Week 6: Bathroom week: The Hybrid Plan

Campaign by Restoration Hardware. How can a faucet set--a faucet set! make my heart go pitter pat? I'd shine these beauties everyday. No problem.

I entirely agree with scb. This will be a continuation of Office week for me, too. I still want to vacuum my window screens, wash the windows, and the floor. The shelves above the desk need a clearing and a wash, too.

That may take me until Wednesday, we'll see how it goes.

However, I thought I'd do this post and get it out of the way, even though my bathroom is in such bad shape that it needs a complete overhaul.

It has too much moisture (resulting in peeling paint, water on the floor around the toilet constantly, and even mold growing on the baseboards near the wall heating vent.) The last problem is caused by a leaky tap, but the other--I'm not sure if we have the wrong toilet--or the wrong sized exhaust fan. (Changing to a bigger one will require cutting a larger hole in the side of the house and that's obviously the first solution to try--though the scariest!)

So, it has functional problems. It also has an aesthetic one: our tub surround is beige fiberglass. Beige! It was gouged in several places by paint remover when I scraped the ceiling and repainted it several years ago. I had thought that nasty bath tub surround would be long gone by now, but of course, it is still with us. I want tile in there: the husband will live with the same sort of fibreglass/plastic insert thing--he just wants white instead of the dingy stuff we have now. Here's a picture of "the fibreglass/plastic" sort of thing I mean:

source. Ours is pitted, scratched, and even more beigy.

I would rather have something like the white tile with the black stripe around the top as in this image:

source: Katie Ridder (I think) via girl meets glamour I'm not fond of the tiled in tub and the checkerboard stripe along it, however.

Here is an affordable version, with 4x4 tile, though I have yet to price it for the area we want:

source: unknown. (I would only have it around the tub, though. Can't afford to do the whole room.) This just says classy and "classic" to me.

Moving on....

Maxwell Gillingham-Ryan gives us the proscription for this week on p. 187 of Apartment Therapy, the Eight Step Home Cure.
Bones:
Clean bathrooms and related closets.

Breath:
Declutter cabinets and closets.
Arrange your bathroom efficiently.

Heart:
Upgrade razor and shaving supplies.
Purchase bath salts and nice soap.
Place a candle in your bathroom.
Consider scents for your home.

Head:
Plan for the week ahead on Sunday.
Wake early and take a bath before work.
Optional: consider a media fast for the next week.
Optional: straighten your desk at work.

Now, the Spring Cleaning List:

Downstairs bathroom:
Wash shower curtain and liner
Wash window curtain
Vacuum and wash fan grille
Wash walls. Sand off loose paint.
Wash baseboards (clean mold)
Look into new taps

Memoir by Kohler. (These are very similar to the taps I replaced a long time ago, though I don't know if they were original. We have a half moon sink on two chrome legs. I'll have to check to see if I can find out what was originally installed with it.)

Wash or replace tub/shower surround
Replace grout around tub
Wash and dust shelves and medicine cabinet
Clean fixtures thoroughly
Clean shower head

Upstairs, clean:
Wash walls
Wash floor
Look into replacing the floor
Wash shelves and inside medicine cabinet

Declutter:
Medicine cabinet (up and down)
Cleaning supplies and cupboards (up and down)
Cosmetics (up)
Sort through old towels, clean and donate to animal shelter (up and down)

And so there we have it.
Rev your engines---we're over the hump and into the home stretch now!