As most of you know, Almost three years ago, I closed a chapter in my life in WA state where I survived (vs. thrived) for fifteen rain drenched years. Ready for a new life adventure I purchased a 560' farmhouse in the Appalachian mountains, online having never seen it in person. I asked my realtor to send lots of pictures of this little old farm house so that I would have a good idea of what to expect once I walked inside for the first time. I've heard that pictures don't lie and while a home inspection said she had good bones, It was obvious she needed TLC, especially the TINY bathroom.
No one seems to know how old this little house is but several Appalachian mountain old timers have at one time lived in or knew of this farmhouse as young children. With this verbal information and no helpful county permits or records, it is most likely that this home is a minimum of a hundred years old, and some have reason to believe it is much older. If walls could talk....hmm.
Many decades ago, way before this little house and I met, she had no plumbing, or electricity. That meant no bathroom, no running water, no sink, stove, washer, or dryer- well you get the idea.. In the late sixties or early seventies the homes occupants added indoor plumbing which was a much welcomed addition especially while raising two young children. Many years later an indoor toilet was added just off of the kitchen as in most original farm houses. Years later, electricity invited more changes for this old farmhouse. Not sure what century the bathroom was stuck in, but I hated it.
BATHROOM / BEFORE
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| This is what it looked like when I first moved in. |
OM(gosh) what a nasty UGLY, gross, crusty TINY bathroom it WAS. I could see great potential with the rest of the little farmhouse but the bathroom...oh, um.(head shaking back and forth) YUCK. I used to close my eyes every time I went potty or took a shower in there. It was more pleasant to go freestyle in the woods, if you know what I mean. And on more than one occasion I embraced my inner 'farm & country' girl and grabbed my bar of soap and a towel and went outside and showered naturally (no close by neighbors) in the NC summer rainstorms.. The only problem with that method, was getting stuck with shampoo still in my hair before the rain stopped. That would of never happened in WA state, due to almost never ending rain. But hey,, WA was way to cold for a hippie shower
BATHROOM / BEFORE
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| Linoleum was used for the counter top and floor tile had nasty chunked out dirty grout. The ceiling seemed to be lined in cardboard tiles. |
Within days of moving in, I took a crow bar and began ripping out the nasty sink (above) and cabinet because I could not stand looking at it any longer. That presented a whole new set of problems but I am still trying to forget all the details of that situation. You can see the picture below. Enough said.
BATHROOM / BEFORE
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| Oh my... maybe I should of left that sink and cabinet alone? Ikes!!!!! |
The bathroom remained a storage unit for about a year and a half after the sink area was destroyed. I just stacked totes to the ceiling to hide the even bigger mess that I had created. I then began to tackle about seventy eight other projects and I remained in denial that I just might have made the bathroom even uglier than it was at first glance. Just seeing these pictures sends me into a hot flash .Just when I thought they had forever ended.
BATHROOM / BEFORE
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| Another view of the green monster, I did have a functional toilet during that time |
Normally I am not short on ideas on how to fluff up a nest but I was simply not inspired with this mess and at a loss with how to make this TINY, eight foot long and four foot wide bathroom work for me. I wanted a cozy, sweet retreat with a vintage vibe that would woo me in, to enjoy long bubble baths and soothing soaks at the days end. My creative juices were short circuiting just like the wires in the above picture did.
UNTIL .........
One sunny day...I was inspired, just like that. I was out walking one of my dogs when I spotted a dumpster outside of a home that was being renovated. Of course, I peeked inside to see what treasures might be crying out for salvation. My eyes lit up as I spotted two old farmhouse windows with glass panes intact. The metal tracks were perfect and they opened and closed easily and they came with window screens too boot. I actually only needed one but snatched both as one is a back up for parts. There was one small window in my bathroom that came out of a mobile home and was a horrible match for my vintage vibe. The window from the dumpster was almost a perfect fit, and with the help of my carpenter it was a perfect window with wood grids that matched the rest of my farmhouse windows. What a blessing. If I had passed that dumpster and not looked inside I would of had to order a custom made window for the bathroom which would of been very expensive. I was finally inspired to move forward with my bathroom renovation. Let the demo begin !!!
BATHROOM / BEFORE
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| I was delighted to find original plank walls behind the tile |
BATHROOM / BEFORE
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| Here is one of two windows I found in the dumpster. A perfect match to replace the other window. |
Further inspiration came days later when I spotted an amazing four and a half foot (hard to find) claw foot tub in an old barn. My bathroom is so tiny only a 4 1/2' tub would fit. Previously, this tub had been used as a gold fish pond for a dozen or so years and then retired yet again. It sat in the dark corner of a barn for many more years, waiting to be used and loved once again. It called out to me and once I sat in it, I was in love. I knew we were inseparable. The tubs owner was willing to barter with me. After all, I really didn't need my king size iron headboard anymore and I have wanted a claw foot tub forever, so it was a match made in heaven. Wahoo. It definitely needed some love and attention, okay a LOT of love and attention, both inside and out. It was refinished and then moved into my kitchen until the bathroom was ready for this big ole iron hunk of love. Who cares if I may have to tear a wall out to get in in the bathroom? I think I measured the doorway correctly??????
BATHTUB / BEFORE
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| It was love at first sight... A 4 ft beauty waiting to be loved once again |
I jumped in to see if a 4 1/2' tub would work for my 5'8 height, it did and I fell in love on the spot
Once used as a goldfish pond
Wait till you see the transformation
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| The bottom of the claw foot tub states who it is made by, the size 4 1/2 ' and the year it was made - 1924 |
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| The flooring and tub sat in my kitchen for weeks while work was being done in the bathroom. Oh, what fun it was. NOT! |
I decided to use real wood for the bathroom flooring. The farmhouse has it's original yellow pine plank flooring that is very hard to match with its aged patina. I decided to order plank flooring from Lowe's and because it was a tongue and groove plank it was a special order. They left it out in the rain and it was wrecked. I had to reorder a new batch. For my trouble they took a hundred bucks off of my new Koller toilet which was in my shopping cart and it was a total unexpected blessing. I wanted the flooring to look aged, so I did a stain, paint and top coat treatment on the boards to achieve a rustic farmhouse look and one I would not worry about when it gets dirty or scuffed up.
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| Once the wall planks were painted, the hand stained pine flooring was installed |
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| Once installed I dry brushed the stained planks with white exterior flat pain , and let it dry a few hours before sanding it |
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| I used steel wool to sand off much of the dry brushed paint. Then I applied 3 layers of satin Polyurethane |
Depending on interest or requests, I may do a separate post on my technique and product brands that were used to achieve this look for my bathroom floors. I forgot to mention how happy I was to find original farmhouse wood planks on my ceding under what seemed like some type of cardboard tiles.
BATHROOM BEFORE
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| These are the wonderful wood planks that were hidden under cardboard type tiles |
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| The creative way they ran wire back in the day. Just chisel out a trench where needed. |
More to follow....Part 2 coming soon, really-I am working on it now.
Remember..It is never to late to have a happy childhood. Even when there is a
bathtub in your kitchen and you barely have room to move about.. you must find a way to play.
Tonita
