Design Inspiration - master bath

One of the things that I've been struggling with is how to pull together our master bathroom.  I want a space that's not too formal, but also a place that feels cool, clean and crisp. 

Today I made a trip to Meta Marble & Granite and was totally impressed with the knowledge of the sales staff and the incredible selection.  I browsed for about an hour and kept returning to the cool whites and grays with lots of natural, sweeping variation.  The best part is that I was sent home with a bag full of samples! 

One thing that I learned was that if we do decide to work with Meta, we'll have to purchase the entire slab.  With that being said, I think that bodes well for the possibility of getting enough material for the vanity top and the tub deck.  Or if we don't have enough for the tub deck, we could always have the fabricators work with the remnants to produce a top for our powder room vanity. 

Here are some of the products that I fell in love with:



Calacatta Luccicoso Honed Marble 1 1/4", sourced from Italy.  Approximate retail: $35-40/sq ft



I absolutely love this beautiful slab! Lots of movement to this piece

Fantasy Brown Quartzite 1 1/4", sourced from Italy.  Approx retail: $25-30/sq ft.  While I don't think this will end up in our home, I love how it pulls both taupe and gray. 

Master shower: white subway tile in a brick pattern

Kohler 10" rain head shower fixture

Second showerhead: Kohler Flipside

Maax Slimline Oval soaking tub

Kohler Bancroft Roman tub faucet with ceramic handles

Side spray to accompany Roman rub faucet

White shaker style cabinets



Now we just need to decide on flooring, cabinet pulls, light fixtures and towel bars. 

Progress photos - plumbing and fireplaces

Things are moving along quite nicely at our house.  The framers should be finished this week, with only a few small items remaining: backings for light fixtures/towel bars/art, framing a large closet in the basement and pocket doors in the mud room/guest bath. 

We had some issues with the placement of our gas water heater.  Originally we were going to put it in the mechanical room in the basement, but because restrictions only allow 40 inches of vertical rise, one 90 degree turn and 36 inches of horizontal pipe to vent to the outside, we ended up putting the water heater in the garage.  We looked into all sorts of creative options to keep the water heater in the basement, but even with the new direct vent water heaters on the market, we had way too much difficulty with the above restrictions and decided it just wasn't worth the cost involved trying to keep it in the basement. 

Our plumber has been working hard installing the drains throughout the house and just yesterday he installed the tub/shower combo in the guest bath and the 4 foot shower pan in the master bath.  We also planned out where we wanted the exterior faucets, confirmed the installation of a circulating heat pump to ensure we always have warm water and ordered the pans that sit under the washer and dryer in the event of an overflow. 

Guest bath tub/shower, by Maax

4 foot shower pan.  The empty space to the right of the shower will house the built in seat.  Shower fixtures to include: 10 inch rain head shower, detachable shower and built in toiletry shelving.

Great room fireplace being installed.  Fireplace by Monessen.

Master bedroom fireplace, also by Monessen. 

Sketch of master bedroom fireplace and built in bookcase

Progress photos - trusses are here, and we have a roof!

Last week I spent the entire week in bed with strep throat.  By the time I finally made it to the house to check on the progress, the trusses had been delivered and the roof was up.  It's incredible to see how much progress the framers had made in the 5 days that I wasn't able to visit. 

Trusses!

Totally different feel with the roof

Standing on the upstairs landing, looking at the foyer.  Lots of natural light!  Now I need to choose some sort of light fixture to illuminate the area.

Master bedroom fireplace nook - while a fireplace is a dream item, we decided it was a must have to save on our overall heating costs.

The engineer of the family sketched out the master fireplace nook, with built in cabinetry and shelving.

Child's room dormer

Fully covered back patio



Front elevation with the roof!

Progress photos - first floor framing

As promised, here are pictures of the first floor framing!

Our huge coat closet, just as you come in the front door - you can see the potential for vertical storage

The office is on the front of the house, with a built in storage bench under the north window

"Flex" room, where we'll put the piano and have additional seating

Kitchen - 4 burner gas range with commercial hood to the left of the window, pantry in the back left corner and fridge on the left wall with a small built in desk adjacent to the fridge.  There will also be a large island with prep sink if budget allows.

Great room dining area, where our large table will go.  Seating for 8-12 and will serve as our only dining space.  We'll also have 3-4 bar stools at the island for additional seating.

Great room window, facing the backyard

Windows flanking the gas fireplace and built in cabinets/bookshelves

Standing in the mud room, looking into the powder room.  The turquoise bench will be on the right hand side and a cabinet with utility sink will be on the left.  If you turned to your right and walked through the door, you'd be standing in the garage!

Progress photos - rooms are framed on the second floor

Here are a few more progress photos from this last week.  You can see that the sky is threatening in some of the pics, especially the shot of the staircase.


All of the rooms on the second floor are framed! The rooms on the first floor (and basement) are also framed, but I keep forgetting to take pictures.  I'll be sure to snap some this week and post them up on the blog.

Here are the pics of the second floor:

Looking up the stairs to the bonus room and guest bedroom.  If you take a right at the top of the stairs, our master bedroom is at the front of the house.

Bonus room, on the back of the house - the windows face east and south

Guest room, on the back of the house - window facing due east

Laundry room (yes, our laundry is upstairs!) , on the back of the house - window facing due east

Guest bathroom, in between the front and back of the house - the toilet will sit right below the window, which faces north and the tub/shower combination will be right where the piece of wood is leaning against the wall.

Linen closet, adjacent to the upstairs hallway - will be finished with french doors

Child's room dormer, on the front of the house, facing west  - great lake view from this room!

Master bedroom bay window, facing west.  Our bed will go in between the two square windows (you can see one of the square windows on the left side of the picture)

Master walk in closet

Master bath - the wall to the left of the water jug is where the vanity will sit, with dual sinks.  The small room beyond the water jug is the water closet

Another view of the master bath.  The soaking tub will be placed right where the stack of wood is sitting.  There's a big window adjacent to the tub to allow for lots of natural lighting and ventilation.

Design inspiration - flea market bench

Last week, my girlfriend called and asked if I was interested in visiting a flea market in Bremerton.  Since some of the best days begin with spontaneity, we decided to load the kids in the car, pack up a picnic lunch and hop the ferry.  After an hour ferry ride, we took a short 5 minute drive to the flea market and when I walked in, I knew that I had found a bench for our mudroom.  Since our built in cabinet bids came in at around $350 for just the mudroom bench, I knew that I had to get creative and find some sort of bench that would work in the space.  It had to be sturdy, cute and fit into the 2 x 4 foot space.  

Handmade 30 years ago by a local woodworker, I scored this bench for $36!  The underside has a handwritten note from the woodworker, and several reinforcements, which explains why it held 2 women and their kids without a hint of movement.

 I cut a check to the owner of the flea market, we shuffled the kids and their carseats and divided them between the second and third row of seats in my car, loaded the bench in and off we went!

View of the new Seattle Sky Wheel from the car deck of the ferry

Space Needle

Sometimes it just goes to show that you can have the look you're going for while staying way under budget!

Progress photos - second floor

The framers have been working hard on the second floor and they've made great progress.  We've had some unusual weather for Seattle, with thunderstorms and lightning, so it's been hard for the framers to work their full day schedule.  They usually start around 7am and work until about 3:30pm, but with the weather being pretty labile this week, their hours have been cut short.

I really can't say enough good things about our framers!  There are usually 4 guys working on any given day, and I've gotten to know all of them over the past few weeks.  They continually impress me with their hard work, cleanliness on the job site and flexibility with the changes that have come up along the way.

Garage

The huge beam in the garage - the guys lifted the beam up and dropped it in by hand!

Front view of the garage

The stairs are in!  At this point, it's really starting to feel like our house.  You can see the "rail" that the framers put in, which leads to the basement.  We'll be going with an open railing concept, so that the basement railing/stairs are visible from the foyer.  Sort of the "old world" style that we love.

Second floor subfloor, looking towards the back of the house

Second floor, back wall

Second floor child's bedroom.  You can see the sloping of the roof line, which will be a large dormer.  

Master bedroom bay window with peekaboo lake view - once the leaves drop in the winter, we should have a fantastic view of the water and the Olympic mountains.  Eventually, the power lines will go underground, leaving us with a mostly unobstructed view.

Front elevation starting to take shape