I am SO excited, ya'll! Today the demolition begins on our bathroom, and the remodel begins. We're gutting the thing from top to bottom and starting fresh. I couldn't be happier and can't wait to see what it looks like after our wonderful remodeler works his magic!
A little history ... the Little House didn't get indoor bathroom plumbing until some time in the late '40s or early '50s. Prior to that, the residents used a double-seated (that's two holes side by side) outhouse that was situated somewhere behind the house. I have no idea why the thing had two holes. I can't imagine two people using it at the same time. Maybe we've become more private in modern times, and bathroom etiquette has changed. Maybe the hearty farm folk of yesteryear had no need for modesty. I just don't know. If anyone out there is an expert on outhouse history and can shed a little light on this for me, please leave a comment! Anyway, we still had the original outhouse when we bought the Little Farm. It had been moved to our wood line, and we had plans to fix it up one day. (I imagined a little window box with flowers, a cheerful paint job, and a crescent moon in the door ... kind of like the Martha Stewart version of an outhouse!) Unfortunately, Mother Nature had other plans. Last spring, we had a storm come through with 80-to-90 MPH straight line winds. The outhouse was picked up, tossed into the woods, and smashed into bits and pieces. So much for my "shabby chic" restoration of the outdoor john ...
When the bathroom was finally built in the Little House, it had all kinds of sweet features like a pink bathtub and pink tile. We're talking Pepto Bismol pink, which is what I need to take after looking at that color for too long. Between the couple who lived here before us and Rob and I, we have managed to update most of the house. But the bathroom has been neglected for too long. It needs serious attention--the kind of attention that Rob and I aren't capable of giving it despite how much we'd love to be handy around the house. So we hired a professional, and away we go!
Since the Little House is well over 100 years old, I wanted to go with an old-fashioned feel to the room. We bought a claw foot tub that I can't wait to soak in and a really cool vanity that looks like it has a wash basin on top of it. Even the new toilet has an antique look to it.
I'll be sure to post pictures when all of the work is done. I'm hoping that this time next week, the "pink Pepto nightmare" will be a distant memory!
