welcome to my loo
March 2nd, 2008 @ 9:25 pm | domestic, home | Post a CommentI spent about five hours with my toilet today. Not because I was up late playing drinking games (though I was), or because I ate some bad food (no, that was last week), but because I painted the bathroom. I am so beyond thrilled with it! It was totally worth the backache and stained fingernails. I know you want to see pics so here they are.
The bathroom walls before were a glossy pale blue. The color wasn’t horrible, but it didn’t have any personality and whoever (whomever?) painted it last must have been drunk because the quality was atrocious. I had to patch several holes in the wall.
Here is the after photo (more on flickr). It took me about five hours start to finish, including scrubbing the floor (gross!) and taping (hate).
Even though it’s dark — windowless and under the stairs — it just feels so much more rich and regal now. I love it! Next I need to get a new mirror, towels, and art for the walls, but that’s the FUN part.
This post is about more than my new intimate relationship with my toilet, though. Recently I’ve been inspired by reader Jen’s 21 Day Makeover project. Her three week makeover focused on writing for one hour each day in pursuit of eventually quitting her job to write full time. I totally relate to her need to stop talking about her goals and start acting on them in a thoughtful and measurable way.
I have decided to do a 21 Day Makeover to make my house into the home I want it to be. Instead of talking about it, blogging about it, reading design blogs, and perusing catalogs and stores, I’m going to take action to make my house clean, organized, polished, and well-designed. I want to hit the 6-month mark of homeownership and feel proud of our home and the progress we’ve made on it.
I set some rules:
- I will work on the house for one hour every day for 21 straight days.
- “Work” can be anything from cleaning, painting, de-cluttering, vacuuming, organizing, hanging curtains, sewing pillows, working in the yard, anything!
- “Work” can NOT be shopping online or in stores for things for the house. I know I will need to do this but it doesn’t count toward my daily hour.
- I am definitely allowed to drink wine while working on the house!
- I will hold myself accountable by taking photos of the various projects and documenting them on flickr and here on the blog. I started a flickr photoset and I’ll add to it every few days.
If anyone out there reading wants to join me in a 21 Day Makeover just let me know. It can be about exercise, eating right, making art, anything. March 22nd here I come!
Ooh, great idea! I LOVE it!
And that color is terrific! Way better than that dull original blue (and far better than the electric blue of painting tape - there is no better feeling than taking that down!)
written by Janssen
March 2nd, 2008 @ 9:30 pm
This is an awesome idea! I might have to try this myself…of course, it will have to be after school is out for the summer. I have no energy left for cleaning and painting after my work day!
written by Erin
March 2nd, 2008 @ 9:45 pm
oh WOW, Janet, that looks fantastic! I love the way the wall color goes with the floor!!!
And I also love rule #4 in your house-work list. hehe
written by Jen
March 2nd, 2008 @ 9:46 pm
Love it… (I am very partial to the dark gray since that’s the color of my powder room)
Great work, and I love that tile!
written by Kelly
March 2nd, 2008 @ 9:49 pm
I think that colour is fantastic!
written by E :)
March 2nd, 2008 @ 10:17 pm
Patching holes? Taping walls and painting? I’m impressed!
Very cool that you’re undertaking such an ambitious 21-day project. Hopefully you’ll have a lot to show for your efforts by the time the 21 days are up! At least you’ll have your efforts documented, so you can remember and point out what you did.
written by Zandria
March 2nd, 2008 @ 10:38 pm
I love the 21-Day Makeover idea. I HATE painting at the moment. We spent ALL WEEKEND painting the bedroom, and still have yet to even begin the walls. May the universe smite whoever rehabbed our house and left all the holes, dents and crooked edges thus making a straight tape line impossible!
your bathroom looks great! I love dark colors, even in small spaces.
written by Operation Pink Herring
March 2nd, 2008 @ 11:14 pm
I love the color!
It makes me want to paint my whole apartment.
Too bad I rent.
written by Julie
March 2nd, 2008 @ 11:34 pm
I think the blue taping looks especially awesome
written by alyndabear
March 3rd, 2008 @ 2:34 am
Hmmm, a 21-day makeover? That might be just what I need … because we’re thinking about putting my place on the market in the next few weeks. Hmmm. I’ll think about it. Thanks for the great idea!
written by Nilsa S.
March 3rd, 2008 @ 8:47 am
For what it’s worth, it’s “whoever,” because it’s the subject of that clause.
Does this makeover come with a budget? Last night, I rearranged the knick knacks on our picture ledges, and now I have a serious urge to frame big photos, binderize our CDs, and put everything in baskets in our entertainment unit, but dude, I can’t afford this stuff. Our house would be so cool if I had extra $500/month to spend on it! And extra time. And a sense of style. Ahem.
written by RA
March 3rd, 2008 @ 9:50 am
Oooh–your 21-Day Makeover is off to an excellent start! The bathroom looks awesome!
I’m still torn as to what I’d like to do for my next one. At this point, I’m thinking I’ll do 30-minute walks every day. That’s totally do-able, and I really need the exercise!
Keep updating us on the makeover–I can’t wait to see how much you’ll have done at the end of the month!
written by Jen
March 3rd, 2008 @ 10:20 am
Love your new bathroom wall colors, usually I don’t like dark paint on walls, but I recently painted my entire house in shades of warm grays. It’s a great pallet and it looks wonderful in your bathroom!
written by Tina Vaziri
March 3rd, 2008 @ 11:03 am
Yeah, I’d like to do something like that too. We started a wallpaper peeling project last weekend and I want it finished and the new wall treatment applied and finished by the end of this month. That’s a lot of paper to peel and glue to scrub off. I’d better get movin’!
written by Chiada
March 3rd, 2008 @ 12:14 pm
I love that color gray. It’s gorgeous and so rich, not concrete-y like some grays. You are quite the little Martha Stewart, my friend!
written by Laurel
March 3rd, 2008 @ 1:07 pm
The color looks great…go you!!
written by Shesabigstar
March 3rd, 2008 @ 1:47 pm
Oh my goodness, I LOVE that color!! And I definitely would LOVE to participate in the makeover. If it’s okay with you, I’m totally going to steal your makeover as well. We hit our one year mark of home ownership in a few weeks, and there are still curtains and pictures that need to be hung. I think that in an hour a day, I could get tons done and be ready to celebrate our one year house anniversary in style!!
written by Angela
March 3rd, 2008 @ 2:24 pm
Oh I like the new look, dark is definitely regal. And the whole makeover idea is awesome. I should try that too…
written by katelin
March 3rd, 2008 @ 3:36 pm
SHUT UP. I LOOOOOOVE THIS MAKEOVER!!!
written by Design for Mankind
March 3rd, 2008 @ 7:34 pm
wow, really brings out the color of your tiles!
written by harmony
March 3rd, 2008 @ 7:54 pm
You have great taste, as always! LOVE the new wall color with the floor tiles.
I admire your plan, and I can’t wait to see the results!
written by Melissa
March 3rd, 2008 @ 8:03 pm
That 21-day idea is awesome! I’m thinking photography might be the way for me to go.
Also, raspberry vodka is delish… sorry your bottle broke! Bet that was fun to clean up
I love it with Sprite Zero.
written by JP
March 3rd, 2008 @ 9:38 pm
I love the bathroom color (or shall I say “powder room” and use it in the right context?) - so lovely!
I like the idea of the 21 Day Makeover. There are alot of things I want to accomplish…I’m not even sure where I would start.
Good luck! I can’t wait to see all the photos!
written by wishcake
March 3rd, 2008 @ 10:52 pm
A 21 Day Makeover– what an awesome idea! I’m going to have to act on one of my goals now, too …
And great paint job, I love the new look!
written by Leanne
March 4th, 2008 @ 10:57 am
How about a 21 day ab makeover? I will try to do the Abs of Steel tape every day for 21 days and see if my belly will finally give up that baby gut.
written by ambitiousmrs
March 4th, 2008 @ 11:23 am
Surfed over here from Angela’s.
You know, I always get on ‘kicks’ to improve myself/organize my life/whatever, but they never stick. I think your Rule #4 is brilliant - when the activity is, frankly, *work*, have a reward system built in to the plan.
I’m sure if decluttering my office were always accompanied by a margarita I would be much more eager to get going every day. I noticed that I’m much more inclined to exercise if I have a new song on my iPod - the reward is integrated into the activity. You’re a genius!
I can’t wait to pull out my old lists of goals and see what little delights I can build into the chores.
written by tasterspoon
March 4th, 2008 @ 3:12 pm
i love the color choice! this 21 day makeover sounds like something you could apply to all aspects of life. i might have to stop beating around the bush and take action myself soon!
written by Michelle & the City
March 5th, 2008 @ 2:19 pm
What a great goal.
(Of course my apartment is so tiny I could never do this. I would run out of stuff in like the first week.)
As you know, we painted our tiny, windowless powder room (in the new house) a DARK purple. And we love it. I also think it looks so regal. Here’s to dark colored potties!
written by Isabel
March 6th, 2008 @ 3:27 pm
Love this idea… I am totally jumping on-board a bit late, and I still need to come up with an idea to do for 21 days…
Oh, and I love the bathroom color.
xox
written by heidikins
March 6th, 2008 @ 4:17 pm