Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Once In A Blue Loo

The Toilets in Cottage - A History - Part 3


You're beginning to know me very well because when I said in my last post that the next step in renovating the loo was to pick a paint colour, you expected me to take for ever... Well, for once, the colour was chosen very quickly. 

Vous commencez à bien me connaître car quand j'ai dit dans mon dernier article qu'il fallait que je choisisse la couleur pour peindre les toilettes, vous vous êtes dit que ça allait prendre des mois... Eh, bien, pas cette fois ! 

Indeed, I have begun a little project in the bathroom - that you won't see for a while as the bathroom is just a mess - and it made sense to me to link the bathroom and the loo together with a colour that would appear in both room somewhere. There isn't much to paint in the loo, so this colour is going on the walls.

En effet, j'ai commencé un petit projet dans la salle-de-bain et je me suis dit que ce serait bien qu'il y ait un rappel de cette couleur dans les toilettes. Comme il n'y a pas beaucoup d'endroits à peindre dans une si petite pièce, ce sont les murs qui reçoivent cette couleur.


It's a very light shade of blue, called "Borrowed Light" by Farrow & Ball. My plan was to use it on three walls and then paste some wallpaper on the wall behind the toilet, as I had done before the loo was insulated. 


C'est un bleu très pâle intitulé "Borrowed Light" de Farrow & Ball. Mon idée était de l'utiliser sur trois murs et de mettre du papier peint sur le mur derrière les toilettes comme je l'avais fait auparavant.

 
I had picked the wallpaper a year ago when I had found a roll of the most perfect Graham & Brown wallpaper on sale at a local hardware store. I was very confident as wallpapering is something I've done several times...


J'avais déjà le rouleau de papier peint de Graham & Brown car il m'avait tapé dans l’œil il y a un an lors des soldes dans un magasin de bricolage du coin. J'étais assez sûre de moi pour une fois car j'ai déjà plusieurs projets avec papier peint à mon actif...

I shouldn't have thought so much of me...It was a huge mess, the paper kept tearing when I tried to slid it behind the toilet or when I tried to cut it at the top or at the bottom above the baseboard... I tried three times, swore a lot and decided to call it a day... I carefully cleaned the wall and the next I painted it with the "Borrowed Light" paint I had.

Wall paper mess...

Ma vantardise a été durement châtiée... Une vraie catastrophe. Le papier se déchirait dès que je le tirai doucement pour le faire passer derrière les toilettes, mais aussi quand j'essayais de le couper à la jonction de la pente du toit ou de la plinthe... Après plusieurs tentatives et beaucoup de jurons, j'ai jeté l'éponge... Enfin, non, je l'ai utilisée pour bien nettoyer le mur et le lendemain, j'ai ressorti ma peinture bleue et j'ai peint !

I was disappointed that my vision couldn't meet reality, but at some point I needed that project done.

J'étais déçue que ma vision ne devienne pas réalité, mais contente que les murs soient finis.

Because an other one was waiting for me...

Car un autre projet m'attendait...

You might remember that I told you I used cheap pine floor for the loo.  It's really beautiful, but it can't compare to real old pine floor and as we have real old pine floor in Cottage (you won't remember reading that close at the end of this post), it was clashing... So I decided to paint it. It's now a beautiful white ("All White" by Farrow & Ball). I only applied two coats of paint after the primer, so the wood is still showing a little, which I love.

With the primer on the floor...

Je vous avais expliqué avoir choisi du pin pour le sol du petit coin. C'est assez joli... si ce n'est pas à côté de vrai plancher ancien... ce qui est le cas au Cottage (vous oublierez avoir lu ces derniers mots dès que vous aurez fini l'article)... J'ai donc pris la décision de peindre le plancher neuf. Deux couches seulement de blanc ("All White" de Farrow & Ball) après la sous-couche pour que les nœuds du bois soient encore visibles, ce que j'aime bien. 

I'm happy with the way it all turned out. 

Je suis contente du résultat.


I'd love to tell you the loo is perfect, but there are still more things to do... Finding a shelf to go above the toilet, finding a sconce to replace the amazing light bulb I use for now, adding molding around the door and painting the door... I could be doing all those things right now, but I'm busy keeping an eye on a cat who has now a huge scar on his back, locked in the office, while two workers have taken the power in the living-room for a project that I hope to show you at the end of June...


J'aimerais vous dire que c'est fini et qu'on passe à la pièce suivante, mais il reste encore beaucoup à faire. Trouver une étagère à mettre au dessus des toilettes, trouver une applique pour remplacer ma superbe ampoule, mettre des couvre-joints autour de la porte et peindre la porte. Je pourrais être au travail là-dessus en ce moment, mais je fais la garde malade pour un chat qui a une immense cicatrice sur le dos, je suis enfermée dans le bureau, pendant que deux ouvriers ont pris possession du salon pour un projet dont j'espère vous parler fin juin. 

See you as soon as life allows it,

A la prochaine fois, dès que j'ai du temps pour souffler,

Hasta la proxima,




PS1: The pictures were all taken when I was working on the project, hence the mess everywhere... I'll take real reveal pictures when the project is complete. The pictures were also taken at different moments of the day, so the paint doesn't exactly seem the same.

PS 1 : Les photos ont été prises au cours des travaux, donc c'est le bazar... Je prendrai de meilleures photos quand les choses seront plus avancées. Cela a aussi été pris à différents moments de la journée, ce qui explique que le bleu semble varier.

PS2: Really, I had not anticipated the cat surgery would be such a big deal, he is in pretty bad shape and it takes all my time to look after him... We're going back to the vet tomorrow as it's not evolving as we wished... I just spent an hour lying on the floor because he had collapsed on my hand as I was picking something up... Please forgive me if I'm late replying to your comments these days...

PS 2 : Je n'avais pas envisagé que les suites de l'opération soient si compliquées pour mon chat. Il n'est vraiment pas en forme et je dois veiller sur lui à tout moment pour l'instant pour qu'il n'arrache pas  les fils. Nous retournons chez le véto demain car cela n'évolue pas aussi bien que prévu. Je viens de passer une heure allongée sur le sol car il s'est soudain calmé en posant sa tête sur ma main alors que je le caressais... Vous comprendrez si exceptionnellement je ne réponds pas à vos commentaires pendant quelques jours...

PS3: I'm sharing this little renovation with:


 

44 comments:

  1. Sometimes a girl just has to be pragmatic. And the result is, predictably in your case I think, excellent. Sorry to hear about your cat; I hope he makes a full recovery very soon!

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  2. Who or what was your cat fighting? I'm so sorry and hope he is on the road to recovery. Your bathroom looks nice. The wallpaper looked neat too - maybe you could just frame a piece of it? :-)

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    1. I hadn't thought of framing a piece of it, that's a good idea. The cat wasn't fighting anything outside... But he had a lump and the vet feared it might be bad, so I had it removed last Tuesday... We're waiting for it to be analysed and now the cat has to recover from difficult surgery.

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  3. I have used Borrowed Light too, it is so lovely.
    Poor cat.

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  4. Your poor kitty! I hope his recovery will be well. (((Hugs))) to you!
    Love the color and yes, frame a piece of the wallpaper, very pretty.
    Kathleen in Az

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    1. Thanks, Kathleen. I'm trying to take good care of him, but the vet said it was major surgery and it would take time...

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  5. You know I love a beautiful shade of blue - it really looks pretty and I love how the floor turned out too! Sorry about your kitty - hope he is better very soon!

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  6. I'm so sorry about the cat and I'm glad you are there to comfort him. I couldn't tell too much from the photo of the wallpaper, but it looked like it had a design in white. Maybe you could find a stamp you like and stamp the design on the wall behind the loo (but practice on something else first). I hope it's good news on the cat.

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  7. Your loo looks terrific and I really like the blue color. I think you will appreciate not having wall paper behind, as it will be much easier to clean.

    So sorry about kitty. What happened? Give him lots of love and hopefully he will recover quickly.

    Mary

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  8. Oh I am SO sorry to hear about your darling kitty. I do hope a swift recovery happens in the very near future.
    I LOVE the blue you selected for the walls and the painted floor solution is brilliant. Have a wonderful sun filled week.

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  9. Oh your poor sweet kitty - praying for a rapid and complete recovery for him xo

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  10. Gosh, hope kitty gets better! Love the soft blue and sorry about the wallpaper not working out. I have never hung the stuff, but my hubby can.

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  11. The color choice is sublime. Perfect shade for the light coming through the window. I do hope your cat makes a full recovery.

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  12. A nice color. I'm impressed by how much light you have in the room. And - poor kitty!
    Amalia
    xo

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  13. I can't tell you how many of my ideas never worked the way I imagined they would, but what I was inspired to do in the end always looked better! Great idea!!

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  14. I love the paint color and am swooning over that floor. I have wanted to paint the wood in my living room for over a year. You've inspired me! Hugs,
    Jann

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  15. I love your choice of bleu, Magali! And I really love the idea of a toilet room; it seems very easy to clean and keep simple! Lovely work. Cottage is gleaming!!!!

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  16. Hi....i think it turned out beautifully..and i see why you liked that wallpaper..from what i can see of it..it looked wonderful..sorry that turned into such a pain..i actually have wallpaper on my mind too..kitchen an bedroom..one day soon i hope..kiss the cat tell him i hope he's feeling better SOON..an you have a wonderful day.!!

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  17. What a shame about the wallpaper, Magali, but never mind, it all came together beautifully in blue and white. More importantly, hope kitty is recovering much better today!

    Poppy

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  18. Love the blue wall color! A speedy recovery to your kitty!

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  19. I am so sorry about our sweet cat. I hope for a good recovery. I am also sorry the wallpaper did not work out for you. Looked pretty. I love blue and white together and I think the paint and the new floor look fabulous. Hugs to you as you navigate the reno of the bathroom and also your sweet kitty.
    Kris

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  20. It's a wise woman who knows when wallpaper will be the Victor. Or, stubborn. Have you thought of stenciling that Wall? Either way I think the Looks looks very nice and calm. Is that a good description for a loo? I'm sorry your cat is having a difficult recovery. Hope things turn around quickly.

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  21. coucou Magali,
    j'espère que ton chat va se remettre, quelque fois tout se rétabli sans crier gare, je le souhaite en tout cas
    tu sais que j'ai acheté le même papier peint chez Leroy Merlin et comme toi j'ai eu du mal à le poser par contre il habille superbement les murs, je remarque en tout cas que ton cabinet de toilette est bien joli ainsi, le bleu de la peinture est vraiment très beau, c'est une teinte que je vais noter dans mes favoris et que j'utiliserais sans doute dans ma prochaine maison
    Passe une très belle fin de semaine et un très joli week end
    @ tout bientôt

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  22. The color looks perfect. Too dark would have made it shrink and too bright might have been overpowering. It now seems calming and lovely.

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  23. Absolutely love that light blue paint color and the light-colored floor! Sorry the wallpapering didn't turn out, but I can see how that would be an extremely hard space to paper. What in the world happened to your poor kitty? :-(

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  24. Great job on the bathroom. I'm always impressed with all your renovations.

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  25. I'm so sorry about your precious fur baby! I hope he recovers quickly.

    Beautiful color Magali!

    xxx

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  26. oh la la, avec une aussi jolie peinture bleue, c'était vraiment chercher la difficulté que de vouloir poser un petit lé de papier derrière un réservoir d'eau sous une fenêtre de toit !!! la future étagère habillera à elle seule ce pan de mur - le parquet blanc est sublime !! dans notre salle d'eau le plancher est lasuré en bleu, j'aime aussi apercevoir les veines du bois !! tous mes vœux de bon rétablissement à Shadow - bon long week-end ! monique59

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  27. Magali estas trabajando mucho en tu projecto y esta quedando muy bien el' loo 'me gusta el piso tambien.Pero siento pena por Shadow espero que cada dia se sienta mejor de milagro,y tu puedas descansar un poquito,Hasta la proxima ;)

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    1. La sombra está mejorando lentamente con buenos y malos días ... Estoy vigilándolo cada minuto y pinto mientras duerme.

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  28. Love the color you chose! Sorry about yur poor kitty. Hope he is better soon. Have a lovely weekend.

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  29. I'm so sorry about your kitty. I hope he makes a full recovery soon. You chose a beautiful color for the loo. I'm partial to blue bathrooms, as that's what I used in our bath. It looks so pretty with the white floor. You did a great job. xo

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  30. Sorry about your kitty and heals back to normal soon... What a pretty little loo you can...just the right size to take care of business!

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  31. Your little loo turned out very sweet so far, Magali. I do love the soft color and the beautiful floor. The wooden door is also very nice. Too bad about the wallpaper, but maybe you can stencil something in the future. I am so sorry to hear about your poor cat and hope he is doing better :( Take care of yourself, too. xx Karen

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    1. The cat is slowly improving... And that leaves me some time to reply my comments! Thanks for stopping by!

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  32. I love the color you chose. So sorry about your kitty. Hope he feels better soon. xo Laura

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  33. Love the painted floors. I want to do that at my place. My cat has been sick, very old. she appeared to have a stroke last night, not eating much doesn't want to be touched. But she's a fighter. This cat has 9 and more lives!
    Talk to you later,

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  34. lovely! i love the light colors too. hope your kitty recover soon

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    1. Thanks! I published some news of the kitty in the new post!

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  35. It looks lovely despite the off-centered window. That would bother me too, but it is better than no window at all!

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