August 2014 – q is for quandie

champ de lavande server.

Published on August 29, 2014August 28, 2014 by Quandie16 Comments

I picked up this petite server at the Highland Park garage sales. It wasn’t in terrible shape aside from being a bit dinged up. It really just needed a cosmetic makeover. An updated look.

I went with Annie Sloan chalk paint in French Linen again.

I felt like the little detail below the drawers needed to be drawn out with some white paint.

I freshened up the inside of the cupboard area with some dark charcoal grey ‘oops’ paint that I had on hand.

Although I have staged this piece as a server for the dining room, I think it would be perfect in a foyer as a place to drop the keys and mail.

You could put shoes or purses in the bottom cupboard, gloves and scarves in the drawer.

So, there you have it, a fun little makeover.

breakfast on the deck.

Published on August 27, 2014August 25, 2014 by Quandie14 Comments

When my sis arrived, we were having an awful spell of disgustingly humid weather. I don’t know about the rest of you, but humidity does my house no favors and it is my least favorite weather condition. I do not have central air (radiators, not ducts). I do have a couple of window units, but only use them when the situation is really dire. In this case, it was very humid but not especially hot, so I left them off. As a result, my house was sticky, smelly, damp, ugh!

So I was delighted to wake up on Monday to fresh breezes and a distinct drop in humidity levels. Plus as an added bonus, the sun was shining. So I thought it would be lovely to have a leisurely breakfast on the deck.

I may have mentioned before, I am the type of cook that has to dust her stove. In other words, I don’t really cook. But I can cut up some berries, brew up some coffee and toast some english muffins. Well, actually, my sister did that part (she got the cooking genes in our family).

I may not cook, but I can set a pretty table.

A mix of vintage and new. The monogrammed glasses came from Goodwill. How could I pass them up? The cafe au lait bowls were ordered online for what I confess was some exorbitant sum. The numbered plates are from Target. The pitcher and ironstone bowl for the berries were both garage sale finds.

This is how I roll. Spend pennies on most stuff, but occasionally splurge on something special.

Can you see my fabulous napkins? Those are from Jeanne d’Arc Living, and I bought them online (you can order some for yourself here). I only break them out for special people.

My deck happens to be a particularly lovely spot for breakfast right now because my Limelight hydrangeas are in full bloom.

The Key Lime hydrangeas next to the photo cottage are looking pretty good as well.

This, in a nutshell, is why I love hydrangeas. They are covered in blooms, with absolutely no effort made on my part at all. The flowers last forever, and when dry I will add them to my window boxes where they will look good all winter as well.

You may have noticed my deck chair pillows. I have to tell you, I made a mistake when ordering them from Restoration Hardware. I got them on clearance, and I thought I checked the size, but when they came, they were far too wide for my chairs. So, my friend Sue chopped off a bit from each end (thanks goodness for friends who can sew).

I was worried it would look ridiculous, but I think it works. If I hadn’t told you, would you have thought they were meant to be this way?

My sister and I lingered over breakfast for quite a while. Partly because it was just so darn idyllic on the deck.

And partly because we were pouring over these.

Yep, we are planning a trip! And it’s going to be an exciting one. Pretty soon I will have some more awesome travel photos to add to my gallery wall, and I am so excited! I’ll share more on that soon. But meanwhile, we set place no. 4 for you, want to join us?

summit ave.

Published on August 25, 2014August 24, 2014 by Quandie9 Comments

My sister has arrived for a visit giving me the opportunity to be a tourist in my own town. On Saturday we headed over to a yard sale on Summit Avenue in St. Paul. According to Wikipedia, Summit Ave “remains a well-preserved example of a Victorian residential boulevard.” We did the official walking tour of Summit through the Minnesota Historical Society the last time my sister visited, so after checking out the yard sale, we headed of down some side streets instead of staying on the main boulevard.

It was a gloomy day, and I was taking pictures with my phone which I am no good at. I was kicking myself for not bringing my camera. My But I’ll still share our adventure with you.

Behind the beautiful mansions you’ll find some original cobblestone alleys.

The houses just off Summit are not quite as grand, but they are still lovely and many have fab gardens.

It’s a great place to get ideas for your own garden planter combinations, or perhaps a faux bois fence.

Ultimately we ended up back on Summit Ave, where we admired some of the more extravagant homes including this one that happens to be for sale. The price? A mere $1,695,000 (check out this link to see photos of the interior). Let’s buy two!

The detail on the columns of the brick house is just gorgeous.

We also peered into this secret garden.

We ended our morning with lunch and mimosas on the patio at the Wild Onion on Grand Avenue.

Jen’s house, part two.

Published on August 22, 2014August 21, 2014 by Quandie15 Comments

Today we are going to continue our tour of Jen’s house by moseying on in to the bedrooms and bathroom which are all through a little hallway off the dining room. Can I just say, I am a sucker for a vintage built in with all of its original hardware. Seriously, how fab are these?

The laundry shoot was an amazing invention. I suppose having laundry facilities on an upper floor is an even more amazing invention, but I wouldn’t know from personal experience!

The grey on her walls here, by the way, is Sherwin Williams’ Light French Gray.

There are two bedrooms with a bathroom in the middle. Let’s head into Jen’s study first, which also happens to be where she placed the dresser she purchased from me!

Aren’t her floors simply gorgeous? I’m totally envious of their pristine condition. She did have them all re-done before she moved in. Smart move! Jen was asking my advice on how to style this room. I like the idea of a wall quote, like this example from pinterest.

This would work really well around the corner of the wall next to the yellow dresser.

I also think one of those vintage pull down schoolhouse maps would look great on the wall over the desk, don’t you agree? If it had some yellow in it, that would help pull that color over to the opposite side of the room.

Jen’s bathroom has gotten a little makeover with paint.

She painted the walls and the base of the vanity. I know that down the road she’d like to make some more significant improvements in here, but like her kitchen, it is spruced up and presentable as is. I am always a little sad when it is obvious that the original sink has been changed out for one of these. I had this style vanity in my own house when I moved in rather than the original sink. One day I would love to find a vintage sink that would work in my bathroom.

Jen is lucky to have what appear to be the original floor tiles though, aren’t they fab?

Those blue ‘flowers’ made from the hexagon tiles are simply smashing.

Finally we come to the master bedroom. I absolutely adore the color that Jen picked for her walls, Coral Gables by Benjamin Moore.

Isn’t it gorgeous? A lot of us would be afraid of using this much color on the walls, but it works beautifully here paired with the more neutral tones in her upholstered headboard and her pale grey duvet cover. The first time I was in Jen’s house the sun was out and this room just glowed with cheery coral goodness. I am very tempted to borrow this color myself. It would be perfect in my study, or my guest room.

And the light fixture is amazing. Jen added this herself. I was surprised because it looked vintage to me. It’s perfect for above her bed.

And here is Jen’s gallery wall, which also pays homage to places she’s been.

I bet Jen will be adding to this wall over time with more pictures of fabulous places!

I hope you enjoyed your tour of Jen’s home and will join me in thanking her for letting us all have a peek inside. I enjoy seeing what other people are doing with their spaces, especially those with an extra dose of character thrown in and I bet you do too!

Thanks so much Jen! I hope you’ll stay in touch and keep us updated on your future projects.

a breath of fresh air.

Published on August 20, 2014August 19, 2014 by Quandie7 Comments

Remember the beautiful yellow and white dresser I painted? Well, I sold it to a lovely young woman named Jen via Craigslist. As it turned out, Jen had an old dresser that she wanted to part with so we made arrangements to bring the yellow dresser to her and pick up the discarded dresser for me. This gave me the opportunity to see Jen’s home, and I was totally smitten with it. I loved her fantastic classic Minneapolis bungalow, her color choices, her mix of vintage and modern, and her sweet little Corgi’s whom she writes about in her own blog, Sassy Little Corgis. So, on a whim, I asked if she would be willing to let me share her home on my blog, and she said yes! So last Sunday I popped over to Jen’s and took a million photos to share with you. So many in fact that I’m breaking her house tour into a two-parter.

Jen’s bungalow in the Longfellow neighborhood was built in 1925. One of the things that drew me to Jen’s home is that the layout is identical to my grandparent’s home that was in the same area. I also wonder if Jen’s home could be a Sear’s house. Maybe?

Jen has a darling little entry porch that welcomes you to her home. Her Wisconsin pillow was ordered from Etsy, and yes, Jen is originally from the Badger State.

She just moved in to her home this past April, and considering that she’s been in her place less than 5 months, I think she’s done some great things so far. We’re starting in the living/dining room that was already painted this lovely rich green when Jen bought the house. She brought in this gorgeous sectional from West Elm. I love its mid-century, tailored sort of vibe. It’s also quite comfy (and on sale at the moment)! Across from the sofa is a fab mid-century credenza that Jen found with a little help from Craig and his list. She has cleverly outfitted it for her TV with the components just inside the cupboard door. Her router is velcroed to the back! How clever is that? Velcro, people! Get on it.

What really impressed me about Jen’s house is the way she makes vintage feel hip and modern, giving it a breath of fresh air.

Her 1925 bungalow has gorgeous woodwork including an absolutely amazing dining room built-in that is in fantastic shape.

(Look out Jen! Sneaky candid shot!)

That door to the left with the gorgeous glass knob leads up to the attic. I’ll admit, I asked Jen to let me go up there. It’s unfinished, but my grandparents had one just like it and I had to see it. It even has that old house attic smell that my grandparent’s attic had. You gotta love it. Right?

Speaking of love, how about Jen’s dining set. The chairs are from Target, sometimes they have the best stuff. I didn’t mention this to Jen, but my dining room chairs are also from Target, but not as cute as these. I’m tempted to run out and get these. They look super comfy, like you could sit around and drink coffee after dinner and not have your behind fall asleep. These chairs work beautifully with her round table, and the entire set is sized perfectly for her space.

The doorway to the right leads to the kitchen, and I believe I may have had a momentary flashback when I stepped through. I’m telling you … my grandparent’s kitchen was the exact same size … which is to say small. Sometimes I wonder if I am mis-remembering how tiny that kitchen was. But now having seen Jen’s kitchen, I know I’m not.

Jen is making every inch of her kitchen count with this butcher block cart.

And as you can see, she gets plenty of light from two windows to keep it bright and airy feeling.

Now, just get a gander at this wall of gorgeous original kitchen cupboards!

Gorgeous, right?

But I am wondering about the fridge. My grandparents did not have a fridge in the kitchen proper, it was out back in the hallway. Jen has a fab built in pantry in that spot, see …

Anyway, there is clearly a spot for the fridge in Jen’s kitchen, but I am guessing that few houses had electric refrigerators in 1925. Did they have an icebox there instead? Or were the cupboards re-worked later to fit one in? Jen is worried about being able to find a new one to fit in this spot, should this one ever need replacing, but I suggested she check out a SMEG. They aren’t cheap, but they are gorgeous, and small. Hey, guess what Jen? West Elm carries one!

Here is the opposite side of the kitchen. A simple sink and stove. Jen painted the white tile. It was an odd pink and purple-ish swirly mess when she bought the house, but now it is fresh and clean. I would never have guessed it was painted. She also painted the sink base, and added the floating shelves above the stove.

Before Jen moved in to her house, she took the time to repaint and do a lot of freshening up, like painting the tile. I like that everything is clean and fresh and liveable for now, and then down the road she can make more expensive changes bit by bit. I know she’d like to eventually have a nicer sink area in her kitchen, but this is perfectly presentable and functional for now.

I hope you are enjoying the tour of Jen’s cute bungalow as much as I did. Stay tuned, in my next post we’ll see the rest of her lovely home!

my bus buddy.

Published on August 19, 2014August 17, 2014 by Quandie8 Comments

My friend Vonda and I have been bff’s since before it was cool, or possibly even a thing, and today is her birthday!

Way, way, way back in 1973 my family moved from Chicago to Minnesota. I was in the 4^th grade, and I was painfully shy. In Chicago I had walked to school, and it was just across the street from my house. We even went home at lunchtime. When we came to Minnesota, I had to ride a bus and eat lunch at school, a terrifying prospect for a shy 4^th grader. To make matters worse, the bus driver drove that bus right into a ladder that was sticking out of the back of a pickup truck during my first week of school. I swear that ladder came straight for my face! After that, I must have put up a huge fuss about riding the bus, so the school came up with a plan. They assigned me a bus buddy. Poor Vonda got called down to the principal’s office! She was sure that she was in serious trouble for something. Instead, she was informed that she had to sit with the new girl on the bus. Can you imagine? I’m sure she wasn’t thrilled.

Flash forward 40 some years, and here we are, bff’s. There has been lots of water under the bridge in 40 years. I’ve moved around … living in Florida, South Carolina and finally back here in Minnesota. In general, our lives have often taken us in different directions. But our friendship has gone along for the ride and we’ve always stayed in touch.

That’s Vonda on the left, me on the right.

We’ve traveled together with our husbands, including an amazing Mediterranean cruise (me with short hair, yikes!).

Our husbands still don’t believe our story about the two very handsome Italian men who tried to pick us up on the Spanish steps in Rome while they were off in search of beer and band-aids … but it really did happen. They had Vespas, and wanted to show us the sights. Wink, wink. Vonda’s husband still insists that their names were Fic and Titious … get it? Then there was our crazy afternoon spent in a Turkish market, where Vonda was sure she was going to be sold into white slavery, and we really just wanted some Turkish coffee but somehow we all ended up with leather jackets.

We also enjoyed a Caribbean cruise. Here we are in our rented jeep in Aruba.

We switched it up, ladies in the front, gentlemen as back seat drivers!

Vonda and I don’t always share the same interests. She sleeps in on Saturday’s, I get up bright and early to hit the garage sales. She has some furniture that I wish she would paint, but she’s not a fan. She loves trivia of any kind, I am hopeless at it. Her favorite wine is Chardonnay, and I’ll drink any wine but that. She prefers the elliptical machine; I’d rather take a Zumba class. But, we both love sitting around a pool, drinking a cocktail, painting our toenails and reading trashy magazines and luckily we got some of that in this summer.

So today, I hope you all will join me in wishing Happy Birthday to my bff! Here’s to 40 more years of friendship. Love ya V!

the perfect Saturday.

Published on August 18, 2014August 17, 2014 by Quandie8 Comments

I’m sure I’ve mentioned in the past that Mr. Q does weddings. As the officiant. Last Saturday he had back to back weddings. The first wedding was a morning wedding being held at Cindyrella Gardens. Here is the view from their parking lot, gorgeous, right?

I dropped off Mr. Q and headed straight for an estate sale sign that we saw on the way down. The estate was massive, a giant house filled with giant (and expensive) stuff. Not really my thing, except I grabbed some art. They had a lot of original artwork, and some was reasonably priced (I assume they are by no one famous!).

I plan to paint the frame on this one, perhaps a nice charcoal grey.

By the time I was through the check out line, Mr. Q had the happy couple all hitched up and was ready to head off for wedding number 2, which just happened to be in Oronoco. Which was basically a sign from above telling me that I absolutely was going back to the Oronoco Gold Rush this year.

Oronoco is a little over an hour south of here, just north of Rochester, MN. Once a year they host an antiques flea market that takes over the entire town. It’s filled with fantastic vintage-y stuff as far as the eye can see. I was a little surprised that someone from Oronoco would choose to get married during Gold Rush weekend, but hey, who am I to question the way the universe comes together?

Not only did I get to go to Gold Rush, but we got paid mileage for driving there for a wedding. Score!

It seems like each year the vendors get better and better. Quite honestly, it is almost overwhelming to be surrounded by so much fantastic vintage stuff.

If you want some vintage luggage, this is the place to find it.

How about a cupboard with a patina that you just can’t fake?

There were lots of things in my fave color, aqua, and how about this pretty lampshade dressed up with a vintage apron?

I was in the market for a vintage fan to use for photo shoots, but this one was a bit out of my price range.

However, aren’t the little paper dress price tags the cutest thing ever?! I asked the vendor if she was selling the tags and she said no, but she had some extras, did I want them for 50 cents each? Heck yeah I did! Not only did she sell me a bunch of them, she also showed me how to make them … now let’s see … how did that go again?

On top of being surrounded by all of this vintage yummy-ness, I also ran in to a few people I know. Like Jody from Farmhouse Inspired in Hudson. She was giving demonstrations on both the Miss Mustard Seed milk paint, and another paint line that she carries, American Paint Company. I was so engrossed in our conversation about paint, that I completely forgot to take pics in her booth. She was kind enough to give me a sample of the clay/mineral based paint from American Paint Company, and I also purchased some of their Navajo White for an upcoming project.

I also ran into the guy who made my warehouse cart coffee table, Ferrous Furnishings. Remember it?

He was selling some very cool stuff, like this cool lamp and awesome cart.

I also walked into the most charming booth by Vintage of Ada. The gal running it looked so familiar to me. Turned out we had met at Junk Bonanza. She had the most amazing travel typewriter and the cutest little vintage toy stove (you know how I love miniature stuff!).

She also had some fab vintage clocks and scales.

All in all, I had a fantastic time wandering around, drooling over gorgeous stuff. I didn’t bring home much myself, the paint, a clock, a pretty sugar bowl (sometimes I can’t help myself) and a tote made out of salvaged barn wood (you’ll see that again later in the week). But I loved looking!

My perfect Saturday almost had a calamitous ending though. You see, the plan was that Mr. Q would text me when he was ready to pick me up. I forgot to factor in the possibility that the Gold Rush was located in a black hole of cell service. Sure enough, around the time I was expecting him to text, I checked my phone. No service. We should have made a better plan!

I looked around, the place was a mass of people and a maze of booths. Even I wasn’t sure where I was, Mr. Q would never find me.

The sun was beating down on me, I was carrying the barn wood tote, and the paint and my camera all of which were getting heavier by the second. I was thirsty and there wasn’t a bit of shade to be found. All I could think was that I might be wandering around for hours, lost in a sea of vintage.

I tried to use my head and I walked to the spot where Mr. Q had dropped me off. He wasn’t there. But then I saw a bridge over the river ahead and decided perhaps I could get cell service out there. Sure enough, I had a signal! All was not lost. I called Mr. Q and he picked me up about 5 minutes later where I was waiting in the shade of this old building.

And thus, my perfect Saturday ended perfectly.

Hey … is there a ghostly figure watching us through those upper windows, or is it just me?

the mystery cabinet.

Published on August 17, 2014August 16, 2014 by Quandie16 Comments

Don’t you just love a good mystery? Here is a furniture mystery for you.

I picked up this cabinet at a lunchtime garage sale a few weeks back. It was being sold by a darling little old lady (don’t tell her I called her old). She said that she had bought it years ago and attempted to strip it, and just never finished the job. Unfortunately, I have been a bad blogger again and neglected to take a ‘before’ shot.

But here is the ‘after’.

I’m calling it a mystery cabinet because I simply can’t fathom what its original purpose was. It doesn’t seem to have much of a bottom, which makes me think it originally sat on top of something else. Or perhaps it hung on the wall like a cabinet? Or maybe it had legs. And the back splash trim at the top is asymmetrical. Why? Was this part of a pair? Does anyone out there have a clue what this might be?

In one of the world’s strangest coincidences, someone has a very similar piece listed on craigslist at the moment. Here is the picture from their ad.

The ‘before’ condition of my mystery cabinet was very similar to this one. A sort of mostly stripped off paint look. Obviously this is not an exact match to mine, but the similarity is striking, don’t you think? And FYI, the seller is asking $175! Wowza. According to their ad, their cupboard is about an inch larger than mine in every direction. They speculate that it was part of a larger run of cabinets. You can see that they don’t have the same trim piece at the top that mine has.

Well, despite not knowing what it is, I decided it would be fabulous with a Quandie style makeover.

So I painted it with Sweetie Jane milk paint. I was inspired by what appeared to be the original paint color that you can still see in spots.

Next I wallpapered the drawers using the same fab vintage wallpaper that I used inside my photo cottage cupboard drawers. Do you guys love this stuff as much as I do? It’s just so darn sweet. I still have a bit left for another project coming soon.

Quick sidebar about the wallpaper because I’ve gotten questions on it before. I adhered it with wallpaper paste that Mr. Q picked up at Home Depot for me. I put the paste on the paper, book it for a couple of minutes (booking = folding pasted sides together lightly), apply it to the drawer, smooth it out with a squeegee, wipe off excess paste, let it dry. I came back the following day and sanded the edges gently. The paper seems to adhere quite securely.

I added new glass knobs because the piece came without any hardware. Just between you and me, I like these a lot better than the deep blue anthropologie knobs on its $175 cousin, how about you?

A previous owner had painted the inside in a dark grey. I left that as is, but also added some wallpaper to the inside of the door.

I staged the little cupboard with some glass jars and clothes pins. I think it would be fabulous in a laundry room to hold your supplies. Dryer sheets in the drawers, your laundry soap in a glass canister behind the door.

But then again, I could also see it in a bathroom holding the extra t.p. and other sundries.

Or maybe in your craft room?

The possibilities are endless if you use a little imagination.

Here’s one last picture of it so you can get a better feel for the size.

I’ll likely sell this one at the October Carriage House Sale, unless one of you wants to snatch it up first?

P.S. my price will be no where near $175!

kitchen scale dresser.

Published on August 16, 2014August 24, 2014 by Quandie22 Comments

I have been struggling a bit with the milk paint lately. I know it’s unpredictable, and it’s hard to control the chippy factor. I know all about the color variations. But this summer I seem to be getting one unexpected result after another. This dresser is a case in point.

Let’s start at the beginning.

This one has lots of potential, right? It has a little bit of veneer damage, and a chunk of the trim is missing at the bottom. It’s the perfect candidate for a paint job.

I decided to go with my absolute fave MMSMP color, Kitchen Scale. I hadn’t used this color for a while. My own mirrored buffet is painted this color and I absolutely love it.

It works fantastically with grey, the neutral of the moment.

So I decided it was time for a Kitchen Scale dresser. I sanded this one quite vigorously because it was in rough shape, and I didn’t want a ton of chipping, just a subtle chippyness. I have to note here that I did mix the paint a little bit thicker than usual. I ignored the little voice in my head that was telling me to thin it down a bit more, which may have been a mistake. I painted my first coat and closed up shop for the evening. When I went back out the next day, I found a massive amount of crackling. On every surface except for the sides of the dresser. The sides didn’t crackle at all, go figure. Massive, bad, over the top, too much crackling everywhere else. I should have taken a picture for you, but I didn’t. When I have issues like this, it generally puts me in a bad mood and photography doesn’t happen.

I will note here that I did not apply heat to the dresser, and it was not all that warm outside and I did not paint under the full sun. Why the giant crackles? Was it just the thickness of the paint? No idea.

I decided to sand the heck out of it again, and try adding another coat of thinner paint. It had the desired result. It toned down the crackle. Oh, it’s still there, for sure, but now it’s at an acceptable level.

Am I the only one who considers this an acceptable level?

Often people wonder if milk paint will continue to chip away down the road, and the answer is no, it shouldn’t. As long as all of the loose chips were removed as part of the finishing process. In this case, I sanded the dresser pretty thoroughly and then vacuumed it to remove any loose chips. I put a final coat of hemp oil on it which also helps the paint remain adhered. I can run my hand across this dresser pretty vigorously and no paint chips off.

Alternatively, some people choose to leave the chipping paint in place and seal it with a poly finish. I’ve never tried this approach, but I can see where it would be a fabulous look in some cases. Maybe down the road, if I get a good chipper, I’ll give this a try.

In the end, I think the dresser is quite lovely. It has some fantastic details like the angled sides and the carved bits that really pop now. I kept the original hardware because it is quite charming. This dresser is definitely distressed and has an aged appearance, but there are plenty of us out there who love that look, right?

Please say yes.

The moral to my story, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try, again. You can always sand something down and add a little more paint.

After all, ending up with something that looks like this is not an altogether bad thing.

Anyone out there in the market for a gorgeous distressed dresser in my favorite shade of milk paint?

~~If so, leave me a comment and I will get back to you.~~ Ooops! Sorry, this one is SOLD.

the world’s smallest bathroom.

Published on August 15, 2014August 13, 2014 by Quandie10 Comments

It is possible that I have the world’s smallest bathroom. I haven’t checked with the people at Guinness, but I wouldn’t be surprised. This is the price I pay for living in a charming 1904 farmhouse. They weren’t real big on bathrooms back then I guess.

Actually, I have always suspected that the plumbing in my house was added after the original part of the house was built. For this reason, not only is my bathroom amazingly tiny, but it’s also right off the kitchen. Ewwww, right? It’s also the only bathroom we have, and it’s a long way to go in the middle of the night.

Obviously we did not buy our house for the bathroom. But we’ve tried to make the best of it. Over the years we have changed things up. I made choices along the way that I would not make again. For instance, I wish I had gone with a vintage looking floor, instead I went with large tiles that were popular at the time but not really in keeping with the era of my house. However, we also added heat under the tiles and that was an awesome decision. In Minnesota, a heated bathroom floor is a very good thing.

Another good choice I made was to keep the original etched medicine cabinet in place.

My tub is situated in an arched nook that has a window in it. Originally there was no shower in our house, but we added one shortly after moving in. Showering with a window is a challenge. We have a privacy film on the window, then some white curtains, then a clear shower curtain over that. I hope my neighbors can’t see us in the shower, I’m pretty sure they don’t want to. I’m not going to show you what is behind the curtain, it’s not exactly picturesque. Re-doing the tile and plumbing in the shower is at the top of my wish list. The shower curtain by the way is H & M.

The last time I made over the bathroom I chose this dark wall color for the walls and ceiling. I still like it, but I think I’d prefer a little bit lighter grey. I’ve debated just repainting quick, it wouldn’t take more than an afternoon to do, but I haven’t taken the time yet. The bathroom gets a lot of light from the window, so the dark color works for now.

There is a tiny linen closet tucked in beside the tub. It is quite deep and we fit a lot of supplies inside. It also has a handy laundry shoot at the bottom.

None of the light fixtures that were in place in our bathroom were original to the house. They were all kind of awful. I replaced the wall sconces with reproduction lights from Rejuvenation. I was somewhat limited because these lights are not hardwired to a wall switch. The fixture must incorporate its own on/off switch, and these did. And in fact, when we moved in, there was no wall switch in the bathroom at all. The ceiling fixture was operated by a pull chain. We added a wall switch for that when we remodeled the kitchen. The ceiling fixture is from Schoolhouse Electric.

Having a tiny bathroom forces you to be creative. I have a tiny little shelf on top of the radiator that is next to the sink. The lidded metal box contains all of my makeup, and the metal boxes hanging on the wall hold my makeup brushes and q-tips. My super magnification mirror (essential for makeup application at my age) is a wall mounted model to save space on the counter. His and hers towels hang on the back of the door.

You may recognize my trash can that gets tucked next to the pedestal sink. My towel/magazine rack is a rusty old crib rail turned on its side.

You can see more of it in this next picture, along with my favorite thing in the bathroom which is my giant photo of a Parisian street scene from the 50’s (or maybe 60’s?).