Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Good artists copy. Great artists steal ~ Picasso & eb

Two years ago, Suzanne and I took on the challenge of remodeling one of the bathrooms in our newly-purchased-and-in-desperate-need-of- such-remodeling home. Everything about the bathroom was hideous, from the circa 1950s vanity to the chipped sky-blue floor tile to the holes in the drywall and ceiling.



















So, we gutted it. We tore out every shred of the tile tub-surround and we ripped out the ceiling (and the nasty-ass blown-in insulation that was resting on the ceiling). In truth, we made quite a mess. Such is the product of bathroom demolition:






Recently I read a blog entry regarding theft of an original drawing. Oh, I'm sorry - it was an Art Journal entry. The blogger - I mean Art Journalist - seemed somewhat miffed by the unlicensed duplication of her work.

Just days later, hi-ever, this same Art Journalist shared her own efforts at bathroom demolition. An interesting coincidence, don't you agree?

In actuality, eb's pictorial demolition journey prompted Suzanne and I to revisit our own photos of bathroom destruction two years ago. Ah, the good old days. Our bathroom is a finished product now, of course. We installed a nice shiny new vapor barrier and perfectly-fitted cement board and drywall. We replaced the window, the vanity, and the fixtures. We installed nifty little niches for our collection of toiletries. We had the tub cleaned and re-surfaced. And we tiled, and tiled, and tiled. And taped. And mudded. And sanded. And painted.

And sometime in the next few months, we're going to motivate to tackle the other bathroom in our house. By then, maybe eb will be done and she can laugh at us.

.

9 comments:

Suzanne said...

Ah, such memories. Doing the bathroom was quite the educational experience. The next one will be easier.

eb, you can't even see in the photos the part of the tile job of which we are most proud: our niches! That's where Wendy and her tile saw got a real artistic workout. But she did a fabulous job.

Middle Girl said...

Great pics and work. I want so very badly to have the time, energy, money and frankly skills to re-do my bathroom.(and kitchen and dining room and..)
I am sooo jealous. :)

WenWhit said...

eb, if there was ever any doubt of your "great artist" status, that red wall made a definitive statement.

sporksforall said...

So what happens when you steal art from someone and then someone steals it from you? Who gets the credit?

Scout and I really need to update our bathrooms. This may inspire me. :)

Teresa said...

It inspires me: to ask Suzanne and Wendy to come stay with us for a coupla weeks—and bring their tool belts.

WenWhit said...

What? But I hear there are lesbian-killing dogs in your neck of the woods. ;p

weese said...

seems I may have to post our old bathroom remodel huh.
its like keeping up with the jones' really.
we did all the work ourselves except for hauling out and resetting the cast iron tub.
all demo, all cementboard, all tile, electrical an the setting of the other fixtures.
never again...

tiff said...

Is that a curvy shower rod I see, or is my vision skewing persective again?

Nice job on the remodel. I've "helped" build 2 houses, and if I never have a hammer in my hand again it will be too soon. You are to be congratulated for even thinking of doing the other one. Though, with where y'all live, remodeling is cheaper than moving.

Suzanne said...

Why yes, tiff. That is a curved shower rod, one of the greatest basic upgrades one can make to a shower.

Easy to install, too.