Tale of 2 Bathrooms or How to Lower Property Value

So it is almost a month now that I have been living in a house!  Wow time flies when you spend it moving, painting and destroying.  The tub surround downstairs is gone, the cement board is up, the tile is purchased and almost booked for installation and then we will be on to finishing the drywall, installing new lights, flooring and trim!

In the mean time I painted the hallway upstairs BM White Chocolate and the bathroom upstairs BM Pink Cadillac.  Unfortunately the glory that was my pink bathroom was short lived when it was decided that we should unclog the trap and found the ABS trap had been connected with a chrome pipe (which was completely corroded) to the cast iron drain.  The drain had insufficient slope which lead to the formation of what mostly seemed like a rock formation in the pipe.  This combined with the scary electrical we found lead to the removal of the wall and now my 2 bathroom house is a 1/2 and 1/2 bathroom house!  All because the sink was clogged and we thought we would clean it the "right way".

But hey I'm leaving in a week for Viva...what about that well hopefully somethings will be resolved this weekend and if not I have at least booked a hair appointment for Friday and I did manage to buy a dress so maybe just maybe by Wednesday morning I will have my bag packed and ready to go and maybe there will be one complete bathroom when I get home...

Here are some photos from this month:

note the hallway has no light (ie this paint was not helping)

ochre color taped off white chocolate to come

clean a trap lose a wall (grey pipe bottom of sink)

connector removed

beginning of the end of pink wall and notice lovely black door trim at least that was not for nothing... 

The wall is now gone stay tuned for the updates and I will try to grab some updated photos of the basement as it is progressing as well.  Working on my Viva calendar for now and will try to check back before I leave.

Home on the Range

Eek! 2 weeks 'til I am living on terra firma instead of in strata space.  I can't wait to get started sprucing things up.  I went tile shopping this weekend for the downstairs bathroom.  Here are some before pics to the reference upcoming changes.

On my list is good-bye to the crumby new addition white cabinet by the stove and hello to an old 40" stove.  Good-bye ugly super long brushed chrome bar handles on my original cabinetry hellow rejuvenation or ebay handles.  Good-bye burnt yellow paint and overscale fans.  I also have big plans for the yard and I can't wait to have a fire in the fire pit but all in good time I suppose.

 

 

and the crazy bathroom (if it is possible the goal is to move the toilet and sink against the wall as right now it is kind behind the tub) - tileboard is klassy with a k hopefully it will soon be tile.

inspiration for the new bathroom is this vintage poster I found at alltheposters.com

California Part 2

Well brave adventurers we are we set off once again on the bus headed to our hotel in Orange County.  Saturday was my free day so after we got to the hotel and got rid of our luggage I took off for Orange Circle determined to get the most out of my all day bus pass.

Along the way I unexpectedly found a Target and got supplies for Disneyland the next day which was great and some cheap Elf make up brushes (read $1 to $3).  I did finally get to Orange Circle though and learned that it is the geographical center of Orange County and definitely worth a walk through for the lovely mix of places to eat and antique malls and stores.  I once again had my handy retro shopping map but really didn't need it once I got there because it was easy to get around fun to wander.

I was thrilled to add a Cherry Red Bakelite bangle to my collection at 30% after some digging through a display case and generally thrilled just to walk about and see some of the coolest furniture on the planet at I place called Woody's (check out that ta-booth in the window) and then right next door a cupcake place that was feature on the Food Network mmm delicious :)

After wearing out my feet and my eyes I knew I better head home so I'd be ready for the big show the next day (Disneyland).  On my way to the bus stop however I was smitten by two more sights one of which I will catch you up on later but for now here are some last looks to hold you.

Travelogue - California

Early Thursday morning I left our crazy cold snap and flew off first to Vancouver.  From there we made our way through customs and then go on a plane to take us to John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana!

The weather was lovely when we arrived and we eventually caught a bus that took us down the highway to Long Beach.  I was intent on doing some vintage shopping and more than anything exploring what there was to see.  It was a long trip but we made our way to our hotel and saw all the coast on the PCH on the way!  On our travels we met a man from Seattle who couldn't get home because the airport was closed and who was staying in Laguna Beach.  He had all sorts of tips and advice and it was definitely a nice start to our vacation.

First thing Friday, we went walking about and found our way to the bus information place just north of the Pike on Pine and we bought all day passes and after a fine breakfast set about exploring.  We made good use of the shopping map I had printed from http://www.shoppersmap.com/

Unfortunately what we didn't realize was that things were more laid back than we had allowed for and all the shops on 4th Street weren't open until noon.  So we toured  the area for a bit I bought a cute purse at the AIDS Assistance Store for $3 and then we caught the bus up around the Signal Hill area where the antique malls are and thing were open.  I found most prices were commesuate with the internet but it was thrilling so see some things I've never seen in person here like all the Heywake furniture and cornicopia of signage.  I was looking for a thermometer for my new house and after reviewing the prices and thinking about how important it is to have the temperature in Celsius in Canada I went for a really cute reproduction piece along with some awesome deco stove S&P and some great 1940s postcards that I'm intent on framing.  One of my other finds was some vacation slides which I want to maybe turn into a cool lamp like Erica did http://www.ericamulherin.com/blog/2010/01/07/the-most-awesomest-lampshade-ever/ my slides aren't as cool and I only have 80 for now but it is a start and I'm hoping to collect some other older ones as I go along.

After having a snack we caught the bus back to 4th Street (seen here the corner of 4th and Cherry) and had a great time shopping I looked long and hard a vintage Mexican circle skirt but in the end decided I'd never be bold enough to wear it and instead picked up some great soveniers (robot ice cube tray! guitar spatula!) and swooned over more furniture pieces.

We had supper on our way back to the hotel at a place called Creme de la Crepe where we hit the end of happy hour and got to order off the lunch menu at or maybe after 4 PM.  It was delicious after a long day shopping and was not far from Downtown Darling which we checked out along the way.  After all that it was nice to get back to our room and put on some warmer clothes.  We went out and checked out the ferris wheel and pier and then came back to our room for some well deserved sleep.  Saturday we journeyed back to closer to the Airport in Orange County.

And then it snowed

Well the mercury has dropped to -29C/-20F but I soldiered on and walked to work today.  It is all good except for the fact that I like to wear my glasses to work and there is no practical way to wear glasses and a scarf and not have the glasses turn into a foggy mess but hopefully this won't last for too long.

I am waiting on the girl who has an offer on my condo but things look bleak on that front and I'm starting to lose patience. In the mean time the plumber who changed the sink valves last week needs to come back again and I am wondering if my car is going to start when I need to use it or if I should re-insure it as a block of ice.

I bought my ticket for Viva and it appears after much plotting and discussion with my friend I also have an extra ticket should someone want to buy one.  Flights here were on a big sale here for the last week so my flight is all booked and I booked the hotel way back in May so I'm covered there just for now on my own in the big city which is not the end of the world but frustrating that it is so hard to co-ordinate things with other people.

The sun is shining despite the temperature so that is the plus and my vacation to California is coming up and I found this cool site that has vintage shopping maps for places around CA so I'm pretty excited to put them to the test and see what I find.  http://www.shoppersmap.com/  The new house could use some retro-fittings so I will be bringing a suitcase with a lot of empty space to fill :) and hopefully getting some great deals to share.

When I get back it will be crack down on my diet time and get packing for the new place.  Hopefully the condo really will sell this week but if it doesn't I guess there's nothing I can do except keep busy and try not to think about it.  The change in the mortgage rate (drop 0.5%) has been a bonus so I guess it will all even out eventually.

I'm working on an embroidery for the new house 10 points if you recognize where this border comes from!  Until next time stay warm.

Year in Review

I've had a busy last few months so I'm here to chronical it all up before year end!

In August I stitched this little cutie for my friend E who was attending culinary school in Ottawa! 

It was a beautiful month and my mom and two younger nieces came in and we went to the City Hall fountain and had Spider-Man pop candy.

In September I drove over 3200 km in my rent Nissan Juke (which looked like an attack hatchback) all on my own.  It was a record for the most driving I have ever attempted on my own.  I drove to my sisters and then out to the coast took the ferry to the Sunshine Coast and did some camping.  I also brought my sister back home with me and we stopped in at my cousin B's new place out in the country.

In October I began seriously looking for a house.  I looked at likely over 25 different places and then early this month I found my new home.  I had my cousin B and her husband R with me for some of my expeditions and it was great to be able to have them with me at the final house inspection.  My new place is a 1947 cutie with a finished basement suite which I take possession of on the leap year which I think is super cool.  I also put my condo up for sale which I have to say was a Herculean effort involving more work than I ever want to do again and a continuing battle to put everything away when I leave for work every morning.

Also in December my bestest cousin came and stayed at my house and helped me do a lot of the repairs on my condo that needed attention.  He brought his sweet dog Robyn and it was a fantastic to finally have the crack by my window seamlessly repaired and the grout in my tile all solid again.  This is the wall after the crack was fixed and painted.  I wish I had taken a picture of that awful crack because now you can't tell it was ever there!

2011 was an interesting year as it changed a lot of things for me and made me appreciate my family even more than I already do. 

2012 looks to hold lots of excitement with the new house. a trip to California in January, and hopefully Viva again in April.  My primary goal is to keep a tight hold on my finances this year despite all the excitement and to work hard on staying healthy and getting healthier amid all the hub-bub.  I'm looking forward to spending the summer improving the yard at my house, bbqing, and learning about how to keep my taxes in order if I decide to rent out the top floor for a year to make some extra money before I retro-vate the kitchen and bathroom upstairs.

As a final note for the first time in years here up north I am of the feeling of this card I made for my friend Violet.  We've had an exceptionally warm winter this year and we even had rain yesterday!  So, I'm going to have to say at this point, "Let it Snow!"

Cheers,

Scarlet

This Weekend!

First off I have to say this has been the rainiest summer I can ever remember.  It has been tough on outdoor events but thank goodness for some luck on Saturday.

On Thursday at lunch I caught Los Straitjackets at lunch along with a performance by the Pontani Sisters in cute navy blue polka dot mini dresses.  Down the street there was also a host of odds and end including free slushies but this was just the beginning.  Plus, the parade to kick off the annual exposition (read travelling rides, etc).

Friday it rained like the ocean was coming to overwhelm us via worlds most boring rain.  Aside here: this is a dry prairie province we get storms with wind to tear your shingles off but drenching rain all day is not usually a summer feature.  So the bands had to pack it in on the street but when I got home I check to see about the show I was planning to attend and what do you know they were starting early because all the bands that didn't get to play in the street were going to play the show that night that originally was intended to only be Hillbilly Casino.

So I headed down early and saw Los Fabulocos, Lee Rocker, and Hillbilly Casino.  The place was filled with the bands and from my impression friends of friends because no one had any idea that the rain would work bring this.  It was amazing and I couldn't quite get over the talent in the room.

Saturday brought cloudy but decent weather and I headed out late on foot to hit the Farmer's Market and see more bands.  So, I wandered down and got myself a Liege Waffle from the waffle van.  They are so good I can't begin to explain.  I missed Eve Hell but caught more of Los Fabulocos and then lucked out and was one of a few people to catch the Du-Rite Aces from Calgary.  They sounded great and look at the back drop for all that awesomeness.

Next was Paul Pigat/Cousin Harley from Vancouver.  They covered some great songs and played some awesome songs from the new CD but the highlight from me was getting to hear them cover Ray Condo's Whatcha Gonna do When there ain't no Swing?

Then I couldn't resist hearing Hillbilly Casino on the outside stage and they did not disappoint. Very cool.  Los Straitjackets and Lee Rocker were the next acts but I was tired by that point and got a snack at the restaurant festival set up in the Square

 and headed home. 

I can't say enough good things about Cars and Guitars it is great fit with Indy and I am really hoping they will continue it next year.  The street party was free and allowed everyone to see some amazing performances.  My wishlist for next year might be a beer garden on the street or at least a few tables and spreading the acts around downtown to places like New City that has the capacity for a bigger show or some cool restaurants that can put up a corner stage.  The Yellowhead Brewery was fantastic but because they are not usually open to the public there was no drop in people or patrons who saw the event was upcoming to the place.  The other option could be to sell some advance passes that could get you in to various locations.