It’s been a whirlwind couple of weeks around here, and a lot has changed since my last post. Namely, our zip code. We moved!
Our new home is in Island Park, a coastal little town in southern Long Island about half a mile from the Atlantic Ocean. We’ve been officially living here for just over a week now and it feels great.
Living in New York City was an awesome experience. The culture, the people, the hustle and bustle, the feeling of being “in the middle of it all.”
Still, the whole time we lived there I never quite felt like it was home. It takes a certain type of person to thrive in a city that big, and I can definitively say I’m not one of them. For me, the perks of city living just didn’t outweigh its hassles. Give me the beach and a backyard and a washer and dryer to call my own, that’s where I’ll be happiest.
Hanging on the nearby Long Beach boardwalk
The house we bought is a cute little bungalow that the inspector estimated is about 100 years old. In its original build, it was a 3 bed/1 bath with itty bitty little rooms, which the inspector said were characteristic of the time when houses in our neighborhood were used as weekend getaways by wealthy families from the city. #sobougie
Since then, two of the house’s bedrooms have been combined to make a larger master, and the front of the house has been extended to give a bit more living space. What was once a back porch has been enclosed to become a laundry room, and a small deck was added out back. The inspector was able to tell me all of this simply by examining the house and its construction, which I think is fascinating. It’s so cool to be able to look at a building and tell the story behind it.
Anyway, while some parts of the house have been updated, others (I’m looking at you, kitchen and bathroom), need some serious TLC. It’s going to be a big job, but I’m excited to put on my HGTV hat and get to work.
I’m going to start with the bathroom. I’ve never done a major renovation project before, so I figure it makes perfect sense to take the leap on the room with the only working toilet. Go big or go home, that’s what I always say.
I’m Googling everything there is to know about tiling and have watched so many YouTube videos of toilet installations that I’m now getting ads for them, which is fun.
Here’s a look at our current bathroom situation.
One of the things the seller left behind was a painting of an Italian dude looking down over the toilet…
Ancient porcelain sink and basically zero storage
As you can see, the fixtures haven’t been updated in a loooong time (or maybe ever). The walls are the old plaster style, which is cracking and peeling. The tub is massive and seems to have been jerry-rigged into a shower at some point, but I’m hoping to pull it out and find an old claw foot tub under there. How awesome would that be? And the coverings on the walls and floor are in dire need of a facelift.
I want the updated bathroom to feel clean and simple, making as much use of the space as possible. Here are some Pinterest images that are serving as my inspiration.
What do you think, can I pull it off?
I’ll share more pics of the inside of the house in a few weeks when it’s a no longer mess of half-unpacked boxes and suitcases that look like they exploded.
I can’t wait to show you progress pics as I get the bathroom underway! Subscribe below to get my new posts sent directly to your inbox.
