A Nautical Bathroom Renovation: a house log

Last year Lilly and her husband Markus spent her Independence Day making over her half bath, so we thought we’d celebrate her sweet makeover on their one year bathroom anniversary. Here is her (hilarious) letter:

After living in our 1952 house for three years, I was so excited to at last be able to remodel our compact but crazy powder bathroom that connects to our bedroom. We did all of the demolishing, painting, tiling, plumbing, painting, beadboard and trim ourselves and it was a Fourth of July weekend blast!

I let out my aggression on some wallpaper one day after work. It was stuck on well, much like our previous bathroom makeover, but after borrowing our neighbor’s Scunci steamer it began peeling off easily.

We took a full day to mix the mortar and lay all of the tile. We purchased a wet saw at Home Depot for about $90 and snipped some tiles off of the sheets and cut them down to fit the edges and corners using the saw. We accidentally mixed a second match of mortar too thin, which caused our tiles to not stick to the floor and nearly brought the end of our marriage, but soon we had fully tiled floors!

I think my go-to part of the whole bathroom experience was grouting. You start to see it all come together, it is nearly idiot proof and it is good for the upper body. I chose a grey grout to pop against the white tile and stay neutral for future home owners. With that said, after spending so much time on this bathroom project it is unlikely that I will be selling this house before my death. I picture George Banks in front of the wrecking ball in Father of the Bride II.

I knew I hoped the room to have a midcentury prep feel, with nautical elements even though I hate theme bathrooms. I thought the rope mirror, polished chrome hardware, and navy wall gave the look I was going for without going overboard (overboard?? heh? …a little nautical bathroom humor).

This piece [on the right wall] was originally a gift to my grandfather and he took so much pride in it, hanging it over his straightforward chair up until he died. My grandmother processes her life through shopping for furniture, so everything in their house is distinct now and while I enjoy our family today, I cherish having a piece of the house that used to be with me in my new family’s home.

My secret go-to part of the room is the built in magazine rack that I saved from the original architecture and reinstalled and painted to match the beadboard and trim. It is a ideal place to stash some of my “never will I ever recycle these in a million years” editions that I still enjoy flipping through. – Lilly

So a big thanks to Lily for sharing her makeover! We especially enjoy that she included the art from her grandparents’ house and restored the original magazine rack. Be sure to hit up Lilly’s journal for the full story and a complete source list. Glad Fourth of July weekend everyone!