Part 12: The Master Bath

Work has been progressing in the master bath:  A last minute inspiration/crazy impulse to have the walls paneled was handled brilliantly by my project manager, Guy.  He hunted down wood paneling with 6" wide boards and had his finish guy, Hector install them just before the tiling was due to start.

The paneling primed and in-floor radiant heating's been installed.

The bath tub sits in the master bedroom, waiting to be installed, along with the faucet, toilets (one is for the guest bath) and window/door trim.  You can see the sample of soft yellow on the wall that I love in the space.

The best for last:  Here's the polished Cararra Hex tile flooring installed in the master bath.  The polished tile catches the sunlight through the Eastern and Southern windows and looks almost like shimmering water.  Sometimes, elements are even better than anticipated once in place.

Polished Cararra hex tile shimmers like water, even reflecting on the ceiling.

I like the way the polished marble hex plays with light so much that I've decided to install it on the laundry room floor, too.

Click here for Part 13: The Marble

Part 11: The Structural Work

It's been a busy and productive week at the house.

Lots of work going on!  Our crews and the hardworking neighbors were landscaping.

The closet is finally out of the front hallway.  Originally, there was an odd "jog" to the hallway, now it's more open with better lines of site, going from 3-1/2' to 6' wide.

Standing inside the front door, looking toward the back of the house.

Standing mid-way in the house, looking toward the front door.

It's tempting to also relocate the door to center it on the hallway, but the front entry space just inside the door is much wider than the hallway leading to the back of the house, and the door and sidelights are centered in that space.  Also, moving the front door would require reframing of the front porch steps and support columns - so we're leaving this alone.

Yesterday, Jose and his team installed the new windows at the back of the house, two in the kitchen nook and two over the new fireplace.

Hard working crew installing windows and replacing siding.

Two news windows in the kitchen nook letting the Eastern light pour through into the space.

Two new windows on the West side over the new fireplace.

I'm so delighted with the results of the new windows.  The original wall of windows on the North side of the house are lovely, but adding the new windows on the East and West walls lets the light pour into the space from different angles and at different times of the day, creating a multi-directional space.  This was the very first idea I had after walking into the space for the first time last September, and it feels so satisfying to see it finally take shape.

We also had painters hard at work in the cottage, and a buddy, Wayne, helping with painting cabinets in the laundry room, but more on that later.  All in all, a very good week!

Click here for Part 12: The Master Bath

Part 10: The permits; We have Lift-Off.

Hurray!  After numerous revisions and delays, we finally have the structural permits to add the windows to the back NE and NW corners of the house, and remove the clumsy closet from the entry hall.  Woo Hoo!

Now we can get this puppy wrapped up!

In the mean time, we passed plumbing and electrical permits for the master bath and the tilers have been busy at work.  I'll have some progress photos on the master bath to post soon.

Please say a little prayer of thanks to the structural engineering gods.

Click here for Part 11:  The Structural Work