before and after :: main floor bath

I have to start out by saying Happy Birthday to my big brother Doug! The world is a better place with you in it.

July is always a blur for us. Between the 4th of July, birthday parties for Gabe and Annika (nephew and niece) and our annual Big Star Lake vacation, the month is always over before it even feels like it begins. And this July we refinanced our house (yes, already...rates are low, people!) which just added some additional unplanned chaos. So no surprise here, we don't have any major house updates. So I figured this was a good time to share some before and after pics of our main floor bathroom remodel.

This was one of the first things we tackled once we closed on the house last fall. The floor joists were rotted and sinking and needed to be completely removed and replaced. In order to replace with new joists the floor needed to be jacked up about 4 inches. This is pretty significant and would have impacted other projects (like the roof) had we not fixed it. Our job was to completely gut the bathroom then leave the pros to start putting it back together. My brother Tim, Ben and I went to work the first Saturday we owned the house. There was really nothing salvageable. I take that back. I think we still have some drawer pulls in the garage because you just never know. The layout of the bathroom was also extremely awkward, so a fresh start it was.

A dead bird is a good bird, I say.

Off to a good start with this Farmhouse renovation. This all took place on a Saturday and by the following Monday Countryside had arrived to jack up the floor and get the new joists in place. Electricians came soon after, and new plumbing was roughed in. Drywall was hung and finished, and then we waited. We didn't do any tiling until February when Ben did the floor and I did the shower. My dad painted, and the final lights and fixtures were installed by the pros in March. Voila.

They flipped the toilet for a better flow. Genius. This is also the only bathtub in the house so it's where the boys get clean. Ergo the detachable shower wand. It's the best.

We downsized the vanity and got rid of the built in linen cabinet. This bathroom just doesn't need a whole lot of storage since we mostly use the new master bathroom which is upstairs.

Cabinet (including the cool hardware) from the Habitat for Humanity Restore. Countertop came from ceiling joists pulled out of the kitchen. Tally not including plumbing fixtures = $150 for the vanity and top. 

The mirror was also from the Restore. $25 plus some green chalk paint from Hobby Lobby and leftover dark wax from a different project. I also just remembered that the door was salvaged from the original bathroom. A few fresh coats of paint and it looks good as old.

I still really love these cross handles. Aldi soap photo bomb.

It's really hard to take pictures of small spaces. Please don't judge me, I only have capacity for zero hobbies so I'm not going to become a master photographer anytime soon. There is still a little bit of trim work that Ben needs to do but it's nearing the bottom of the list. There is also zero decor in here, but that's not exactly exclusive to the bathroom. We've been here four months now and I am just starting to get motivated to hang some shelves and pictures again. I was telling Ben's sister Gina last night that we had family pictures taken in September and I printed enough to hand out to our families but we don't have any of those pictures on display in our own house. So just in case I don't ever get around to printing those, because we actually have more pictures scheduled for next week, here are a few so I can remember September 2015. Ellis 2, Colter 3.5, Belle 6.5, Car 29.99, Ben 33. We had the pics taken at the Farmhouse because we were so excited! A bit in over our heads but excited.

God is so good. He's brought us so far. Before and afters are my favorite...what great stories of redemption and new life and hope. We all need some of that don't we? It just takes a little FAITH.