MASTER BATH PROGRESS

Our master bathroom is looking a little sparse at the moment, but full of promise I think. I splurged a little (by my standards) on that light fixture... It's the Machinist Sconce from Restoration Hardware, which I bought during a 20% off sale over the holidays. I've had my eye on it for a really long time; I thought it would be nice to have an adjustable light over the bathtub, and it -- along with the floor tile -- has sort of inspired the overall style of the bathroom. It's a heavy thing, so here's hoping it doesn't ever uproot from the wall and plunge into the bathtub. (For the record, we reinforced it well and it feels really solid.) The plan now is a clawfoot tub with the bottom painted black. I still like the livestock tank bathtub idea, but it's maybe a little too rustic for us.

My father-in-law was recently working on the plumbing for a fancy new restaurant, and he scored us a piece of leftover marble for our sink. We had already started building a temporary wood countertop when this deal came up, but of course we jumped at the chance for this unexpected upgrade. Ez mounted it with a piece of reclaimed wood for contrast and to tie it into the rest of the bathroom. The faucets and plumbing should be finished and functioning this weekend -- and since Ez, our hero of heroes, fixed the burst pipes in the basement on Tuesday in the middle of the polar vortex, we actually have water now. Imagine that! We still have to figure out the mirror and build shelves in those nooks flanking the vanity. The vanity lights I planned to buy were back-ordered for an eternity, so we bought $5 jar lights to get us through the appraisal and to tide us over for awhile. I actually kind of like them now that they're in, but we'll see.

And here's roughly the same angle, five years ago... We ripped out the cramped attic for more head room. We also closed up the window so we could reinforce that area; our friend who also happens to be a log restoration expert suggested that having too many windows can compromise the structure, so we closed this one up so we could prevent any structural problems later. (I originally planned for a nice big window over the bathtub, but that idea got nixed for structural reasons too. #loghomeproblems)

Basic construction still needed in here: 

• Backsplash/trim around the sink
• Shelving for the sink nooks
• Plumbing/faucets for the sinks
• Baseboard
• Stain and finish the floors
• Bathtub (haven't bought that yet...)
• Seal the brick

The brick flue is kind of janky, but I love it. It adds so much unexpected character. Below is a fairly unflattering picture of me in 2008, standing in the same room. This was taken during my first walk through the house. That's the flue jutting out in the right side of the picture. I'm only 5'4" and am awkwardly hunched over here, so that gives you an idea of the ceiling height. And I completely forgot about how a stairwell that came up through the floor where the vanity is now. Selective memory, I guess.

So that's the master bathroom as it stands now. Ez is most excited about this room, and so far it has been the easiest one to envision. I'm looking forward to getting the basics done so we can bring in the details that will make it more cozy! Oh yeah, and finally being able to use our bathroom. That will be pretty great too.