Friday, June 6, 2014

Project #6: Bathroom/ #7: Stair Railing/ #8: Laundry Chute

I checked back to the date of my very first blog post, and it was 4 years and 3 days ago. That day there was just a dream and a plan. Now we are entering the last phase of major construction. There is still plenty to do, but the 3 biggest projects on the list are about to get scratched off. I found a contractor to complete the work and he will start in the next week or so. He will install all of the trim (Project #1, April 30, 3014), drywall and mud the second floor, and install the trim, lights and ceiling fans (Project #5, May 19, 2014) and a few other things that I haven't written about yet, including finishing the lower level bathroom.
 
The bathroom is for Mom and Dad, just outside of their bedroom, and for the past three years that they have lived there, there has only been a toilet in there, no sink or shower. Last year Dad refinished the old pantry cabinet and installed it in the corner of the bathroom. Below are 2 photographs I took of the cabinet in 2009 in its original location.

The bathroom will have a built in shower, all in white subway tile with carrara marble accents, and a corner sink counter salvaged from the Catholic Rectory on Great George Street in Charlottetown, also in carrara marble. The tile and marble are all there in boxes waiting to be installed.  
Marble sink counter. A white porcelain undermount round sink has been already mounted to the counter and ready to be installed.
 
Below is the newel post I got from Kerras in 2010, and will be installed with a new railing at the back door landing.
Dad stripped and refinished it. A new handrail will be made to fit, and the spindles will be square and painted white.
Another project will be building in the window seat/ laundry chute. It will go under the window in the back hall and drop into the laundry room below. I sent the construction drawings for it to Dad so he can share them with the contractor. It will be painted Blackened.
The laundry chute will be in the corner behind Murray in this picture. He is Debby's husband, Mom's neice. I really like this picture and thought this would be fun to put up again. This is from Mom's 70th birthday party 2 years ago. HI MIKE
 
This is a SketchUp model of what the laundry chute will look like. You can see the lid in the top that will lift up with a piano hinge, and laundry dropped through. I'll have a cushion made for the top as well so you can sit comfortably in front of the window.
There are a lot of things I could do when I get home, more than I initially thought, because the second floor will be ready to paint. That is a big job in of itself, so I have to be strategic with my time, get the most important stuff done, and maybe leave some of the painting until next year. I wish I had a couple of months to just putter.
 
COMING SOON: Wait til you see what we are going to do to the outhouse!! Probably going to need some help with this one.