We are done! (pretty much)

We’re back from holiday and almost everything is done (just one or two accessories need to be put up). We’re VERY happy with the work that was done and how it looks. My mother-in-law is using the small bathroom and overall is happy with it. There will always be some small bumps in learning how to use things (like the showers). I’ve already used the bathtub in the big bathroom (happy that we replaced the taps – no more leaks).

The Small Bathroom Pics:

The accessory that is missing is the soap dish with grab bar – you can see the box under the sink, so not sure why it didn’t make it in. We’re getting the builder in this weekend, so we’ll see what can happen.

The Big Bathroom pics:

I’m very happy with how this bathroom has turned out. Our guests will have a lovely place to call their own, though I’m planning on using it regularly as well (because our ensuite is tiny).

The Laundry ‘Room’:

I know for some people it wouldn’t look like much, but when you go from an ugly closet with no storage to something with a bit more space and good looks. I love it! It’ll be easier to do laundry, give us space to actually put our stuff, even items outside of laundry. Plus it’s pretty! Very happy!

Almost the end of week 6 and almost there…

I’m going to be away again for a bit, so will share what’s happened since the last post, but the final videos of the spaces won’t come for a few weeks.

My mother-in-law’s bathroom (the small bathroom) is basically ready. It is just missing the glass for the shower and the little bits and pieces such as the towel holder and toilet roll holder. It looks good!

The toilet, sink and bathtub were finally fully fitted in the big bathroom. Still waiting on the lights being put in and the same sorts of bits and bobs to be added. It is looking quite good, nonetheless. One thing that we did find out is that the bathtub taps are leaking and I didn’t want the shower aspect of it, so they will have to be replaced. I happily found a replacement set of taps that doesn’t include the shower bits but will still fit with the ‘aesthetic’ of the bathroom (in other words, the taps on the sink will match).

(Small note – I am very, very pleased with the colour of the painted wall. I think it’s a great accent!)

Finally, Richard began the work on the small laundry ‘room’. We had a stackable washer and dryer in a closet next to the big bathroom. Next to that closet was a small room (about the same size as a closet) that had a toilet in it. We’ve had the wall removed between the two spaces, the false ceiling in the old closet raised to be the same as the toilet room. It will be painted the same blue as the bathroom blue and use the same tiles as in the big bathroom. We’ll have the washer and dryer facing the center and we’ll finally have shelving for everything. A mini-laundry room!

Before of closet – don’t have one of the toilet.

Where it is now:

Can’t wait to share the final photos and videos of the two bathrooms and the laundry area!

End of Week 5 – an update

I’m back in town again and things have happened. We had the glass put in for the big bathroom shower wall. The shower, sink and bathtub are in place in the big bathroom. Painting has also begun, and we love the colour we chose for one of the walls, even though we’re not at the final coat (we’re going white with the other walls). Things aren’t ready to be used yet and we’re missing a toilet, but we’re getting close with the big bathroom. I need to buy the little bits to use in that bathroom.

In the small bathroom, the tiles are up/down and we have the window in. It’s slowly starting to come together. We still have to get the glass measured for that room (unfortunately, being out of town, I wasn’t available to answer some questions), so it’s going to be a bit more of a wait for my mother-in-law to use that room. They’ve installed the radiator. We have a bit more yet to do there.

Small bathroom

End of week 4 – more tile

Tiling has begun on the small bathroom while grout work has begun on the big bathroom. There have been tile issues and tile solutions. While it’s not perfect, it will work out fine for us.

The niche in the big bathroom shower wall has been tiled and grouted. It’s more white than the tiles around it but that’s fine. I just couldn’t find quite the right tone to match the other tiles but in the niche it kinda works. Regardless, we’ll at least have two places to put bathroom stuff.

The tile in the small bathroom is coming along. The shower area (mosaic tiles) will be 1 metre by 1 metre, so a good size. My mother-in-law approves of the tile choice, which is good as she’ll be using it every day!

And that’s it from me for a week. I’m out of town and my husband will hold the fort while I’m gone (but not the blog). I’ll update when I return. We have a bank holiday on Monday so only missing 4 days. Hopefully, the big bathroom will be almost ready to go and we’ll be starting work on the laundry area when I’m back.

Days 22 & 23 – tiling the big bathroom

The guys have finished with tiling the big bathroom, including the shower wall and niches. They still have some finishing work and grouting to do. When it’s done, I think it’ll look great.

The shower screen guys came to measure yesterday. We talked about where to put the screen (in relation to the wall and the end of tiles) and think we have it figured out. We picked this company because they have a quick turnaround of 3-5 days from measurement to being able to fit it, so they should be back next week to put it in place. The grouting and finishing work will be done by then.

Hoping that this bathroom will be finished within the next two week so that my mother-in-law can start using this instead of having to trek either up to our ensuite bathroom or downstairs to the powder room.

The floors of the small bathroom are all ready and prepped to be ‘tanked’ (water-proofed) and tiles to be laid. The tiling here should be much easier than in the big bathroom as we’re using larger format tiles (other than the mosaic in the shower area).

Day 21 – walls of small bathroom

Today was spent putting up the new walls of the bathroom, doing some checks on plumbing and a few small fixes of the electrical in the small bathroom. We figured out exactly where the spotlights will go (and decided on white to blend with the ceiling). It’s all in place and ready for tiles. Next week we’ll have all the tiles for the big bathroom, so they’ll finish tiling there, hopefully the glass guys will be able to measure for the shower screen and they can start to paint (still figuring out colours).

Day 20 – pipe work and flooring in small bathroom

A very loud day of work by the guys. Richard had two helpers today to put in new exterior piping and measure and cut the base floors/walls. We had to do some changes to the exterior pipework (in older London homes all the water and waste pipework is outside) due to the original pipe being cast iron – it would not work with the new plastic pipes that are used today. They had to cut the cast iron pipe down to where they were adding new plastic piping – that stuff was HEAVY! They left behind part of the cast iron that was below the link. And then they put in the new piping for waste and water. This was all for the new bathroom due to the addition of the toilet. We’re very lucky that there was a waste pipe on that wall so we didn’t have to use a Saniflo toilet.

They also did some work on the flooring and walls of the small bathroom. Nothing too exciting to see yet, though you can see where the wet room tray will go.

I know I saw a lot of work being done in the past two houses, but I’m getting to really understand more of the detail around bathroom work, which is very cool. Richard has been great about explaining every step, why it’s necessary and how it’s done. I’m learning a lot with this project!

Day 15 – the comeback (tiles edition)

So, this is where we left off on Friday. Our contractor, Richard, tried to work with the tile company to get the same tile with the same backing colour. It was not meant to be. They looked through many, many tiles all over the country and there were no dark backed tiles, only the light ones. Richard got them to agree to get a shipment of the necessary tiles to us by Monday. And they arrived by 1pm. Richard cracked on, removing the tiles…

Along with the tiles came the backing, so he also had to run out and get new backing to put up. And by the end of Monday, with a Herculean effort, Richard had tiled the entire shower area (sans window area).

That’s a VERY high ceiling (I think close to 3 metres or 10 ft). And it looks GOOD! Can’t wait to see what the bathroom looks like when the tiling is finished.

Week 2 – tiling woes

It was going so well. The floor of the big bathroom was fully tiled. Our Contractor, Richard, had made a great start on the shower/bath wall. And then he noticed something. Despite all being from the same batch, the colour of the new tiles he was just cutting were NOT the same as the ones on the wall. They were just that little bit different, enough to be noticeable. UGH! We went through all the boxes and it turns out the ones left were all that bit darker than the ones he was working with before.

Richard drove to the tile store to talk to them for us. Turns out the backs of the tiles were different, which ‘bled through’ the actual tile. So, the tile itself wasn’t ‘different’ but impacted by the backing colour. We’re now waiting to see if they can get enough of the light backed tiles (which are what are on the wall) by Monday (only one place in England might have them). If we can’t, Richard has to rip down all the tiles on the wall, get rid of the adhesive and probably repair the wall. BAH!!!!

There wasn’t much else he could do that afternoon, other than put some waterproofing in the niches and a few small bits and bobs. We’ll see what Monday brings.

Day 13 – tiling begins (big bathroom)

Tiling has begun. I feel for our contractor as this room is not square. It goes in and out. Definitely a tough one. He stayed a bit later trying to get as much done as possible. I’m in love with the blue & white tile. Because we liked the original black and white tile, in a similar pattern, we wanted to stick with a similar idea but with colour. I think the dark teal is giving me the vibe I wanted.

Here’s a reminder of the tiles we’re using in a close-up:

For the wall tiling, we’ll be tiling up to the height of the shower (or so) on the wall to the left within the shower/bath area. We’ll tile up a bit around the window. On the left from the shower glass (where the wall is currently), we’ll just go up above the sink by a bit (a backsplash of sorts) all the way to behind the toilet. We won’t tile any of the opposite wall and just use bathroom paint. We’re keeping it the same colour as the metro tile (I think – suggestions are welcome).