Not Yet

Well, I thought I was going to be able to share the "new" powder room. This was the very first thing I wanted to do at the beginning of the project so we would have some instant gratification. It was started first---on December 26th. But here we are, 17 weeks later and it's still not finished. This was supposed to be the week. I was excited.

Tuesday, the men came to install the sink. It's hand-made, mother of pearl inlay. When it finally arrived a month ago, it was decided that it was too heavy to "glue" to the underside of the marble top. I didn't know that all under-mounted sinks are actually glued. The plan was made to build a wooden frame for extra support---cha ching! It took 3 weeks for that. When they went to install it, the technician said that the frame was slightly too big and that there wasn't enough frame to hold the sink to his satisfaction. What? He didn't feel comfortable installing it. Now, if it were too small, they could have just shaved it down. But too big of an opening---you cannot try to add wood.

Plan B---technician calls his company and voila! What took 3 weeks to make they managed to make in one hour! Now I was excited that it was really going to happen.

The next day, Steve (our main man) came to install the plumbing. Would you believe it if I told you the drain was too large? Yep. Steve said there was no way he would risk grinding out the sink and damaging it. That meant a re-order. It's supposed to arrive sometime this week---week 18! I'll believe it when I see it.

All we have left for the master are the shower door and mirrors. The shower door has been another fiasco. I don't know if I've already mentioned it, but it's worth mentioning again. Clear glass is all the rage now. But, you have to clean them after every shower. We're not doing that. You can pay extra to have this super industrial coating put on, but it only lasts 5 years and is not guaranteed.

I just wanted plain, old regular shower glass. What I had and still have in the pool bath is nearly 35 years old and still looks brand new. The "guy" told me that it was going to cost 3 times more! What? The unpopular stuff is actually more expensive? That doesn't make sense to me. Still, I want what I want and not what everyone else wants. He brought us two boxes of samples to choose from. We were excited at the choices. We agreed on our favorite---translucent enough that you could still see our decorative tile, while requiring no extra maintenance. About a week goes by after we've made our selection. The "guy" gets back to us to say that the one we picked out has been discontinued! Really? In fact, ALL of those samples have been discontinued! That particular company was doing nothing but clear glass. He said that he found a company in California that would do what we want, but its was going to cost $4000! He said "no"---and he was right. No way are we paying that. I said to the guy, "So, you are telling me that we have no choice but the clear, high maintenance glass?" He replied, "Well, no, you could always get the "sand blast." After he explained that to us, we decided on that with the heavy duty coating to prevent water spots. He was so unhappy that he couldn't give us what we really wanted that he's doing the sand blast and coating at his cost. At least that's a little savings.

Then there's this. It will take another 3 weeks! Well, it's been a week, so only 2 more to go. This is the same company that is making our mirrors. I have a feeling the mirrors are done, but they only want to make one trip for installation. I've requested that the mirrors be brought this week. We'll see if that happens.

In the meantime, we are just about finished at Stephanie's house. All we have left is to do the decorating---hanging pictures and making it pretty! Boxes unpacked and everything placed in about a day and a half! The garage is still full of boxes---the un-fun stuff---and there are about 15 boxes marked decorations. We're doing that this weekend.

 The house is about the same size as her old one, but is 3 stories tall.

There are 3 outside spaces---this back deck, the front porch and a deck/balcony off the master bedroom on the second level.

 This is the front porch.

It's a nice size with plenty of room for the couch on one side and the chairs on the other. We'll be having happy hour here once in awhile.

This house has a lot of extras. I'll share some of those details when we finish decorating the inside.

Rio is enjoying her "kitty" door. This is the media room on the 3rd floor. She has complete privacy for taking care of business---if you know what I mean!

Unfortunately, she's enjoying the new furniture a little too much! I "unhooked" her claws from the upholstery and she hissed at me! They say she is a demon cat. She rules the house.

That's about all the house news for now. It's a rainy, stormy kind of weekend here. Perfect to do a little scrapbooking. Yeah, that's what I'm doing today. Steph's house tomorrow!