I’ve been itching to repaint the master bathroom. We painted it Benjamin Moore’s Tapestry Beige before we moved in. Don’t get me wrong. I love Tapestry Beige. It’s in our living room, kitchen and hallway. But in our naturally dark {boo} bedroom and bathroom it looks dingy. It’s not that noticeable on the blog because I’m able to lighten the pictures. In fact, you might not even be able to tell that I repainted.

I wanted there to be less of a contrast between the walls, trim and ceiling so I repainted the walls to match the trim and ceiling – Benjamin Moore’s White Dove color matched in Behr paint. I’ve never painted an entire room – walls, ceiling, trim, doors – one color before but I like it in our teeny master bath. With many of the small details painted the same color, the room feels less busy. I don’t know if I would like this effect in a different, larger room but in a really small bathroom it works.

The wall color helps camouflage the small cabinet {also painted White Dove} that we added last winter to house HH’s electric razor and toothbrush.

This picture better shows how the walls, cabinet and door sort of all fade together into a warm white abyss.

Because our bathroom is prone to splatters and drips {currently we’re sharing the bathroom with our three kids}, I chose a satin finish for easy cleaning.

With the master bathroom repainted, next on my list is the master bedroom. It will happen this week. I have no choice. My older kids’ last day of school is Friday and I’m banking on getting nothing done once they’re home for the summer. Our bedroom is naturally dark {it’s the room that gets the least amount of natural light in our house} so I’m going to play up that effect and go for something cozy. I’m tweaking my original plans just a bit. Here’s a peek.

More progress to come!

For those of you keeping track, the bathroom makes four rooms {the bedroom will be the fifth and last!} I’ve repainted since moving in not even a year ago. I shouldn’t be allowed to pick paint colors when I’m pregnant.

Click here to see who won last week’s Teal & Lime giveaway!

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

Blog sponsorship. It’s a touchy subject. But the truth of the matter is, if you have a blog that receives a fair amount of traffic, blogging turns into an expense – financially speaking.

When I first created House*Tweaking, I had a free Blogger account and I was working part-time as a pharmacist. Blogging was purely a hobby. Over the years, with an increase in readership {I’m still not entirely sure why you guys choose to follow House*Tweaking with so many amazing blogs out there but I’m truly grateful that you do. Thank you!}, I’ve obtained a URL and transferred House*Tweaking from Blogger to a “meh” web host and then to a private server. Oh, and I left my day job. Those things combined have made it necessary for me to look into sponsorship opportunities in the form of side bar ads, affiliate programs, writing elsewhere and collaborating with reputable companies. I am not looking to get rich. My hope is to cover the costs of maintaining this blog, DIYing projects and decorating our house so that I can continue doing what now has become a passion.

In working with companies, I always try to feature businesses and products that I would use myself. I say no to potential sponsors ten times more than I say yes. I really want it to be a win-win-win situation. The company gains some traffic. I cover my costs. You are introduced to an inspiring and useful product/service.

All that mumbo jumbo to say I’ve been brainstorming new ways to partner with businesses. When I signed on to write for Wayfair’s blog, My Way Home, I had an “a-ha!” moment. Why not feature items from their site that I would like to use in my own home? I had shopped Wayfair before {I bought the saddler’s bench shown above} and was really pleased with my purchase. I pitched the idea to Wayfair and the monthly “Wayfair in the House” series was born. This is the first of such posts! Here we go…

I’m so ready to have a cozy bedroom. I tried capturing a current pic of the room but was immediately photobombed by three rugrats. It’s hard to tell from the image above but there are random paint sample patches painted throughout the room. There’s even painted foam board living in our closet and paint swatches propped on the windowsill. Do you spy them? My nightstand drawer is full of color swatches and paint decks. It’s bad. I’ve tried no less than a dozen colors and don’t like any of them. This northeast room with not great light is tough. But one swatch I’ve kept in the mix is Benjamin Moore’s 2126.

Namely, I’m really drawn to anchor gray 2126-30. It reminds me of my favorite jeans. In thinking about our bedroom {and I do it waaaaaaaay too much}, I really want it to feel like a room that I would wear. And I like nothing more than wearing my favorite dark jeans with a heather gray top, leather boots and simple gold jewelry. HH also wears a lot of denim and gray so having masculine navy and gray in the room feels right.

Then I found this.

Currently, we’re living with one functional bathroom – the master bathroom. The other bathroom {the kid/guest bathroom} is completely gutted awaiting renovation. Hang in there lil’ bathroom! We’re coming to the rescue in a few months.

How are we making one bathroom work for our family of five? Easy.

1. We’ve given up on modesty.

2. We’ve perfected the bathroom shuffle.

3. We keep the vanity organized.

Numbers 1 & 2 are difficult to discuss online without being mistaken for an X-rated website. So I’ll skip right to #3.

Our vanity is IKEA’s GODMORGON in high gloss gray. I had wanted a floating vanity and HH wanted something with closed storage. This floating cabinet was the perfect compromise. With a little editing and organizing, we’ve made it functional for the entire family. When we moved in, I condensed our toiletries down to only the absolute necessities. I snapped some pics of the opened drawers and their contents, took a few measurements and made a quick trip to Target to pick up plastic caddies to organize the vanity.

The top drawer is divided into two sections.

The left side is all HH’s. {He doesn’t really use two toothbrushes. One is for cleaning his hair trimmer. We don’t dare put that one in our mouths.}

The right side is what I like to call the community section. Items here are used by more than one person. {Okay, I’m the only one who uses the eye makeup remover in the pink bottle and the Clarasonic Mia.}

The bottom drawer is divided into two sections as well with the left side being a smidge bigger than the right. {The vertical drawer dividers came with the vanity and are adjustable.} This drawer is a few inches deeper than the top drawer so it can house taller items.

The left {i.e., bigger} side is mine. It takes a little work to make me pretty, okay? The caddy I bought for my section was too long to fit all the way down into the drawer but it turned out to be a happy accident. It sits snug in the top half of the drawer, freeing up the bottom of the drawer for a hair dryer that I rarely use. Layne uses it more than I do. I think I’ve used it once since we moved in. In the middle section of the caddy is my hospital bracelet and Mabrey’s anklet from her birth nearly eight months ago. After we were discharged from the hospital, I snipped them off, threw them in with my toiletries and have kept them there ever since. I like seeing them in the morning and remembering her birth. It was a really wonderful experience. FYI – I’ve kept all of my kids’ birth ID anklets. Is that weird?

The right side of the bottom drawer is a catchall. I have backup rolls of toilet paper, sanitizing wipes for quick cleanings {because with two young boys and a bigger boy there are always messes in the bathroom, ifyaknowwhatimean} and chargers for HH’s electric razor and toothbrush. Now that I’m thinking about it, I should probably move the chargers up to HH’s section. Ahhhhhhh! I’m so Type A about these things. Reminds me of elementary school, organizing and reorganizing my school box. Whatever happened to school boxes anyways?

That’s how I stay somewhat sane in the bathroom with one husband, two boys and one baby. Thank goodness Mabrey doesn’t require toiletries yet. Hopefully, we finish the other bathroom before she starts into makeup and hair accessories. Which might be sooner rather than later. That girl’s got a headful of crazy hair!

I’m off to move HH’s chargers! And the answer is yes. Yes, I will sleep better knowing our toiletries are arranged properly.

P.S. – A few readers have asked for pictures of the vanity’s plumbing bits. Here you go. Damn. We in a tight spot. Name that movie.

Plumbing porn. De nada.

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

As we head into a long weekend, I’m contemplating the master bedroom. Despite the name, I don’t want it to feel master-ish. At all. I prefer an informal, casual, laid-back bedroom. I like masculine lines with a few feminine details thrown in. Much like the rest of my house.

Here are a few bedrooms that are fueling my quest for a casual bedroom.

I love the mood of this room. Carefree and casual. The mismatched art and leaning floor mirror lend to the informal look. The chrome task light bedside and naked bulb pendant are great industrial elements. The teeny vase of flowers and scalloped coverlet are subtle feminine details. And how does one go about making an unmade bed look so inviting?! I want bedding that looks great whether it’s properly smoothed and folded or just tousled.

I like the warmth of this organic bedroom. The cozy walls, linen bedding and wood nightstand all make for an inviting space.

This room is a tad more minimal than what I’d like for my own bedroom but I do like the idea of using a leather accent piece – like a chair, ottoman or hide rug – along with some fresh greenery. I don’t think my Type A personality would allow for a stack of books on the floor but I would use a reading corner in the bedroom if I had one.

This bedroom is a total dream. Vaulted ceilings and french doors ain’t happen’ in our bedroom but having a ‘dream’ room for inspiration can be useful. Horizontal plank walls and an industrial pendant {albeit not this big} are doable in my average bedroom. I’m not saying that we’ll go that route but they’re definitely worthy options.

This is how a room starts for me. I first find rooms that feel good to me and don’t worry too much about what will/won’t work in my own space. I find common elements and note them. It’s not my intention to copy inspirational rooms but to interpret their mood in an affordable way that works in my home.

This is our bedroom as of today. I purchased new nightstands that HH and I both love so they are staying. We finally got around to hanging a leather nailhead headboard that I picked up at Ballard Designs Outlet for a steal last fall. It’s super comfy for sitting up and reading in bed and the curvy lines add a little feminine touch. The bedside IKEA task lights are brand new. We’ve been living with them for about a week. I like their industrial aesthetic but I’m not quite sold on their finish – a glossy gray. HH likes them as-is. For now, they’re staying just the way they are but I might end up spray painting them. We’ll see.

Obviously, I’ve got my work cut out for me. I need to address window treatments, overhead lighting and the open closet. On top of that, I want to find a rug, new bedding {our coverlet looks like a big napkin!} and brainstorm a reading corner on the opposite side of the room. Nothing will happen overnight. I’m content letting my ideas simmer for a while. Who knew making a room look effortless would take so much effort?

What decor ideas will you be turning over in your mind – or bringing to life! – this holiday weekend?

images: 1) via Pinterest - if you happen to know the source, please tell me! 2) William Waldron for Elle Decor 3) DISC Interiors 4) Gardener & Marks

Check one thing off our to-do list. Closets. Organized closets. At least in the master and boys’ bedrooms. I drew up a little sketch of what setup I wanted in each closet and Handy Hubby made it happen. I’ve always admired wooden shelving and solid drawers in walk-in closets, but since our closets’ contents will eventually be hidden behind fabric curtains {we removed the closet doors for good!}, we went with the less attractive but less expensive wire shelving option. Specifically, we used ClosetMaid wire shelving.

I got the kids out of the house for some summer fun while HH tackled the closets. That’s the only way things happen around here anymore. One of us wrangles the kids while the other tackles a project. HH was kind enough to take some in-progress shots for you.

You can read all about ClosetMaid installation here. Basically, HH screwed the top {horizontal} hang track into the wall plate then hung the {vertical} standards from that to get proper spacing before screwing them in as well.

HH found that hanging the standards from the hang track before screwing them into the wall helped him to get the exact spacing needed for the wire drawers and to level the shelves.

That’s the boys’ closet all organized. I didn’t clean up for the pics or style anything. This is what it looks like on a normal day. I’ve mentioned in the past that I am constantly editing our stuff. I probably make two dozen trips to Goodwill every year. Maybe you didn’t think I was serious. But I am. I only keep toys that aren’t broken and that my kids play with on a regular basis. My boys don’t have a lot of clothes either. It keeps me on top of laundry and we save money by not hoarding a bunch of unnecessary clothing. They tend to want to wear the same shirt and shorts over and over and over anyway. Here’s a breakdown on their closet contents…

Honestly, the Legos bin is usually on the floor but I got tired of stepping on random pieces the other day so I threw it up there. Clothing that’s not in season is stored in the attic. Otherwise, I end up with two boys in sweatpants in the middle of August.  Yes, those really are all their summer clothes. I wasn’t behind on laundry when I took these pics.

One thing I rarely get rid of are books. I don’t think kids can have too many books. But if they’re missing pages or not age-appropriate then I get rid of them. I also had a firm talk with the boys about the shelves not being ladders.

There’s a little nook within the boys’ closet. It’s perfect for less frequently used items. Although Everett wears a costume just about every day. The kid loves costumes. If he gets grounded from them {which happens more than I care to admit} he will create a costume out of his regular clothes. Undies make a good face mask, you know.

I stashed them in a hanging organizer at a height where they’d be easy for him to get out and put away. So far, so good. Before their closet was organized, Layne and Everett were leaving their clothes and toys strewn about all day and night. I was going bonkers. But it really wasn’t their fault. They had nowhere to put anything. If you give kids an easy system, for the most part, they’ll use it.

I’m thrilled their things have a place now. For the first time in 9 months, we’re finally back to our nightly routine of cleaning up before bed. That makes me happy. I know I’m probably coming across as a bit prude here but I firmly believe in toys not taking over our house just because kids live here. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. My kids focus better and play better when there aren’t a million options to distract them. It works well for us.

Now onto the master closet.

Our closet is shaped a little differently than the boys’ with two nooks on either side. HH and I agreed that they would be great spots for hanging items since we both tend to be ‘folders’ and prefer to have folded items front and center.

HH placed two hanging rods on either side of the master closet with some added shelving above. Here’s our closet now…

Those are all of our clothes. Even out of season items are stored in our closet because {unlike our boys!} we know which clothing is appropriate for which type of weather we’re having. Although, HH has been known to wear shorts in the dead of winter. Weird.

The closet is split in half. Please notice the Steelers garb encroaching onto the top shelf of my side. Ahem. No, really. I can’t reach that shelf without the aid of a chair anyway. I want to get a clothes folding board so our folded things will look nicer. We’re folders but I never said we were good ones. I’d love to have all wooden hangers someday too but the plastic ones work fine.

My favorite part of our closet are the slide-out laundry hampers. HH surprised me with those. I kept saying they’d be nice but HH kept leaning towards floor-to-ceiling shelving and I was okay with that. I about peed my pants when I came home and saw them. They are an organizing girl’s dream!

I’m trying to teach Layne and Everett the difference between lights and darks. Everett’s not quite getting it. But, Mama, those red pants have white polka dots. That means they’re light.

To the left {HH’s}…

HH still needs to find a way to organize his ties and hats. Or maybe I need to find a way for him.

To the right {mine}…

You’ll notice that there aren’t shoes in any of the bedroom closets. That’s because I want to come up with a way to store them elsewhere…somewhere close to the front and garage doors. We follow the ‘no shoes in the house’ rule. Right now, they’re just piled in baskets in the mudroom.

The closet lights pass through the wire shelving better than if they were solid. We like that about the wire.

In case you’re wondering, it cost us ~$500 to add the wire closet organization to the two closets. Money well spent if you ask me. Especially when there’s plenty room-to-grow involved. And the shelves can be re-adjusted as needed when and if our wardrobes change. In a closet, I’m all for function. It doesn’t have to look pretty, just has to work.

Which brings me to another tangent topic. Pretty.

There are so many pretty pictures on other blogs right now. It’s starting to bring me down. Normally, I’m inspired. But today I feel as if our house will never look pretty. I don’t say this to prompt ‘hang in there, girl!’ comments. I say this to let you know that I’m human and that I don’t always like what’s going on in my house. Renovations are taxing. Moving is hard. Unpacking is even harder. Throw in two kids, a newborn and a sleep-deprived Mama and you’ve got the makings of an emotional roller coaster. Please don’t ask me how I do it all. I don’t do it all. I feel like I’m always sacrificing something. Sleep. Time with my boys. Time with my baby. Time with my HH. Time with my blog. Time with the unpacked moving boxes in our garage. Time with my friends. Time with myself. Time with my inbox. Time with projects.

I haven’t been able to find a good rhythm since Mabrey was born. When I’m being a good Mama, I feel like a bad blogger. When I’m being a good blogger, I feel like a bad Mama. I know it will get better. For cryin’ out loud, this is my third time around! You’d think I’d know not to try to do too much too soon. And yet, I still find myself thinking about things I could be doing. Should be doing. I need to let those thoughts go and know my limits. I know where I want to take House*Tweaking and my house, but I also know that it’s going to take time {and sleep!} to get them both where I want them. I also know that there are other people out there with much more serious {health, financial, marital, etc.} problems than my wanna-do-it-all-and-do-it-now-and-do-it-great! mentality.

Sometimes, I need to remind myself of why I started this blog. As much as I enjoy looking at pretty things, I like to see real things. A real house where a real family with real kids lives. Oh, and there’s no real nanny or real cleaning lady. And that real house doesn’t always look pretty.

Okay. Good talk. Thanks for listening.

On a lighter note, we found this fortune in our Chinese takeout three days after we moved in…

It’s hanging on our fridge and it makes me smile.

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

It’s been over two months since I revealed our master bathroom makeover. {And now that I’m revisiting the post, I realized it was posted just three days before Mabrey was born!} Many of you were wondering what type of shower door or curtain we were going to utilize. After weighing the pros and cons, we went the curtain route.

FYI – It seems the only time I can find to take pictures now is during the early morning hours which don’t provide the best lighting. That’s why things may look a little different from the original makeover pics as they were taken in the afternoon sun.

Mainly for function. There wasn’t a good place to put a door. The shower faucet is on the right and the toilet is on the left. If we put the door opening on the right side then water from the shower head would spray out {we like to run the water for a few seconds to let it warm up before hopping in}. If we put the door on the left side then we would have to climb around the toilet to get in. Of course, there’s always the option of switching the shower plumbing to the left wall {where the back of the shower is now} but that would require re-plumbing the bathroom and we weren’t willing to pay for that just for a shower door. So, a curtain it is.

This seersucker-esque shower curtain to be exact. It’s extra long and extra wide. Originally, I thought I’d go for a big patterned curtain to liven things up but when I was standing in the little bathroom, I couldn’t imagine a big pattern in there. It would have overwhelmed the space. And I like bright white bathrooms.

The seersucker texture mimics the texture of the shiny shower tile.

I hung it from a tension rod at ceiling height. The long curtain and the tub-to-ceiling tile in the shower make the little room feel bigger.

A floor-to-ceiling shower curtain isn’t an earth-shattering idea in the design world but I think these double shower curtain rings are. Where have they been all my life?! And if you already knew about them, why didn’t you tell me?! It’s hard to tell from the picture but the shower curtain hook on the left is a bit higher than the liner hook on the right. This trick hides the liner nicely behind the curtain.

Speaking of the liner, I bought this fabric one. I love it. Being constructed of a waterproof fabric, it doesn’t have that plastic-y feel or odor to it.

It’s also extra long {since it’s hung at ceiling height as well} but not as long as the curtain so there’s no risk of tripping on it while showering. I’d like to say that I take the curtain and liner down weekly to wash them but that would be a lie. These babies have been up for nearly three weeks with no washings other than the first one right out of the package and they look just as bright and clean as the day I hung them. Which is pretty amazing considering this is the only functioning shower/bathtub we have right now. And there are two adults, two kids and one baby using the shower/tub regularly so it sees a lot of use. I’m really happy with how they’re holding up!

I had to hang our squeegee on the tub behind the liner because the hook wouldn’t suction to our textured shower tile. Surprisingly, I like the disguised placement better than on the shower wall. This way I’m not staring at a squeegee while I’m showering. {It makes for better bathroom photos on the blog as well!} I like happy surprises like that. What I am staring at is this…

I open the shower window any chance I get…during and after my showers. We’re lucky enough to have pretty thick tree and shrub coverage in the backyard so I don’t feel weird opening the window. Even without that, our neighbors to the back sit closer to the road than we do so there’s a good amount of land separating us. An open window in the shower is as close as I’ll ever get to an outdoor shower. There’s something about the cool, fresh air mixed with the smell of soap in the morning that wakes me up. It’s a great way to start my day.

I’m loving our new bath towel hooks too. We’ve always had towel bars in our previous homes. Due to the lack of wall space in this bathroom, we went with hooks. I had HH hang them staggered just outside the shower for easy reaching. His is the higher one and mine’s the lower one.

I prefer the aesthetic of the hooks as opposed to towel bars. HH complains that the towels don’t dry as well as with a bar so I’ve started turning our towels around the hooks at different points during the day. It’s not much to move them around when I’m in there to brush my teeth or use the restroom.

Like I said, this bathroom is the only bathroom for now. The kid/guest bath is gutted, patiently awaiting a makeover but we’ve got more pressing projects to complete before we can start on it. That’s okay. This one is working great for us.

image: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

Now that the master bathroom is done {from a renovation standpoint}, we’ve made a shopping list of what finishing items are left to purchase. One item on the list is a ceiling light for the master bedroom. I thought it sounded like a fun item to start with. More fun than register covers, that’s for sure.

{view of master bedroom from master bathroom}

Yes, I finally got around to deep cleaning all the bedrooms over the weekend. No more construction dust! We can actually see out the windows now, too. More details on that coming in a separate post. Back to the lighting issue…

So far the rest of the Underdog’s lighting is simple – even industrial. In the bedroom, though, I’m thinking of something a little more dreamy. But still simple. Since we’ve been frugal with our lighting options elsewhere, I’ve set the master bedroom ceiling light budget at $200. Not outrageous but I consider it a splurge for us. {The cost of the boys’ bedroom, nursery and dining lights was less than $80 total.} I’ve just started browsing and put together a roundup of my favorites to date. Of course, I may end up buying a light that’s not even on this list but I thought I’d share my search for those of you who are curious about my thought process.

1 – Dandelion Chandelier {$200} This chandy features thin brushed steel wire wound into a sphere. I like the feathery texture and think it would put off a warm glow when lit.

2 – Star Chandelier {$196} Twinkle, twinkle little star. I imagine the rays of light and shadows this starlight puts off are amazing.

3 – Golden Bronze Criss-Cross Pendant {$200} The mix of bronzed metal, fabric shade and crystals is unique. I especially like the ‘X’ pattern of the metal.

4 – Capiz Pendant {$70} This shimmery chandy may look familiar. I hung it in the master bedroom of our previous home and it stayed there with the sale of the house. It’s the least expensive option I’ve found so far but a lighting kit has to be purchased separately as the chandy doesn’t include one. As much as I dig it, I kinda feel like ‘been there done that.’ It would totally work but I’m itching to switch things up. I don’t want the Underdog’s decor to be a reproduction of our last home. Still, it’s a great piece.

5 – White Cloud Pendant {$150} Sleeping under this cumulus-like pendant would feel like sleeping under the open sky. It has a very organic aesthetic that I’m lovin’ too.

6 – Zig Zag Acrylic Pendant {$177} This is probably the most modern option I like. The frosted acrylic zig zags are arranged in a way that gives the light a woven appearance. This pendant is also one of the smaller options so I’d have to double check measurements before saying ‘yay’ or ‘nay.’

A few other thoughts I have about lighting for the master bedroom…

• The placement of the bed will be beneath the window seen above, directly across from the bathroom. That means the centered ceiling light will hang just above the foot of the bed so a hanging pendant/chandy will work – as opposed to a flush mount light – since there won’t be anybody walking around under the light.

• The wattage of the ceiling light doesn’t have to be super powerful. For one, I like a dimly lit bedroom. Second, I really want to hang two wall sconces bedside for reading. HH and I are both bedtime readers. Between the ceiling light and two wall sconces {not to mention mounted lights in the closet}, I think the lighting will be sufficient for what we need. Ambience.

How does Handy Hubby feel about the possibilities? He likes them all – some more than others. Like with any other decorating decisions, he’s leaving the search up to me. I narrow the options down, show them to him and then we make the final decision together to ensure it’s something we can both live with. Over the years, we’ve found this is the best way for us to make home decor choices together.

Narrowing down the possibilities to a select few is key. HH isn’t good at making decisions when there’s a huge playing field to choose from. {Unless you’re talking about girls, that is. He did make a pretty good choice on that one. Ha!} For example, HH has been looking for a new pair of shoes for months now. Zappos has him corn-fused with their huge selection. He’s easily distracted.

What about you? Any lighting purchases recently? Any in your future? Any thoughts on bedroom lighting? Any other ideas on how to make joint decorating decisions?

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

The Underdog’s original 1950′s master bathroom had an elephant color scheme going on – flesh pink and gray. Some of the shower tiles were fractured allowing water to seep into the wall. To keep costs down, we kept the layout of the room the same, kept the shower window placement and reused the toilet which may have been the only thing ever upgraded by the previous owner.

We gutted the room to the studs, had the electric upgraded {as well as throughout the rest of the home} to today’s standards and replaced all finishes and fixtures {minus the toilet as mentioned above} which included a new vinyl window.

From a renovation standpoint, we’re saying this room is D-O-N-E.

I spent all day Saturday scrubbing the bathroom clean. It was a 38-week-pregnant lady’s nesting dream! I used my favorite Mrs. Meyer’s all purpose cleaner mixed with water in a spray bottle to remove chunks of stray grout and drywall mud throughout the bathroom. It worked like a charm. Plus, it smells delightful and isn’t harmful to me or baby. It may have taken me longer than usual considering my condition but it felt so good to get at least one – albeit small – room in order at the Underdog.

We now have a proper place to use the bathroom and wash our hands. Before, my guys would ‘go’ in the backyard and we had to wash our hands with a dirty bar of soap at the outdoor spigot. We’re movin’ up!

Let’s take a tour, shall we? Starting with the shower…

We replaced the window, tub, shower fixtures and tile surround. We took the shower tile all the way to the ceiling to make it feel taller and airier. If you look back to the ‘before’ pics, you’ll see that the original shower tile only went about two-thirds of the way up the walls.

The new vinyl window has texture on the inside of the pane {you can’t feel it from the shower side of the glass…it’s in between the double panes} for privacy.

Here’s the view to the backyard from the window when it’s open. Yeah, the backyard could use some love. We’ll get there.

Back inside, we replaced the shower and tub fixtures.

We replaced the old gray tub with a deeper, sleeker white one.

My favorite feature of the tub is the one-click drain stopper. You can easily open and close the drain with a tap of your toes. This is high society stuff for us, people!

The shower tile sparkles like glitter and reflects the natural light pouring in from the window.

Contrary to popular belief, it wasn’t difficult to clean at all. The textured surface doesn’t have grooves and crevices deep enough to hold tons of grime. I just used a microfiber cloth to wipe it down.

Moving right along from the shower/tub to the toilet…

There’s nothing special about this toilet. It’s the one that came with the house. All it needed was a good scrub-down.

HH removed it for the floor install and carried it out to the front yard so I could hose it down. Now, wasn’t that a sight?! An obviously very pregnant gal bent over a dirty toilet in the front yard! I’m pretty sure I scared some neighbors and passerby. I did have to resort to some Comet with bleach to get this bad boy looking like new. But I was outside and wore cleaning gloves to avoid harmful chemicals.

She shined up pretty nice if I do say so myself.

Enough of the commode. Let’s have a peek at the vanity area.

I like a little contrast in every room, so here I chose a glossy medium gray vanity. This portion of the bathroom is highly visible from the master bedroom, so I tried to keep the distinctive bathroom features {vanity, sink, faucet, mirror and light} from feeling too bathroom-y…if that makes any sense.

The vanity isn’t huge by any means but it’s simple and practical. The floating design keeps the room feeling light and makes cleaning underneath a breeze.

There are two deep drawers for hiding toiletries.

The faucet is simple too.

It doesn’t look like much but it puts out a steady flow of water without splashing outside the sink.

Above the vanity, I chose a round teak mirror to add some warmth and curves to the shiny, rectangular bathroom.

Just above the mirror is a galvanized wall sconce. I like the touch of industrialism it brings to the room.

I should probably switch out the lightbulb for a clear one but we’re just happy to have a light at this point!

I like the light just as much on. It really warms up the wood mirror and wall color.

At night and in the early morning hours, this is what the bathroom may look like under artificial light…

Onto the penny tile floor…

While the shower got standard white grout, I chose a sandy gray grout for the floor in the hopes of it hiding dirt a little better. The penny tiles give such a great texture to the bathroom. They’re almost like scales on a lizard.

It feels good under bare feet. If you have a keen eye, you may have noticed the new baseboards in all these after pics.

HH and I decided to go with a thick, high trim throughout the house. The higher trim has more presence and actually makes the walls feel taller somehow – which we weren’t expecting. It’s more noticeable in larger rooms. Hopefully, I’ll post some pics of those rooms this week!

As soon as the bathroom was clean, I took a break to enjoy the fruits of my labor.

I could live in this bathroom and be very happy. Okay, maybe I’d need a little more than a bathroom. But still. I love this bathroom.

Like I said, from a renovation standpoint, this room is done-zo. From a design standpoint, it still needs some work. Here’s what’s left to do:

• touch up the walls and trim
• hang shower curtain
• add towel hooks
• find a spot for toilet paper roll
• add hanging storage to the back of the door
• uh, hang the door!
• organize the vanity drawers
• accessorize

So, I have my tweaking cut out for me. Should be fun! Since I know I’ll get questions, here’s a source list:

• tub – Kohler Archer
• tub drain – Kohler Archer
• tub & shower fixtures – Kohler Archer
• shower tile – Capua Blanco*
• toilet – reused, Kohler
• vanity – GODMORGAN
• sink – ODENSVIK
• faucet – DALSKÄR
• mirror – Home Emporium
• wall sconce – Barn Light Austin Sconce*
• floor tile – Penny Round Moss*
• wall paint – Benjamin Moore Tapestry Beige
• trim paint – Benjamin Moore White Dove

*Denotes items that were kindly donated to us by the companies linked to above. We were not forced to include certain products. While we were permitted to choose items in exchange for photos and links, we only used items that we would have chosen to purchase with our own money. That means the items you see are ones that meet our aesthetic, budget and level of quality.

And because I know there are a few of you who could care less about the bathroom and just wanna know “Is that baby here yet?!”…

Nope. Even after a very physical weekend full of intense cleaning, baby hasn’t made his/her appearance yet. I know he/she will come when they’re ready but I’m this close to crying ‘uncle!’

images: all Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

Notice anything different?

What’s that? You say there’s some sweet penny tile in the master bathroom where a dirty old concrete slab used to be the only floor? You’re so smart. So observant. So right.

Handy Hubby worked all weekend to install the penny tile then grout the shower and floor in the bathroom. To show my gratitude, I washed his work jeans afterwards. HH said his jeans could stand on their own after all the thinset and grout had dried on them over two weekends of tiling.

If you’re an avid home decor/DIY blog reader, then you probably already saw John & Sherry over at Young House Love install the same penny round tile in their kitchen as a backsplash. Which turned out fabulous, btw. We actually chose the moss penny tile last summer before we knew John & Sherry were thinking of using it in their kitchen. Great stylish minds think alike ;)

Yes, I feel close enough to YHL to refer to its authors on a first name basis. They make it pretty easy. I’ve been following them since their This Young House days…before This Old House sicked their money-hungry lawyer dawgs on them and all but forced them to change their blog name. I’m still angry about that. Glad to see J&S have moved on. {Oh yeah, now I’m feeling friendly enough to call them ‘J&S’.} They featured our previous mini-mudroom and DIY stencils as Reader Redesigns a while back and I still chat with them via email every once in a while. Fun stuff! They’re such an inspiration.

But anyways, they beat us to installing the penny tile. Which is why they make a modest living blogging. Those two are non-stop, I tell you! So much energy. So much motivation. So little sleep.

HH took their tips to heart and put them to use while he cut, set and grouted the penny tile. The tips he found most helpful were to use painter’s tape to mark off the cuts on the penny tile and to use a thin layer of thinset spread with a small trowel. {Thinset tends to squeeze up through the spaces in between the penny tiles and can be a b!#$h to clean up before grouting so it’s best to avoid using more than necessary.} The Tile Shop and YHL both recommended laying the sheets in a brick pattern to help avoid visible seams from one sheet to the next. HH followed that tip as well.

I love the penny tile as a floor tile. I can’t wait to see how it feels on my bare feet. Until then, my boots aren’t complaining.

I may have to start cheating on the shimmery shower tile. The penny rounds are pretty hot. What’s a girl to do? Both. I will do both. And there will be no emotions involved. They will be two totally separate, purely physical relationships. I promise. Sounds like the beginning of a healthy, long-term commitment, no? Ha! Can you sense the third trimester pregnancy hormones kicking in?

HH also finished up the trim along the shower’s edge. If you’ll recall, we had a problem with our new tub being a smidge shorter than the width of the bathroom, so HH built out one wall with a double layer of backerboard to suffice. {A smart, lovely reader has since mentioned installing drywall flush with the backerboard but seeing as how our drywall was already installed, mudded and painted, we decided to make do.}

Our idea was to use pencil edging along the transition to drywall but when I mentioned our situation to the peeps at The Tile Shop, they recommended we use the bullnose version of the shower tile {the same version we used in the shower windowsill}, turn it 90° and cut it to the depth needed. They were concerned that a pencil trim would look too different from the shower tile. The color, texture and sheen would be different since a pencil edge trim isn’t available in the Capua Blanco. So, that’s exactly what HH did. Even though it took longer and required more measuring/cuts than pencil edging, it worked great!

The shower tile is a little hazy from grouting. HH plans to use some grout haze remover to remedy that. If the tile isn’t looking as shimmery as you remember, that’s why. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, we used unsanded standard white grout for the shower tile and sanded mobe pearl grout for the penny floor tile. They were the grout colors used on the in-store samples of both tiles and we liked them so it was easy to choose.

After haze removal comes sealing and caulking. Then our master bathroom will be ready for baseboards, toilet {we’re reusing the original one} and fixtures. I can hardly believe we’re this close.

For fun, I took some pics of the bathroom progress in artificial light too – just to see how it might look at night. The light from the sconce {above the future sink} and can light {above the shower/tub} warms up the wall color and tile a bit. So cozy!

HH also installed a threshold between the master bedroom and bathroom. I wanted a wood one for a seamless transition. We bought the molding accessory from Build Direct to match the engineered hardwood.

A ‘before/progress’ side-by-side for comparison…

Forget our bed that will someday be in the adjacent master bedroom. I’m sprawling out on that penny tile. I’m only half kidding.

FYI – The Tile Shop provided us with materials for our master bathroom tiling project. However all designs, product selections, DIY installations and project photos are of our own doing.

images: Dana Miller for House*Tweaking

It seems my favorite original element of the Underdog’s master bathroom – the window placement in the shower – isn’t everyone’s favorite. Several readers have brought up concerns about water pooling in the sill and/or possible water damage around the bathroom window.

Since my presence at the Underdog has been lacking due to pregnancy-related issues, last night I asked Handy Hubby to elaborate on the whole ‘window in the shower’ issue and how we, um, he addressed it to prevent water damage. If you don’t know it by now, HH is an engineer so he’s very thorough about any DIY project that we tackle. When I’m contemplating the aesthetics of our projects, HH is always working behind the scenes to bring my vision to life. In that way, we’re a good team.

Sure enough, after I decided that the window placement in the shower was staying because I liked the natural light it let in, HH was quick to research what needed to be done to avoid any water penetration around the window. He found the info here most helpful although he didn’t follow the instructions to T. To waterproof our shower window, we used these guidelines:

• vinyl window housed in a wooden jamb We replaced the original aluminum window with a vinyl one. HH built a wood inset into the original cinder block jamb with pressure-treated lumber, ideal for wet and/or outdoor conditions.
• locate window outside range of shower spray if possible The original placement of our window is off-center which makes its location closer to the back of the shower as opposed to right under the shower head.
• install cementboard/backerboard right up to the window’s wood jamb then line inset with a waterproof membrane We chose to continue the shower’s backerboard along the entire window inset and forgo the waterproof membrane.
• use a pitched sill to allow water to drain away from the window HH built the bottom ledge of the wood inset so that it sloped towards the shower.
• install tile over the entire area in the same manner as the rest of the shower HH continued the shower tile into the window inset.
• after grouting and sealing, use a high quality silicone caulk anywhere two planes meet HH plans to do this step once grouting and sealing are complete.
• check the area annually for cracked joints and re-grout or re-caulk as needed We’ll be sure to check the window for any signs of expansion or contraction and address them accordingly.

Even with those precautions taken to avoid water damage, it eases our minds more to know that while water had seeped through some of the cracked original tile along the back shower wall, there were no signs of water penetration or water damage along or near the window. {We know this because we gutted the bathroom which allowed us to see behind the walls.}

Fingers crossed that our waterproofing methods will be just as good – if not better – than those put into place 50+ years ago when the original tile was installed. I hope that clears up any questions about how/why we’re okay with a window in a wet space. We didn’t go about it all willy-nilly.

One other reader concern that came up in regards to the shower window was lack of privacy. While we don’t have neighbors or a busy street or passerby right outside the bathroom window {the window actually looks out onto our private backyard}, we don’t feel comfortable with the idea of taking a shower just inside a window at ground level either. If we were the only house on a spread of land with a great view or if the bathroom was located on the second level of our house {which ain’t happenin’ since the Underdog is a single story rancher}, then maybe we’d be more apt to let it all hang out.

Our solution was to have a window with ‘full privacy’ or ‘obscured’ glass installed. Technically, it’s not frosted glass. It’s more of a textured, opaque glass. Functionally, it’s a lot like glass block – it allows natural light to pass through but provides privacy as well. As much as I enjoy sharing our renovation projects, life goals, family tidbits, design-related mumbo jumbo and even embarrassing images of myself working out, I draw the oversharing line at baring it all for anyone who happens to peep in my shower window!

I’m not forcing anyone to put a window in their shower if they aren’t okay with it due to water damage or privacy concerns. But, man, those images of showers with windows are pretty inspiring, aren’t they? I live in Ohio so a window in my shower is the closest I’ll ever get to an outdoor shower…something I’d totally go for if I had a secluded home in a warmer climate.

**FYI – I made Apartment Therapy’s 2012 ‘The Homies’ list. I’ve always found it ironic when bloggers beg readers to vote for them {I mean, if you’re truly the best then why the need to beg?} so I won’t do it. But HH just found out that I made the list and thinks I should at least mention it on the blog in case you guys didn’t know about it. After all, he didn’t. Here’s the link. Voting ends March 2nd, 2012 at 11:59 p.m. EST. If you wanna vote for me, vote for me. If you wanna vote for someone else, vote for someone else. If you don’t wanna vote at all, carry on with your bizness peeps.**

Happy Friday!

images: 1 & 6) Dana Miller for House*Tweaking  2) House & Home via DecorPad  3) unknown – help!  4) Belinda Graham for The Happy Home  5) Thomas Story for Sunset Magazine  7) Bosworth Hoedemaker via DecorPad