After I finally proofread my story from yesterday, I realized that I was being pretty whiny. I am grateful that I have a home. The layout works for me. The neighborhood does not have an HOA so there is not that extra expense. I am just grateful that people put their old tires at the back of their property.
With new paint, new floors and a contractor on board, who would help fix up the bathrooms, I was feeling better about my house. When the floor guy was doing the master bath he had to rip out the toilet so I was able to get a new one that he installed. Getting a toilet that is fresh and clean with no history is a must in a 22 year old house. My contractor is a retired pro who is a friend of my sister. He takes side jobs that are flexible with his family’s schedule. Since I can shower at my sister’s house which is only ten minutes away, I have flexibility. He ripped out the vanities, mirrors (the glued to the wall kind), lights and faucets. I had no trouble finding a wonderful double vanity from Wayfair, green freestanding with a black granite top. Gorgeous. The small bathroom was the challenge. The vanity that Frank ripped out was a 30 inch but there was space to have up to a 36 inch. Let me tell you that they don’t make 32 or 34 inch vanities. I ordered a 36 inch from Lowes. A blue one with a white top and mirror. It had drawers on the right side. As we unboxed it, Frank asked if I got a right handed or left handed vanity. He was joking but we realized that with the plumbing, the right handed drawers were not going to work. He’d have to take the backs off of a couple of the drawers if we wanted it to fit. I needed to think about that so Frank left. It made sense to just return it. It was so heavy and I could barely get it out of the truck with Frank. So the garage door installers helped me lift the Lowes vanity back into my truck, along with the medicine cabinet that was too big for any place I might have wanted to put it. I thought 36 inch vanity, 36 inch medicine cabinet, right? Not really. They didn’t match up because I could not have the mirror flush against the wall.
In researching the 36 inch vanity with drawers on the left issue, I found that having drawers on the left means you pay about $500 more for the vanity. The curse of being a lefty, I guess. My sister and I scoured the Habitat ReStore, home surplus warehouses and finally gave up on the drawer thing. Also finding one in blue was difficult, almost impossible. I ended up with a white cabinet and white top for $250, which was an amazing price if you have been looking. When you buy from these surplus warehouses, bring cash! They charge extra for using a credit card. I had to rethink my mirror and light choice for the small bathroom. We ended up with an oval mirrored medicine cabinet and a double wall mount drop light. The master was so much easier with two wall mount adjustable black trimmed mirrors and wall mount lights in black that one of my high school besties, who lives close by now, gave me as a house warming gift. I have always admired her decorating taste. The only glitch was that when Frank installed the lights, one side would not work. He is opening up the wall again tomorrow to see if it was his mistake or the lights.
Frank has been wonderful to have around. He works part-time at a big box store so he can use his discount to buy materials we need. The kitchen was missing trim atop the wainscoting. The trim was on the counter. I thought the floor guy brought it. He thought Frank brought it. The painters had no idea but painted it pre installation. It might have been there when I moved in but no one ever installed it. Frank battled my dryer installation. I needed to replace the three prong with a four prong plug. The elbow dryer vent to the outside had been broken, presumably when the sellers moved out. The washer and dryer on on opposite sides than my Texas house so the doors don’t open to the outside but at least I can do laundry.
I cleaned the shower in the master the other day. It is a form-type inset not tile. It needs to be replaced because it is worn and there are spots that I can’t scrub off to the original color. I also discovered a small crack in the floor which may or may not leak. I have some silicone to take care of that. I bought a lovely shower curtain that hides the ugly of the shower for now. The master shower will just be added to the list for future replacement.
For the record, before I actually saw the house in person, I thought I only had to replace the counters in the kitchen and redo the carpeted floors. It is clear to me that not everyone knows how to maintain a home when they own it. Often it is a money issue but the previous owners both worked at decent paying jobs. Maybe buying a new home for them solved the problems easier that fixing the problems in the old house. Their, now my, neighbors loved them and didn’t want them to leave. I wonder if the neighbors knew of all the things wrong with the house.
There is more to come! I keep finding things…..
Nell Carroll Photography 