Spedie1 is facing this burgundy tile, a deteriorating grout job, and a slow acting drain and making the best of it with white accents which give the room a clean fresh feeling. Keep it going with white towels and a fluffy white bath rug.
With two weeks to go, it's time to slow down. This week, we're moving into the touches that add coziness and luxury to your home. We're taking a look at our lighting and working on our bathrooms. We're eating at home more, using our homes more and taking better care of ourselves by shutting out the distractions of the outside world (Some of us are even considering a media fast and a morning bath.) Our home is becoming a haven. This week, we'll consider other ways of pampering ourselves:
better bath products, scents for the home, improved lighting...
Koko Studios uses this great window as room divider and further delineates different areas of her loft's living room with rugs
In the deep treatment, we're focusing on our bathrooms. This is the time to take a good look at a room where a little investment can have a lot of payoff for your well-being. Most of us don't have the deep tubs and steam showers we'd like but we can focus on accessories, cleanliness and decluttering to make this room a respite: great fluffy towels, a great body wash, a fine soap. In cleaning out this room, here are some thoughts:
- Clean out the medicine chest: This should only be filled with things you use daily. We put our aspirin, medications we only take occasionally, band aids, etc. in a pretty box in the closet.
- Men: treat yourself to a new razor and shaving supplies.
- Women: go through your make-up and toss anything you haven't used in a year; mascara should be replaced every three months, especially if you wear contact lenses.
- Consider replacing your shower head with a filter or a rain shower head and moving bottles off the floor into a wire caddy that hangs from the shower head.
- A candle in here is a small touch that feels very luxurious.
- We've switched to generously sized bath sheets to dry off after a shower and hand towels for everyday and for our hair.
- Take a moment to spritz down the shower with a shower spray after use, use a toilet brush to give a quick scrub to your bowl daily and wipe down your sink when you're done and this room will stay a lot cleaner and smell a lot better.
A light, a simple table and chairs and a framed print and this small nook in bluetoes's kitchen becomes an inviting spot to hang out.
Check your lighting: Do you have adequate lighting for all of the tasks in your rooms? A mixture of overhead and task lights allows you to change the mood in each room, from romantic to practical. Consider dimmers for bright lamps and uplights for dramatic architectural elements.
MyLittleApartment laid down rubber matting in the bathroom. Rubber, Flor or other durable (and water-resistant) wall-to-wall carpeting is an excellent choice for bathrooms where the floor cannot be salvaged (especially if you're in a rental). It can be laid down without glue or tacking and pulled up for cleaning.
Deep Treatment
- Clean bathrooms and related closets
- Declutter cabinets and closets.
- Arrange your bathroom efficiently.
- Upgrade your razor and shaving supplies
- Purchase bath salts and a nice soap
- Place a candle in your bathroom
- Consider scents for your home
- Plan for the week ahead on Sunday
- Wake early and take a bath before work
- Optional: consider a media fast for the next week
- Optional: straighten your desk at work.
One Room Remedy
- Finalize your lighting arrangement
- Get painting
spedie1 it appears we have the same cramped bathroom layout -- except i don't have all that tile, but i have that same bulky vanity (which i hate).
view SydneyBristow's profile
I can't "focus and relax" until my darn cat stops crapping all over the apartment... Bad kitty!
This weekend I'll be scrubbing my shower grout sparkling and then immediately sealing it. As it's impossible to keep clean, I have a feeling it was never done in the first place.
Still haven't finished the study...
view ashleym (aka autzve on flickr)'s profile
Yes - that vanity is an eyesore. As far as a fluffy white rug, I have the West Elm organic white "noodle" rug, I think it's called. I wouldn't recommend it as it loses it's fluffiness the moment you step on it, and it's rather thin.
I too find it hard to "focus and relax" when I've got little critters scraping about in the attic above the bathroom! Our landlord gave us rat poison to put up there, which they took to (we could hear them eating it - it sounded like they were on crack!) And now there is a chemical smell coming from there. I normally go with non-toxic solutions as much as possible, but I found it hard to argue with my landlord on this one. I wasn't about to go figure out how to do this on my own.
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ashleym--
my cat took to pooping in the bathtub so I totally feel your pain. Now I keep the door closed and she goes in her box instead...
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The bathtub at least is easy to clean up! It's been the kitchen floor, three times in the study (carpet), twice in the hall (carpet), and twice on the bathroom floor.
A friend recommended Nature's Miracle so we're using that and I ordered more Feliway diffusers (she had this issue last winter but with urination; the vet said she was fine, just "high strung." Recommended the diffusers.)
Cat's dipping into my shoe-shopping funds... OY.
Anyone wanting to adopt a female siamese? ; )
view ashleym (aka autzve on flickr)'s profile