The Powder Room

Big things have been happening at the Mise en scène abode. The latest is the powder room, which, if you read my earlier post, you know that this was an unplanned change. It began with a new floor and a premise: pedestal sinks are not really pedestals, they are wall sinks with a "fancy" post underneath. To properly install a pedestal sink, it needs to have a board behind the wall. In the building boom that in progress when we built our house, a few things got missed.
Adding to the difficulty was Mr. Mise en scène's decision to just touch up a few spots of the paint. Well intentioned, but a problem. You see, though there is no sunlight to this room, the paint had faded. The touch up's ending up making the room look like a sunburned giraffe.
Because of the noted lack of a board behind the wall, the cost to simply reinstall the pedestal was going to be costly. To replace the lackluster pededstal, for that matter to install any pedestal, required the board, ripping out the wall, installing the board, repairing the wall and installing the pedestal. And all that plumber time to install. All for a builder grade pedestal that I have never liked.
So, bottom line, what began as a new floor, ended with a new bathroom. Everything but the toilet and the medicine cabinet has been replaced.
Now all y'all know that sometimes, just sometimes, saying something like "Honey, we need to paint before we install the vanity" to your husband can cause a lot of argument. In fact, mentioning that the sunburned giraffe had to go, even after the sink was installed and a long weekend was approaching, brought on the arguments. But the sunburned giraffe paint had to go, in fact the red had to go. As I was silently adding this to my contractor list, those things I accomplish somehow, after saving enough money for a contractor, Mr. Mise en scène saw the light and the serious paint study began. Up went the candidate chips, mostly all in a variation on taupe, and a few blues and greens, go figure, were splayed upon the wall. Every trip to check the paint, a few came down. Finally, we settled on
Benjamin Moore's Alexandria Beige, HC-77. A few more shopping trips to get a towel ring, the bathroom toilet paper holder, and a light fixture. The light fixture was my thrifty treasure, I had my eye on a light priced at $110, for which I would have to wait a while, a long while. While in Lowes I spotted a very nicely styled light that was $45, I could have sworn it had been marked down from $78, which I cannot confirm now. In any case, $45 vs $110 is a hefty savings.
Not only did Mr. Mise en scène paint, he installed the toilet paper holder, the light, and the towel ring. Then he got on a role and installed a new outdoor light, to replace the "jelly jar", hung doors on the "home theater" cabinets and repaired a wall in the upstairs bathroom, installing a toilet paper holder there too. Mr. Mise en scène is getting steak tonight. I'll even get my alter ego, Elizabeth Lane, to whip up some Sauce Béarnaise to accompany said steak.
Below are the after's, keep scrolling down they are there, and be sure to head back to Susan's and Rhoda's for more Met Monday and Thrifty Treasures!