design plan: my powder room

even with everything that has been getting done around the house, the current state of my powder room is pretty sad indeed!

take a look:

before anything else can happen in this room, we have to install the floors!

the original plan was to lay a checkerboard similar to the one that we had in our last house:

these floors were maple and oak.

 i wanted something a little more subtle for this powder room, and so i planned on doing a checker board in oak and walnut.

we ran into a few obstacles---

the mills that sell the raw walnut will only sell larger quantities, and since we only needed about 20 SF, they didn't want to deal with us. the walnut is also significantly more expensive that the oak, and laying it is much more labor intensive than the regular floors. we were SO burned out after laying the wood throughout the rest of the main floor, that the thought of laying the checkerboard made both my husband and i literally want to puke. 

and then take a 3 day nap.

(not to mention the fact that my husband and a handful of his friends have been working on the retaining walls every spare second! he has spent an average of  35 hours each weekend for the last 5 weeks on the outside of the house! i know.--ive got a hardworking man! he really needs a medal or a long vacation or something after this house is done.)

since it has been a while since we laid the rest of the hardwood floors, i think we are finally both ready to tackle the floors in the powder room. we just need to get going---and fast! the floors will need to be sanded and stained soon. 

like this week! 

(the floors in the mini office are also bare! another "onto plan B" thing!)

option A is to just lay the oak on the floor and then paint or stencil on the checkerboard sometime in the future.

option B is to get our cabinet fabricator to mill some 12" squares out of walnut with a tongue and groove and then install them with strips of oak.

we still don't know what we are going to do...but don't worry! 

we have at LEAST 12 hours to decide!

ha! ha!

anyway, here is the design plan that i pulled together for the powder room, so you can at least see the direction i am heading with the space:

the items i already have:

*the circa lighting audrey flush mount fixture, purchased on ebay. 

*the kohler purist faucet in brushed bronze, also purchased on ebay. (you can read more about my ebay finds here.)

*the kohler persuade vanity + sink. this was the most affordable metal legged vanity that i could find. the legs are an unattractive dull silver/pewter finish, which i plan on spray painting gold. 

*the WS home hampstead mirror. i have it in the dark wood finish. this mirror new is around $600, but i found it for $10 at the downeast clearance center! (whoo! hoo!!) it is missing the mirror, and there is some damage to the edges of the wood, but i think i can fix it.

i have been in LOVE with the nina campbell cypress wallpaper for a while.

 i first blogged about it here.

i love the dark background and touches of gold. i would love to mix it with a metallic grasscloth---maybe on the ceiling? i would also like to add some trim to the room...crown molding for sure, but perhaps some panels in the lower half of the wall as well? 

i love powder rooms to be dramatic and interesting, but this powder room also has to withstand some heavy USE since it is the only "public" bathroom on the main floor. the panels/wainscoting will put up with a lot more abuse than a wallpaper. 

ah....but i am getting ahead of myself---i only have 11 hours and 45 minutes left to decide what i want to do with the FLOORS!

wish me luck!