Whenever Dad visits, he has to tinker around with something in the house. This time it was the chipped guest bathroom sink. The plan was to replace the sink and “maybe” the faucet.

Let me paint you the “before” picture - for lack of actual photos:

• Beige formica standard builder’s cabinet with pickled oak handrails (the left side of the cabinet was walled off because of the vicinity of the toilet hiding precious usable space); no drawer space, just one big cabinet under the sink.
• beige subway tiles as a counter
• standard white sink with an outdated Delta faucet

Well, when Dad removed the old sink, he broke two of the subway tiles around the sink. Instead of getting upset as he expected, I hugged and thanked him in advance for building me a new cabinet.
We sat down together and designed the cabinet layout, color and counter materials and installation.

And now for the “after” picture:

The New Cabinet
We were able to re-use most of the existing cabinet after careful demolition. Instead of the 2 cases that were there originally, we ended up with 3 by making the existing 2 cases narrower and inserting a smaller case in the middle to hold some drawers.
The idea was to use the left side for towel, spare toilet paper and magazine/book open storage because there wouldn’t be room to open any cabinet doors; the right side would remain one big undersink cabinet; and the middle would be dedicated to much needed drawers for toiletries; we shortened the bottom 2 drawers because of the position of the toilet.

The New Counter
Because we didn’t have the time to wait for a custom granite or similar counter and because we just didn’t have that in the budget at the time, we opted for the largest tiles we could find and used smaller decorative tiles to fill the space.

The New Sink and Faucet
We also upgraded the sink to a high-end Kohler sink and a modern faucet.

Although we saved a ton of $$$ by building our own cabinet and re-using existing material whenever possible, this project was way bigger and more expensive than just replacing a sink and a faucet. AND it was well worth it.
What’s left to do now is to paint the walls, install some drapes, and upgrade the lighting.

All in all I had tons of fun designing and building my “space column”. It looks like it should have been there all along when my place was built. What I like about it is that it adds a lot of warmth at night via the dimmable spotlight. During the day, it also allows a lot more light to enter the dining area.

Check out the pictures below and stay tuned for my next adventure. I am thinking powder room … daring color … vessel sink … sleek cabinet … great lighting.

I had always wondered if that column between my dining room and my living room served any purpose other than provide an occasional moment of entertainment when a distracted someone ran right into it. I decided that some exploratory drywall surgery was in order. I found that between a healthy set of doubled up 2×4’s and some electrical wiring, there was quite a bit of what I consider usable space. Unthinkable! Perfectly usable space that isn’t used for storage or display? Not in MY house.
Out came the drawing board, shopping list and wallet. After a week of home improvement therapy in my spare time (aka working with saws, drywall, and electrical wiring, switches and fixtures) we are looking at the start of a much more usable space. One that still holds up the master bedroom on the second floor AND provides some storage space coupled with display space for art or pictures.

The idea was this: Open up the center of the column to insert glass shelves at the top and wooden shelves for the lower area with a closed cabinet in the bottom that would hold non-display items. The items on the glass shelves would be illuminated by a spotlight. I would also install a wall lamp on the outside wall toward the living room to make reading on the chair next to the column a little easier on the eyes.

I attached some pictures below of where my adventure has taken me so far: (forgot to take the “before” picture!)
1. First I created a series of scale drawings of what I was envisioning. It’s amazing how many times I scrapped a project because what I wanted the space to look like just didn’t pan out in scale. In this case, everything passed muster.
2. Then I went shopping :-). I bought a sheet of drywall, drywall screws, a recessed spotlight, a wall lamp, dimmer switches (I love mood lighting), some joint compound, corner bead, primer, and texture spray. I still had some electrical wire and drywall/painting related stuff laying around from another project.
3. I removed the “excess” drywall between the corner 2×4 structures - taking care not to cut the electrical wires - in effect “hollowing” out the column for the most part, leaving some space closed on the bottom of one side for a cabinet that can hide some stuff that shouldn’t necessarily be seen. I thought that the top of the closed space should coincide with the top of a ledge I am envisioning at armrest height for the chair just under the wall lamp.
4. Then it was time to reposition an electrical switch and “borrow” some of its power for the spotlight and the reading light on the other side of column.
5. I took some of the removed drywall and used it for the “ceiling” into which I installed a recessed spotlight. Why not recycle, right?
6. I then installed new drywall for the inside walls and glued corner beads onto all corners for a nice finished look. Why can’t they build houses so corners and walls are square and straight? I had quite a bit of fun getting everything aligned - sort of.
After the spackling dried, I applied primer and texture - the ever-fun “knockdown” texture (why does that stuff have to smell so weird?)
7. I then cut the pieces for the bottom of the opening and the top of the cabinet out of MDF and finished the edges with some hardwood scraps. The idea is to paint it in the same trim color as other wood trim in the room.

What’s next?

1. Order some glass shelves for the “opening”
2. Make the wood shelf and the door for the cabinet - note to self: get some door hinges.
3. Paint the wall areas
4. Install the wall light - it’s on order and should be here in about a week or so.
5. Install the glass shelves - gotta think of a creative way to install shelf supports for that minimalistic look.

Stay tuned for part 2 …

I was on a flight when I saw an interview with Barbara K. She talked about her background, her tools, and her upcoming show on E! I haven’t personally tried out any of her tools even though they seem to have sprouted on the shelves in home centers.
Has anyone out there given them a try?