Cabinetry & Trim - Croix's Bath Part 4

Well folks, we have a LOT of catching up to do.

Let's start with the fact that we have cabinetry, trim and a mirror! 

You know, like REAL LIFE WORKING BATHROOM Essentials! woo!!

Shortly after my last post, we got the vanity set and boy did that make such a difference! Our cabinetry is, of course, from Bell Cabinetry & Design (the company I work for) and was designed by me for our Luxury Living Show Bath last year. It's 61" long with the sink base centered and 3-drawer bank cabinets, left and right. 

Wellllll, I guess I should say what looks like a 3-drawer cabinet on the right side. It's actually a pullout with adjustable shelves, just tricked out to look like drawers. Lucky Croix, I wonder what kinds of treasures he will store in there. :)

The cabinet color is Bruton White, CW-710 by Benjamin Moore in a satin finish, the interiors are stained walnut and the hardware is polished nickel from Top Knobs. 

Next up, we got busy getting the mirror installed. When I had originally designed the bath display for this cabinetry to sit in (the one that sat at Phipps Plaza), I had also designed a walnut mirror frame in the same finish as the inside of the cabinetry. Somewhere along the way the mirror was lost, but I still wanted that look, so we decided to try our hand at making our own. We headed to Home Depot and picked up some pine, a wood that is much cheaper than walnut, but we knew could be stained to look very similar. We also bought a plate glass mirror (also from Home Depot) in the size we were looking for - 36" x 48". 

Once home, Brent attached the mirror to the wall. He used clips that came with the mirror + Liquid Nails. Next, he used his miter saw to cut the wood to create a mirror frame. He used wood glue to hold the pieces together. After the glue dried, I sanded the frame down and it was ready for staining.

I applied one coat of stain - Varathane's Dark Walnut, but some of the areas where the wood glue had been didn't take the stain very well, so we sanded those areas again, added a little more stain and the frame was good to go!

Brent removed the little clips that were stabilizing the mirror and then used his nail gun to attach the mirror frame round the mirror.

And BOOM.....INSTANT HAPPY!

Once the mirror was set, we were ready to focus on the trim. I knew early on I wanted the trim to be something unique and cool, but was unsure of the exact direction at first. As the bath began to take shape a concept occurred to me... WOODEN BALLS! To be honest, I've been mildly obsessed with them for about a year now and have incorporated them into several of my designs, but I'd never seen wooden balls used in a trim application, and I thought it could be a fun way to add some depth, texture and fun to the space. 

We started by picking up 2" wide strips from Home Depot and I ordered 1" half round balls from here. Next, Brent cut the wooden strips and I used Liquid Nails to glue the balls to the strip. We planned for a staggered look, so before gluing, we pre-marked the boards so we could easily get the balls securely in place. While we waited for the glue to dry we got the baseboards installed. We went with a 6" high square baseboard. We pre-measured/marked the walls so the 2" strips would be mounted 9" apart on center.

Once the glue was dry Brent used his nail gun and a level to get the strips up on the wall.

My excitement grew with each strip that was installed. I could tell almost instantly I was going to love the outcome. 

We got as many installed as we could, but because we didn't have countertops in we couldn't finish the section behind the vanity, so as you can see from the photo above I started painting because I just couldn't wait and OH MY GOSH!!!!!!!

What do you think?! Pretty happy, right?

Annnnnd, this is where I'm going to leave you hanging. Countertops came next and they deserve a post all their own. Until next time....

All photos are my own. 

Out with the tub... In with the Storage.

What is it about a new year that tends to bring about the urge to organize and de-clutter? As soon as the holiday dust settles it's as if an organizational cloud comes over us all, insisting we get our lives in order. I don't know about you but I feel better, literally happier, when everything is in it's place. In homes with limited "extra space" up for grabs (like mine!) it seems being organized is that much more crucial.

So, in the spirit of organizing and really working with the space you've got, I thought I'd share a fun before and after project that I completed before the holidays.

The story starts with a client who had a bath tub against her will.  I'm sure a lot of you can relate to this. Basically there was a bath tub that was never used but removing it was discouraged because of resale. This couple had recently moved into a high-rise in Atlanta. While the views from their new home were amazing the storage space, not so much. The Misses jumped right on having her closet done, but like so many of us ladies, she had an abundance of purses and shoes and needed additional storage.  One day the light-bulb went off and this savvy lady had a genius idea - why not cover the bathtub with cabinetry?

I was skeptical at first but after seeing the space and talking over the details it became apparent this was a really good idea.

Below are a few before shots of the space:

The plan was to cover the bath tub with plywood. This plywood would serve several functions. First it would protect the tub from damage as cabinets were installed and second it would give the cabinetry a good base to sit atop. 

All plumbing trim was removed, but rough-ins (plumbing guts) remain intact. The overall goal was to modify the tub niche' by covering up the tub so the current homeowners could enjoy additional storage. The key to this project was to ensure the next owners could utilize the tub if they wanted to.  To do this we fashioned the cabinets so that they could be removed and the tub, tile and plumbing would remain unharmed and ready for use. 

When it came to the design of the cabinets, storage was the name of the game. Well, actually the design had a hyphenated name storage-pretty. As important as additional storage was, I knew these cabinets brought with them the opportunity to have some creative fun and make the bathroom feel bigger and wow. 

Speaking of wow....take a look at these afters shots:

Hard to believe there's a tub under there, eh? The cabinets are Bell Custom Cabinets from Bell Kitchen & Bath Studios.  The custom mullions were designed for each door by me and engineered by my mullion-making partner in crime, Richard. I really love how the mullions add an elegant vibe to the space, while the mirror adds depth. Plus the mirror gives you a place to check out your whole ensemble when walking by! 

The drawers you see at the bottom are false. Because we wanted to keep the tub intact we didn't want to attach any cabinetry directly onto the tub, so these false drawers act as a sort of skirt for the tub front. 

The space was divided into three cabinets with fixed roll outs at the bottom of each cabinet and adjustable shelving above. This set up offers flexibility which is important when it comes to storage. Sometimes we don't know the height of our next pair of boots we haven't even purchased yet. Having adjustable shelving allows you to move the shelves to create the desired height of the moment. 

      

And this is what genius looks like. Is it weird that this project makes me equal parts proud and happy? This bathroom modification is a testament to making your space work for you and your needs. Doesn't organization just make you feel warm and fuzzy inside? Yeah, me too...

Photography by me - Courtney Foster Shearer. The space is so yummy the pictures practically took themselves, but I pushed the button.