Monthly Archives: August 2018

Bathroom Update is a Mix of Old and New.

Posted on August 26, 2018 by jolynnpowers

Every summer I plain a home improvement project, some large,some small, this one was the most frustrating to finish. The updated 1/2 bath was very challenging but with worth the effort. Even if we did not get all of the pipe issues resolved this summer.

To start with let me share with you some of the photos of the bathroom that we started with. To our best guess we are looking at a 80’s update with fixtures from the 60’s. The wall paper is slate blue, mauve and purple textured wall paper with floral trim vintage 1980’s. The mirror is 1″x 1″ tiles stuck to the drywall, the counter is white with gold glitter and is over 7 feet long with only one sink guessing 1965. The hot water tank is hidden in what should have been a linen closet. The wooden box you see near the floor is our exposed water lines in and out of the hot water tank. The cabinet over the toilet is hand-made but without shelves to store smaller things. But my least favorite feature of the bath is the powder blue sink with a water pressure problem.

So an update of everything was needed. Since my taste is more rustic and historical then the former owner. We are going with a more casual look with wooden accents with bead board paneling and

bathroom counter with tile mirrors

Below counter is empty space and blind raised shows water heater and wood box to cover exposed water lines.

recycled shutter cabinet over toilet

The idea for the remodel all came together from Tom wanting to use recycled crates as shelving in the bathroom. We found this crate while out shopping at a local antique store and the ideas were set in motion in my head.

Side view of blasting cap crate

top view of blasting cap create

Tom had to have the crate, he loved it and wanted people to see the Blasting Cap label so where and how we used it was up in the air. After a few minutes of talking at the antique store Tom thought we would create a wall of crates to hold towels, soaps, lotions maybe with a couple of baskets. So the hunt was on for crates that worked in our space. I ended up with four different sized and we planned to stack them so they form a pyramid. Here is the dry fit run of the crates. Attaching each crate to the crate below making one large crate shelving unit. We are not attaching the crates to the wall but you could if you wanted to get them off the floor. We even talked about adding legs but I am pretty happy with what we have here.

stacked crates, bottom is a citrus crate, a seed potato crate, an unknown crate and the blasting cap crate on top

Tom was also able to recycle some old barn wood and a mirror from a 80’s head-board to make me a nice make up mirror for the bathroom. I think it added to the antique feel of the room. I also found a school-house light fixture that was in the salvaged section of an antique shop. The light was tough to install. We had no problem rewiring it, but the base was about 1 1/2 ” larger than any standard electric box and wider then any of the mounting screws we had. So I had to order one that adjusted and would still fit the screws in the electric box. We sealed the rusted base and shortened the chain.

modern drape covers hot water tank and shows off the new vanity and mirror

This bathroom never had a medicine cabinet so we added one over the toilet

crates assembled and ready for towels, tissues, perfume bottles.

The flooring is a non-slip vinyl that looks like hardwood. We had hoped that the hardwood floors in the rest of the house had extended to the bathroom, but what we found was just participial sub-floor and we chose to just try to get a close match to the rest of the floors in the house. I am happy with it for a bathroom location. The toilet is a taller than standard and I love it. We will one day replace the full bathrooms toilet with this also. Makes it easier for you to stand up and fits better with my tall family.

Over all about 5 weekends to complete and a few days to demo the mess. The lesson learned here was 1960’s people plumed our bathroom is such a terrible way that we had to moved all the water pipes to the sink to hide them in the walls( not that we had planned to open up two walls but we did). We still have pipes that were never placed correctly and we will soon replace the hot water tank with a tank-less model and should be able to place a door where my curtain is now and rid the bath of all the other exposed pipes. But that is another project for a time when I plan to have no water for a couple of days.

So as fall sets in and my friends and family are getting ready to visit I am happy to have this project finished with all the improvement we were able to make. I am most excited about having a sink with the correct water pressure and my crate shelves. A shout out of gratitude goes out to my hardworking husband who can take my ideas and help me make them into reality.

Categories: antique, Barnwood, Bathroom update, DIY projects, nostalgic, Painting, Rustic | Tags: antique, Bathroom, DIY projects, Painting, Paneling, Rustic style | 3 Comments

Trash to Treasure DYI: Waterslide Decal commemorative Plates

Posted on August 13, 2018 by jolynnpowers

Summer has been busy and my work on the rehabilitation of the Golden Rule Building is really fun and taking up lots of my time. One reason is that we are trying to prepare for a public open house of the project. If you want to know more about this 1902 building and what we are planning to do to save it, check out my first post about the Golden Rule.

So as part of the reason for the open house is to let the community see the building, take tours, get information about the project and get a chance to see some of the wonderful items we will be selling at a public sale this fall. As part of the Fall Festival Open House we are going to offer for sale a few small items that came from the building that are unique but not real expensive. One of the items will be a commemorative plate that another AmeriCorps member and I designed and made from some of the chipped and crazed dishware that had been left in the building.

The idea came to me as I took my first tour of the building. I realized that their were around 60 or more white and tan dishes in the basement of the building that were just wasting away due to cracks, chips, crazing or staining. I thought it was so sad to just toss all of them into the dumpster even if they were just generic white dishes. So I spent some time on-line and came up with a plan if a friend AmeriCorps was willing to help me. I asked my friend Reid Saunders to do a drawing of the building that I could used for a collectors plate image.Together we could create a very inexpensive souvenir for the up coming events that could be a fundraiser item for the building.

drawing done by Reid Saunders 2018 of the Golden Rule Cir 1902

I then took the dishes that I found in the basement and washed and sorted them. We chose to use all the large platters and about a dozen salad and dessert size plates for the project. I then took the image and adjusted the contrast and color so the image would print more clearly on to a waterslide decal and added the text.

Abandoned white plates found in the basement of the Golden Rule

Blue image ready to print.

The image is printed on to clear decal paper that I ordered off Amazon. I bought from two different companies and found that I liked the thinner decals better for this project but either seemed to work fine and in the same manner. Also there are two different kinds of paper and two ways to process them depending on your printer. I happen to have two different Laser printers at work so I bought the paper that works for those. I think either printer is good for the decals but I do believe that you have to seal the decals with clear spray sealer if you are using an ink jet printer. In the case of a laser printer, all you have to do to finish the decals in a low heat oven at 200 degrees for about 20 to make them water-resistant.

Once they are printed, I cut them to a workable size. You should soak the decals in slightly warm to the touch water. They release faster in warmer water but they also get stickier and more melted with hot water. Warm Water Only! It will take about 3 minutes to get a decal to release from its paper backing and begin to float. I soaked mine in a very shallow paper plate for about 2.5 minutes, while the decal is soaking I rise my plate in a water bath and drain all the extra water off. Their will be enough water trapped on the plate to move the decal around until you are happy with the placement of the decal. Once the paper is free from the decal, remove it and allow the decal to float free. I place a finger or thumb on the edge of my decal and drain some of the excess water off the area and then pour the decal and remaining water onto the platter. Usually the decal stays on top of the water and rides right onto the surface where you want it to be located. Sometimes they get a fold or roll when poured onto a project, just wiggle the decal under the water and it will usually unfold itself. If the water is to hot it may melt together and stick. Then place the decal where you would like it, drain any excess water off the plate and squeegee out any remaining water from under the decal and let dry. Then bake in an oven to finish the platter. I bought my sqeegee off line from a Car Wrap supplier. I loved it and found it very useful I would recomend the felt covered type so you do not scratch your image.

The next step is to bake the decal to the plate. If you are baking several plates at a time watch them closely. It is possible to singe the decals if they get to hot. Out of 40 plates I had one turn a golden brown around the edges, I knew something was up when I began to smell burning plastic.

When the plates are done cooling they are now water-resistant and can be hand washed in warm water without the decal sliding back off the plate. DO NOT PUT IN DISHWASHER! These are now one of a kind hand-made commemorative plates.

Each sheet of decal paper is about .90 cents. So over all we did pretty good on the production cost for the project. The plates were free from the building and each sheet was printed with two images of the building so each plate cost about .45 cents to make plus my time.

Over all this was a fun and creative way to make something out of what would normally be tossed out. The prices on the plates will range from 20 to 60 dollars each. Hopefully the public likes them and we sell out during our events. Wish me luck on raising a few hundred dollars for the buildings rehabilitation.