One Bathroom Is Done!

Finally, one of our rooms is complete! It’s the ensuite bath in the master bedroom.

This was part of the formerly illegal “unpermitted” room that we brought up to code.

We gutted the entire space except for the original stall shower. The shower was in decent shape and we were looking for ways to cut expenses. First, Chuck had to rip out an ancient, smelly, splintery mud-colored linoleum floor that was firmly glued to a plywood subfloor. Next we could start over with a nice new cement board subfloor that’s meant for damp places like bathrooms. In the picture below Chuck began laying out the new slate tile floor, and there’s a space waiting for a shiny new toilet.

And here’s Chuck tiling! There were no working interior lights so he had to deal with awkward contractor spotlights and very long extension cords.

I love how it turned out! With a new reeded glass door in an aluminum frame and glass tile surround the shower looks brand new.

The glass tile carries all the way up to the top of the shower, increasing the sense of height and volume. We pulled a pale blue tone out of the tile mosaic and carried it into the new paint color.Here’s a tile close-up.

The right fixtures were essential to a polished, clean, relaxing ambience in this tight space. Here’s a sleek glass and stainless steel shelf from Blomus. It’s exacting German design for the home, and of course Chuck carries Blomus in his C W Quinn Home showroom.

Even a humble toilet paper holder from Blomus is a work of art!

A gleaming pedestal sink, mirrored medicine cabinet and new lighting completes the design.

And this striking George Kovacs fixture fits in perfectly with the pale blue and steel gray theme. Our electrician, Erik Poor of PoorBoy Electric, even connected it to a motion sensor. It comes on automatically when you walk in, and shuts itself off a few minutes after you leave. I never realized how much I like not having to fumble for a light switch in the middle of the night.

More Kitchen Views

Our kitchen is very nearly done, with just a few trim pieces left to go. Recently the narrow countertop on the shelf between the kitchen and living room went in. Like the countertops in the rest of the kitchen, it’s a solid quartz surface from Compac in Spain. We sourced this product from Pacific Shore Stones of San Luis Obispo where our good friend Suzanne Morosoli helped us find the perfect materials. Pyramid Marble Tile and Masonry of Santa Barbara expertly installed all of our countertops.

I love Chuck’s color combination of cool gray next to the atmospheric blue of the glass tile backsplash, which fits in perfectly with our coastal setting. It’s inspired by the ever-changing play of light across the waves and hills right outside.

Backyard Landscaping Plan

With the interior nearly done (stay tuned for more photos soon) we’re planning the next phase:  landscaping the front and back yard. It’s a 50 foot by 100 foot (15m x 30 m) blank canvas. The front yard can do without immediate help right now because it has the ocean view. Here’s the back yard plan from Gardens by Gabriel:

It will take advantage of existing retaining walls that are in good shape. The terraces will become vegetable gardens. We’ll also keep the lemon tree and miniature orange tree. The lemons remind us of the island of Capri. It seemed like every house there had at least one lemon tree in the yard, bursting with golden fruit.

The space where I stood to take this picture will have an expanded deck. There’s even a gas firepit. We already had the gas line installed in the back of the house, so extending it to the middle of the yard will be simple.And here’s the path from the kitchen where we opened up the wall with a new sliding door, so the only backyard entrance isn’t through our bedroom. The mud will be covered over with a stone path.