Vanity, lights and mirror

The theme of this bath, as is with much of our home, is modern Asian.  We wanted to make the bath feel zen spa. We found the vanity at a local furniture store that sources antiques from all over the world.  The vanity is a Chinese apothecary that we repurposed.  The sink and faucet are typical modern units found anywhere that we re-used from the previous bath that came with the house.

The mirror is modeled after a Japanese Tor ii gateway.  We used the same teak that is used throughout the bath to make the frame for a mirror (with a traditional boring frame) that we already had.  The lights are from Ikea that we hacked by passing the wires inside aluminum tube to get the cool solid look.  The stone behind the sink is left over from the stone seat in a previous blog.

We had to cut some of the apothecary drawers down to make room for plumbing, but they still all are functional even if they are shorter.

Teak shower floor deck

The modern hall bath project has been progressing.  Since I can only work weekends on it, it does go slow but it also gives me time to consider other options on design so the project is always changing.  We finished the shower, pan, stone curb and teak deck floor.  It turned out beyond my expectations and adds so much to the modern spa feel.

The deck is made from teak lumber that was source from a teak decking supplier.  We ripped the lumber down to narrower slats. I then used a long contour gauge to find and cut the slats to follow the curves and angles of the stone curb.  The deck was made as a one piece unit and then when complete we cut it into three sections to make it easy to remove.  When sitting in the pan it looks one piece.

The stone curb was actually simple to install once we found the layout for the stones.  I cut the far left stone on a wet tile saw to fit.  Installing the stones was done just like the slate tile.  We used the same thin set and grout to set and fill the spaces between each stone.

Guest bath stone seat

In remodeling the guest bath, the theme is Zen Spa.  We had an odd corner in the bath that needed something.  To match the feel and also compliment the floor, we decided to create a fixed seat made with a stone slab to fit.

Below are a couple of pics of the finished seat.  The seat is also heated as part of the heated floor system.

This is actually very simple to do and requires only basic framing skills, basic framing materials & tools, and tile work tools. 

The first step was to create a frame work to support the slab as well as the weight of a person sitting on the slab.  The frame work was done prior to drywall.  Be sure your frame work can support the needed weight.

Do not just have studs nailed between the main studs.  Make sure you have legs going all the way to the bottom stud plate then run cross-studs to create the seat frame.  We tested the frame by having Jody and I stand on the frame.  We added our weight and figured the framing could support a minimum of 400 lbs.  The weight of the stone, thinset and person sitting would be under 300lbs.

The wire in the below pictures is the heating wire coming up from the floor.  More on that later.

The heated wire called for being completely encased in thinset or concrete so that it does not burn out.  We completely encased the wire in thinset.

Next we placed the Hardie Board on top of the frame and ran the wire through a hole we made in the Hardie Board making sure to stuff the hole with thinset.  We had precut and drilled the Hardie Board prior to mixing thinset.  We used 1/4" board and screwed it to the frame using the correct type screws to work with this material.  We then taped the wire to the board with metal tape to set it up for heating the stone seat.

Jody spread thinset on thick to adjust for the irregularity of the stone and to cover the heated wire.  She then notched it with a 1/4" notch trowel.

Before mixing the thinset we cut the stone to size.  I forgot to take pictures of us cutting the stone.  We used the Hardie Board as a template to cut the stone.  We wanted the stone to stick 2-3" past the drywalled frame.  I used a standard circular saw fitted with a diamond blade for wet cutting.  Outside I setup the stone on a couple of saw horses and supported its weight before, during and after the cut.  Using a cutting guide Jody took the hose and sprayed a light stream of water on the blade as I took 4 passes to cut each side going a 1/2" deep per pass to cut the 2" stone.  This is messy and wet so dress accordingly.  Go smooth and slow.

Last was to place the stone on the frame. Go slow, get a helper, wear grippy gloves and sturdy shoes.  You do not want to drop this on your foot.  Don't ask me how I know.  Once the stone is placed, press down and let some of the thinset squeeze out the front under the stone.  Then you can use this thinset to fill the gap under the stone and add more if needed.  Make sure to paint or seal this thinset once dry so that mold will not grow on it over time.

So the heated wire...
I cut a channel in the corner of the wall under the frame to run the wire up to the seat and then filled the channel with thinset.  Paint or seal this too once dry.

So there you go.  No contractors, only basic tools and skills needed.  We went to a stone quarry to find a stone that was the right size and thickness and was also flat to sit on.  We will seal the stone with the same sealer we will use on the slate floor.  The stone cost us $30, all rough in materials, thinset etc would be approx $50 but these costs are spread out into the whole project of the bath for us.  Now Jody and guests have a warm or cool spot to sit on in the bathroom.

N.O.C. Modern Design... Huh???

Not One Contractor...

I love modern design, from minimal to lighting everything with LEDs.  Modern design is not only for Miami, Manhattan or London.  I wanted to create an outlet to show that all those moderns looks can be acheived by the DIYer using inexpensive readily available materials. 

We live in Orlando Florida and bought our house in 2009 taking advantage of a foreclosure and the low prices of the housing market.  I am all about DIY from car repair to home repair and remodeling.

To that end we decided to make this house the way we wanted with a very modern feel and look.  I see this house as a blank canvas and decided that we did not want to hire contractors for any phase of the remodel unless local or federal laws force us to.  So now that you understand why we call it Not One Contractor Modern Design we hope that our efforts show that those high end looks and designs do not need a high end budget or special skills and you too can get that look.

Asad