Bathroom renovations: You'll know when it's time to update yours Tap into the expertise of local builders “We had a green toilet, a green bat htub w it h gold f i x tures, and green sink to match,” said Patt i Gag ne of t he or ig ina l bat hroom in her circa-1968 home in Lewiston. As if that, in and of itself, was not reason enough to renovate, she added, “Our toilet broke! First, we replaced the toilet with an updated, bone-colored one, and then decided it was t i me to tea r apa r t t he old bat hroom and build one to match the new toilet.” This particular bathroom is the primary bathroom, on the main floor of the home, and so it saw a lot of use by the entire family and visitors alike. W it h pa nel i n g a nd s m a l l brow n, ta n a nd white t i les around the tub and sink, it was ver y da rk a nd ha rd to keep clea n. Gag ne wa nted something that was “lighter, updated, contemporar y and easy to care for.” A lt hough Gag ne’s response to the question: “Did you do the work yourself?” was “A big
By Dan Marois Feature Writer / Photographer
fat NO!” Gagne did the design work hersel f a nd ad m it ted to getting most of her ideas from HGTV. The most difficult moments involved shopping. “I hate shopping,” she said, but knobs, fixtures, and the mou nt a i n of ot her det a i ls needed to be conquered, so Gagne laced up her sneakers and soldiered on. Gagne hired Jim Timberlake, of Timberbuilt, to act as contractor. When the Timberbuilt crew ripped out the old bathroom, down to the studs, they found that the original construction was still in extremely good shape, and that there was no evidence of any mold, mildew, or other deterioration. The original bathroom also had a drop ceiling, “which made the demolition easier,” said Gagne.
Submitted photos
Before and after photos above: Jolly old Santa takes a look in the bathroom mirror pre-renovation. Although Santa’s happy with they way he looks, he’s not so happy about the look of the bathroom with its old green sink and tub. Note the outdated dark panelling on the walls and the drop-ceiling tiles. From dark and outdated (left photo) to light and contemporary (right photo), this homeowner can’t decide what feature of her new bathroom she likes best: the granite top, the tiled floor and walls, the French shower doors, or the toe-kick heater under the vanity. The homeowners decided to go with a freestanding toilet paper holder with a magazine rack base, below.
She selected her f looring at Floor Systems, with the tile installation on the floor and half way up the walls by Paul Sirois. Gagne found her vanity and countertop at Hammond Lumber and the mirror at Lowe’s.
from Redlon & Johnson, and t he l ig ht f i x t u re, a lt houg h it had to be sh ipped f rom over s e a s, w a s s ele c te d at Lighting Concepts.
T he bat h room f i x t u res, including the shower, shower doors, toilet and faucet came
Finishing touches, including “the do-dads on the countertop, the rug that gives the room a nice finished look,
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and the trash can were purchased at Kohl’s," according to Gagne, and the window treatment was created by Gamache & Lessard. "From sta r t to f i n ish, i f you count the time that it took my l ig ht i ng f i x t u r e to c ome i n t he project la sted about f ive months," said Gagne.
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Gagne cannot decide if she likes the granite top, the tiled floor and walls, or the French shower doors the best, and she is very excited about having replaced the ugly t radit iona l baseboa rd heater with a “Toe Kick Heater” under the vanity.
As for the green fixtures that she ripped out of the original bathroom, “most of it has been thrown away.” However, if you’re in the market for a not- qu ite -v i nt a ge but delightfully tacky '60s style green sink and tub, stop by Gagne’s 1220 Lisbon Street office.
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W hile it was a dream-cometrue project for Simpson, there were a few cha l lenges. The f looring was uneven due to wea r-a nd-tea r t h roug h t he years and the space was huge – just about 16 by 20 feet.
“The space has a ver y high ceiling and I wanted to add a beam across the room,” said Simpson. “I also wanted to have kitchen cabinets staggered across the room instead of simply straight across.”
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“Maybe it’s the matching trash ca n a nd maga zine rack/toilet paper holder [and the] window t reat ment a nd l ig ht f i x t u re,” s he s a id . “I l i k e t he e nt i r e project ... finished!”
“It absolutely does NOT match the rest of my house,” but that’s fine with Gagne. “W hat was impor ta nt was to make it no longer look like the rest of t he house. Now,” she added, “we have a bigger job to take on, but that won’t be for a long, long time!”
Advertising Supplement to the Sun Journal, Lewiston, Maine, Saturday, September 8, 2012
And while Simpson had an interior decorating background to guide her in designing her kitchen, she believes there are plenty of other resources available for home renovators. “Ask for advice from friends or relatives; people who have done similar projects,” suggested Simpson. “Visit local businesses that offer lighting, cabinets, and custom designs. You can learn a tremendous amount by tapping into their expertise.”
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W h i le her brot her-i n-law Simpson began by draw ing voiced concerns about the pla n s for t he projec t. She beam and staggered cabinets, happens to be a n i nter ior Simpson asked him to trust decorator who works primarily her design and proceed with it. on commercial spaces. Her plan for the kitchen would be her first “W hether the contractor is venture into residential design. a family member or not, you
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Ho w e v e r, w it h b ot h of t he Gagne children away at college and another full bath upstairs, a n d w i t h t h e e x c e p t i on o f a fe w moment s, Ga g ne a nd her husba nd were able to su r v ive t he dest r uc t ion a nd construction of their bathroom with relative ease.
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should always stay true to the vision that you have for your project,” adv ised Si mpson. “Hold you r ow n to you r original design.”
The completed kitchen indeed has the cross beam across the creative vision room and staggered cabinets t hroughout. There’s a 5-byand good Roxa n ne Simpson, a nd her 8-foot kitchen island that has husband, Greg, designed and planning to a sink and electrical power, built their kitchen from f loor T he projec t took over fou r w it h cabi net s u nder neat h. to ceiling in a space where a convert the mont h s t o c om ple t e f r om One se c t ion of t he i sla nd kitchen never existed before. He r br ot h e r-i n-l a w, M a r k st a r t to f i n i sh . “Ma rk w a s a c c om m o d a t e s s t o o l s f or space into a Simpson, is a contractor who w o r k i n g o n t h e k i t c h e n leisurely dining. “We live in a large, old farmhas done lots of work in the b e t w e en ot her c ont r a c t e d modern day house that was part of Greg’s central Maine area and who jobs t hat he had under way,” While the only cost of the projfamily,” said Roxanne Simpagreed to take on the project at said Simpson. “My husband, ect was for materials, Simpson kitchen. son, who lives a stone’s throw Greg, wou ld do most of t he made wise budgeting decisions. the family home. from the Minot Country Store prep work to set things up for “I used laminate countertops Simpson has sound advice for in Minot. Simpson sa id t hat work ing Mark’s time onsite.” which were about half the cost of ot hers underta k ing a home with a contractor is definitely granite,” said Simpson. “Howev- renovation project. “If you want “We decided to create a kitchen a pa rt nership where ideas in a space that was formerly a a re somet i mes negot iated work room that connected to between the two parties. the barn.” THIS TIME “I picture things in scale,” said Simpson, who wasted litt le time in drawing every detail that she wanted incorporated into t he new k itchen. Eventually, she would find use for every bit of space available.
something to be a certain way, then be sure to do it that way unless it is something that you can’t afford,” said Simpson.
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Advertising Supplement to the Sun Journal, Lewiston, Maine, Saturday, September 8, 2012
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