Here We Go Again....

As of yesterday, demolition of the master bedroom is offiically underway. Underneath the pukey, icky carpet, we found a hardwood floor which would be nice if it wasn't so crappy, and a shabby addition with linoleum (in a master bedroom?? makes perfect sense for this house, I guess) and possibly asbestos (awesome!).

From the other angle:

My dear husband is doing this all himself. He is beyond amazing.

Here's hoping we'll have our lovely "after" sooner rather than later!!!

Drumroll Please...

The bathroom project has been ongoing since Thanksgiving weekend, when James and Sal took a sledgehammer to the bathtub, and before I knew it we were knee deep in a master bath renovation. Although it is still not completely done done, I decided that it is close enough, and it is finally time to do the long anticipated (at least by me) before and after! So, without further ado...

Before, the single vanity and toilet were on the left, and the tub as well as a linen shelf were on the right. We also had ceramic tiles on most of the floor, and a rotted subfloor:

Now "after," we have a walk-in shower and toilet on the left wall, and two pedestal sinks on the right (a linen cabinet is forthcoming, and will go on the far right corner):

The (disgusting) far left corner before:

The beautiful far left corner now. (The temporary tie-up shade is from Target. We ordered plantation shutters which are on their way, and will require another bathroom update on the blog).

Another before view of the gag-inducing left side of the bathroom:

The vanity on the left wall has been replaced by the beautious walk-in shower. The wall is carrera marble, the fixtures are all Pegasus from Home Depot, and the glass was impeccably done by Lone Star Glass here in Houston.

Instead of the single vanity, we now have two pedestal sinks. I adore the lights we found, they are from Restoration Hardware's Bistro Collection. The two medicine cabinets are Zenith from Lowes (we stil need to change their handles to oil-rubbed bronze handles). Lastly, the pedestal sinks are Kohler Portrait sinks

The toilet is also of Kohler's portrait collections:

And... one last view:

I love, love, LOVE it. I like to think that I can take full credit as consultant (and Audie as well, as the pictures from earlier posts indicate, he took his job as consultant very seriously), but all the kudos most definitely belong to James and not to mention JIMBO! Who deserves a plaque on the wall for all the blood, sweat, tears (and elevated blood pressure, and sore muscles, and sore joints) that went into the completion of these 56 square feet. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!!!

And now... only the rest of the house left to go.

A few random things that we need for the bathroom:

How cute is this sign? I need!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY BLOG!

Happy one year anniversary to the Cottage Bungalow Blog! Yea!!! :)

Our Magical Garden

We love love LOVE our backyard!

Here is our 2009 garden. We've got cukes, peppers, tomatoes, and eggplants among other things. Oh, and of course the lime and grapefruit trees!

The parsley (at the bottom of the pic) is out of control. And our bougainvilleas are the most beautiful, vibrant colors of pink I have ever seen.

I love lanterns.

Audie doing what he does best... trying to escape.

BOUGAINVILLEA! Not only beautiful to look at, but also fun to say! :)

Alllllllmost There...

These are old pictures, and the bathroom is way further along than they show. BUT, it's not quite ready to be revealed. So here are some more "work in progress" pictures that I like.

James mitering (or is it coping?)

Audie showing off the space where the toilet will go:

Our beautiful carrera marble shower:

And.... a closeup of Audikins for good measure.

Pretty Preppy

Preppy style has a simple asthetic to it that I just love.

Whether it's pink and green and Lilly like at Katie's shower:

Or navy, white and pearls like at my shower:

And my wedding:

Or red, white, and blue:

And of course nautical style, like at the Wineknot:

And my wedding:

These aren't the best examples, seeing as I haven't been posting at all I am proud of myself for even pulling these together. And they do portray my "preppy" asthetic.

Cottage & Bungalow

I can't see to get the motivation to post anything lately. So instead, enjoy this fabulous site: http://www.cottageandbungalow.com/index.html

I want EVERYTHING on there!

Butternut Squash Soup

As anyone who's talked to me in the past few days knows, I had my wisdom teeth pulled last Friday. Ever since then I have subsisted on the diet of an octagenarian, and my fave golden girl food staple has been butternut squash soup. MMMmmmmmmm.....!

Butternut Squash Soup Recipe:

1 butternut squash, peeled
Nutmeg
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 onion, chopped
6 cups chicken stock

Cut squash into 1-inch chunks. In large pot melt butter. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add squash and stock. Bring to a simmer and cook until squash is tender. Remove squash chunks with slotted spoon and place in a blender and puree. Return blended squash to pot. Stir and season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Serve.

And it's a perfect cold day comfort food, which, as I understand, is perfect for the Northeast these days

"During" Along...

We ("we") are still chugging along on the master bathroom. James' dad is coming back down next weekend, so I am confident that it will completed then! For now, here is an update on how it looks:

This will be this shower. Nice and big and roomy!

Another vantage point of the shower. It will be surrounded in beadboard:

Here is the beautiful carrera (sp?) marble, which will go on the bathroom floor, and the shower walls:

And here is one of the two pedestal sinks:

And the oiled bronze fixtures that I am obsessed with.

I think the dark oiled bronze fixtures will look super-sharp against the white of the porcelain sinks and carrera marble.

To be continued! (finished...)

Guest Appearance

Everyone likes a good before and after! Namely me. Since my house is currently stuck in a "before" holding pattern (with maybe a few "durings" thrown in), I thought I'd showcase Katie and her husband Steve's lovely recent transformation of their living room with plantation shutters and a navy accent wall.

"BEFORE" they had brown and yellow curtains that they had inherited from the builder:

Now, "AFTER," they have beautiful clean, sunny, white plantation shutters:

So pretty, and of course, so "preppy" :)

They also painted the wall above their fireplace a deep, rich navy blue. Love the way it looks with the brick! Also love Katie's masterful mantle arrangement.

Thanks Katie for allowing me to share!

Bathroom in Progress...

The boys are all hard at work on the bathroom...

Bathrooms

As James and his dad are busy putting together our master bathroom, I am doing my part by finding examples of bathroom I like. How helpful am I!!!

I love this wall which kind of looks like clapboard siding. I also love the dresser which has been converted to a vanity.

I love beadboard. I can't decide on the height I like though. This looks like it's around 5 feet tall. Kinda nice...

This is very similar to what we want to do. Beadboard approximately 4 feet tall, 2 pedestal sinks (with backsplash!), and mirrored medicine cabinets above each sink.

More beadboard..

What I like here is the shelf at around 4 feet.

I like just about everything in this picture. The carrera marble, the beadboard shelves, the faucets, and of course, the hydrangeas. Every room should always have a bouquet of hydrangeas as far as I am concerned.

I am not sure what I am looking at here. This bathroom looks like it's in a cave. And yet... I like it! Maybe our next house should be a cave?