects on the ORC blog here.
I am still not over the joy and delight of the new carpet downstairs. That seems rather silly at times, but the fact is: having the entire lower level of our home in chaos for over a year has been exhausting. Completely exhausting. It’s been so dirty and cluttered and felt completely beyond my control. For a year. And I don’t think I really realized how much of a strain that has been.
Now, let’s be clear: this is written from a point of privilege. This is not the chaos that war or poverty or a natural disaster incurs. We have insurance. We didn't lose anything valuable in the flooding incidents. And we will be ok in the end. But even this relatively minor disruption of the sanctity of home has caused a great deal of turmoil, stress, and anxiety. And I know many of you have experienced the same – or worse. Loss of home. Loss of valued possessions. Loss of important people in your lives. Loss of community.
When I was teaching in Minnesota, long ago, a HUGE tornado demolished much of the town of St. Peter, Minnesota. The Red Cross called for volunteers in the days just after the storm, and I loaded a van full of young women to go help. Armed with trash bags and work gloves and work boots, we formed a chain – walking through people's yards looking for personal items and clearing out trash. We picked up anything that was salvageable or identifiable and placed it on the front porch of the home. We saw knitting needles driven through trees and yarn – the remains of a yard store – wound around tree branches. We found bikes and dolls and a roller skate. But what I remember most was the glass – so much glass in every yard. How many years did it take for people to be able to safely walk through their yards again? I don't know.
So our small incident was nothing on that scale, but I know how stressful it is to even have part of your home damaged. To have that sanctity of home violated and destroyed. Homes and home life is so important for us all. Our environment shapes each of us, and when that environment feels out of control or unpleasant or unsafe those effects flow into the rest of our lives, too. If that is you, I'm extending you a virtual hug today. Truly.
Even my tulips are flamingo-colored right now!
Because we have two rooms in two very different states of work, I’ll divide the updates into two sections each week.
The Studio/Guest Bath
Some before photos as well as some images of the inspiration for this project.
Let's talk flamingos. My original vision for this bathroom was a room filled with flamingos. As we don't live in the tropics and that seemed a little overboard, I scaled that vision back. But I still need some flamingos in here – a bit of the tropics on a cold snowy day here in Colorado not to mention a perfect nod to the Atomic Ranch vibe in our house.
So… bring on the flamingos!
I have two framed flamingo prints. One is a line drawing by Picasso. This is a reproduction of a fictional museum poster. But it's the right colors and the right idea.
The second print is an antique plate from a French book. I love this little flamingo family!
This print is from Tula Pink’s True Colors collection.
It comes in two colorways — and I decided to use both in the room.
And I have done some sewing for this bathroom. First I hemmed the shower curtain – not exciting, but it needed to be done. Then I made a few flamingo accessories. I have had this Tula Pink fabric for years, and this seems like exactly the right place to use it! So I made a little tissue box cover and a little bin to hold a few necessities for guests. This room is so small I can't have many accessories, so what I use needs to pack a punch!
Anyway, the Guest/Studio Bath is nearly done, and I'm going to save the big ta-da for the end. That seems coy, and I don't usually do that, but I feel like this bathroom deserves a big ta-da!
Primary Family Bathroom
The big news this week came Monday: we have the greenlight from the insurance company to start demolition. As soon as the contractor can get a crew here to begin demolition, it will begin. I'll keep you posted! Will we finish in time? If they have their act together – and they assure me they do – then yes, we will.
Stay tuned!
In the meantime, let me tell you about this tile. These are the two tiles for the upstairs bathroom. The teal will be the wall tile in the shower area. And the squares will be the floor tile throughout. The tile is from Modwalls, and it is absolutely dreamy!
The tile is from Modwalls. The smaller tile is for the floor, and the larger glass tile will be in the shower and tub.
I'm in the process of choosing wallpaper from A-Street Prints who are sponsoring this bathroom, too. There are so many good choices, and I have it narrowed down, but I am still waiting for one more set of samples, before I make a final decision.
I have a new sponsor for this bathroom, too. Emtek sent a box of bathroom goodies which I’ll share soon. So many beautiful pieces as this bathroom is coming together! Thank you, Emtek!
I rewired the vintage bubble fixtures this week, too. So they are ready to hang when the time comes. I absolutely love them!
Now it is time to get back to work! I have a lot to do! If you are doing the One Room Challenge, let me know, so I can follow your project, too. And if you need some inspiration, check out #orcat on Instagram where you’ll find all of the ORC projects. So many cool transformations under way!
To Linda Weinstein, the creator of the One Room Challenge, I offer my most sincere thanks. Thank you for offering this kind of opportunity and for opening it up to anyone. And to Apartment Therapy, the ORC media sponsor: thank you for making this possible! And to all of the other ORC participants: I’ll be sure to stop by to admire your work! It is always fun to do this together!
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Here’s to a week of work and progress! More next week!
Cheers!
Angela
Thanks to my sponsors for this project!
Interested in being a sponsor? Let me know!
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