Lez Renovate

Lez reflect: bathroom reno before and ... before

2012-05-21T21:25:00.000-07:00

Dearest readers, 11 months and two celebration parties later, we were about to share the bathroom renovation before/after pictures to the blogosphere.

We hoped you would by now gawking at our skillful tile work that repaired the rotting shower surround, and scheming how to create your own recessed shelving bathroom cabinets. We hoped you would be spotting us on other reno blogs like Better After and Bath Tastic on DIY Network. We want you all to come over and take the virtual tour of our Peachland Beach theme bathroom.

But no. Because we are back to the BEFORE stage when CoolJ noticed that the mirror slid off the hollow core door of our bathroom. Another curse on the previous owners who removed all the solid doors from this house! Luckily it slid slowly.

I was peeved. Because the confidence of the sales person was great when he promised the best way to attach a mirror to a hollow door was using 3m exterior grade double sided tape. Wrong. Managed to peel off a good chunk of the blended garbage that hollow doors are made of. I even WEIGHED the mirror to be sure it did not exceed the load limit. Harumph.

So back to the Before of the only mirror where these 2 lezzes can check our faux hawks and pixie cuts (respectively) and inspect our outfits before leaving for the coffee shop or food co-op.

Every simple job requires dozens of tools & parts

Had to find a new way to get the mirror to stay put. Three hardware stores later, 7 trips to my shed later, I am smiling at my own ~~groovy~~ nerdy lesbionic reflection again.

Here's the trick to hanging a framed mirror on a hollow core door.

First, get some of the appropriate toggle anchor bolts. We first bought the wrong ones (classic) - they are different lengths, for different thicknesses and types of material. I found a great article at a website whose name I both hated and loved, where the "natural" (love) "handyMAN" (hate) explains with good humor the differences between different types of molly bolts and anchor bolts. Clearly I am not a natural handyman, but at least this handy dyke managed to get the g.d. mirror to stay

Next we used LL's custom approach to the hardware isle -gazing around for a Miracle Product while I, CoolJ claim it could not exist. She found it in the flush mount hangers. Perfect. Screwed one side into the anchor bolts in the hollow door (after much pounding, grunting and pressing to get the g.d. anchor bolts to go in and flip open). Then screwed one upside down onto the mirror frame. Oops.

See the clever hanger thingo at the top

Finally got the hangers hung. Then had to scrape the old tape off the door. Sand. Prime. Paint. Because of course I had to move the mirror up a smidge.
I used some of the tape for good measure, to prevent the mirror banging around. Whew. But now the long weekend is over and it's too late to get all duded up for the Sunday night grrl dance party. Better look sharp for work tomorrow morning.

See the clever thingo who got the g.d. mirror back on the door

Canadian renovators - did you spend the long weekend making repeated trips to the hardware store? What if you live in a small town like my sister - it is a 140Km trip to the nearest hardware store! I would be in trouble! Anyone have a better way to deal with hanging a mirror on a hollow door? Have you just used PL300 construction adhesive and called it a day?

Lez Finish Season 3 - VIDEO

2012-04-27T09:56:00.001-07:00

Holy crap-a-doodle! We are finished the bathroom renovation. Yep, actually finished. Season 3 of Lez Renovate is coming to a close. But have no fear friends, we have plenty of headaches ahead!

In the meantime, check out the season finale!

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

So what is going to happen now? Well, we are going to lay around in our bathroom for awhile and then we have to get started on one of 2 things. Fix the hole in the side of the house or the dilapidated porch. Both nervous making. We'll keep you posted.

And thanks to everyone who has followed us on our journey! We would be nothing without you folks. Have a fantastic weekend!

Are we at Peachland Beach yet? Or is that just grout in my eyes?

2012-04-19T19:14:00.000-07:00

Hey friends
You may be wondering where we have been for the last month. We have been in our EFFING BATHROOM, that's where.

Sheesh. We started this bathroom reno in June 2011, with the design goal to make it feel like you are visiting Peachland Beach. And to finish during the summer. I won't lie to you. It has been TOUGH. And taken 10 months. A few highlights:

In July we stayed up til 2 am several times to finish the shower tiles, but couldn't get the tiles up in time to have the plumber comeback to install the taps. DIY minus points, as my mom, sister, and our beloved toddler nephew came to visit us that weekend and had to birdbath in the kitchen sink.

In August, we had the toilet in and out a few times, including while LL had the flu. DIY minus points.

In September...CoolJ had to consult video footage with our electrician friend saying "ok forward, stop. Is THAT the wiring you ran" because of some misunderstandings regarding how to power the in-floor heat and the additional art/lamp. DIY BONUS points for figuring it out, getting up in the attic with an actual electrician, and hooking up the fan and light fixture.

In October, it was a near miss with the in-floor heating. Hooked it all up 3 months after installing the gorgeous bathroom floor tile and river rock (and resolving the afore-mentioned electrical confusion).
Nearly a DIY crisis: the thermostat immediately flicked to Ground Fault Interruption Mode to save our lives. Removed and checked the wiring and discovered the error! Huzzah! The heat is on.

Come November, we were onto decor: faux-finishing some recycled lumber to resemble the weathered dock of Peachland Beach, installing shelving and mirrors, and started on the recessed shelving for the bathroom cabinet. Managed to refrain from smirking when the "I'm New!" hunk at homo-depot paint department kept calling it "Fox Finish," without irony.

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

For New Year's Eve we had a celebration of the finished bathroom. But we hadn't quite dotted the i in "DiY". As one guest succinctly put it - "I thought it was done. You still have the toilet paper on the back of the toilet."

Through January - April 2012, we've started planning another MAJOR project (probably to kick off in 2014, at this rate, but I think it will be right up your alley hint hint).

Sheesh. Tough crowd.

This week after getting 2 of the wrong size plexiglass cut, I finished a cool Ikea-Hack that I learned about from local Vancouver artist Louise deGange. Seeing her gorgeous "Birch" pieces at the EastSide Culture Crawl 2011 showed me precisely the technique to realize one of the design visions I'd had from the outset. Behold her gorgeous acryclic painting on an Ikea Glyllen lamp! My piece is like this only in that it has a lamp...

birch lamp. mixed media (lx on) (private collection) from http://louiseadegagne.com/visual-art/birch

But listen. We did it! The memories are already starting to fade away and we've (pretty much) finished our bathroom. LL is preparing the final video for you to enjoy and we are (soon) ready to hit the Peachland beach!

Thanks for sticking with us! Coming soon: a full budget, before and afters, and the big reveal video.

As our friend from Lower Mainland Ceramic Tile said "The next one will be faster and easier." So if you live in Vancity, get in touch. CoolJ is going to be spending some of summer 2012 helping a friend with her bathroom lezrenovation. Isn't she lucky to have access to my precision measurements and time management?

One final question for you all: which shower curtain do you think looks better with the white tile,

What DIY bathroom renovations would you now take on? What do you think should be left to the pros?

Lez Board It Up - VIDEO

2012-03-16T13:36:00.001-07:00

It's Friday. Woot. Get excited. Get really excited. You get to sleep in after a long hard week, maybe have some burgers and brew with friends and finally finish the bathroom. Oh wait, that's me. What are you up to this weekend? Well, lets start you off with a new video featuring the talents of visual artist, Louise Degagne. And guys, she's pretty awesome.

You see, Lou came by to help Cool J bring her visualizations to life. As you know, the bathroom has a lake beach theme. And what do you have at a lake? A dock of course. And what better way to enjoy the warming memories of laying on a dock by putting one on your wall. Take a look:

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

Now, how fantastic is that? So, the bathroom reno is coming quickly to a close. Stay tuned for the season finale where we reveal the bathroom in all its beachiness glory!! In the meantime, have a great weekend.

And sleep in.

Lez shop local

2012-02-27T16:33:00.001-08:00

The BC Home and Garden show last weekend was a bit of a LezRenovate bummer. First, we were surprised that Lez Renovate was not selected featured as celebrity guest hosts. But even worse, the dozens of exhibition vehicles ousted CoolJ from discount parking near my Day Job all week. That was the final straw & so we lezcotted (like boycotting but a bit different) the big corporate show.

Anyway, the weekend was taken up with fruitless trips to the Industrial Suburbs searching for supplies for a very cool IkeaHack CoolJ learned from a dear friend, talented artist and scene painter, Lou DeGagne - who helped LL construct some baffling sound baffles in Season 2. You'll meet Lou again soon, and learn more about her awesome hack as we prepare the lighting fixture to conclude this epic bathroom renovation.

The key lesson learned, however, was one that I learn again and again: small local businesses are almost always the best choice for the DIY newbie. Because:

1. An established shop is likely to have experienced trades people hanging around on a Friday afternoon

In our last video, you saw the gorgeous floor tiles we installed, and glimpsed some of the helpful advice we got from our local tile expert, Doug K at Lower Mainland Ceramics.

But the bonus about that place is not only that I got design tips and several hours of technical advice from Doug and his colleagues, but also valuable life lessons from the tile setter pros he works with.

This gang was both entertaining and informative. They told me lots of stories about the various snotty clients they'd worked for over the years, and I confirmed what I'd learned about working with tradesmen: they probably do know what they are doing.

Watch Lez Lay it Down - the latest Lez Renovate video

If you argue with a pro based on what you learned in a 4 minute YouTube video, you may just get your job done your way. That is, instead of the CORRECT way. Sure, the customer is always right, but if it is my youtube-inspired opinion on how to tile a shower surround, vs that of a tradesperson with 20 years of experience and a portfolio, this is one of the very few times in life when I will not insist on being right.

Bonus: Trades horror stories inspire safety on the DIY worksite. Here's how it went when I bought the diamond blade for the angle grinder, to cut the tiles that go around our much-beleaguered toilet:

Tile setting Dude #1: Oh sure, you can just hold the grinder with one hand, and hold the tile with the other and zip those curved cuts right out.

CoolJ: Erm. Have you seen the tiny size of my forearm? I think I might use a clamp to hold the tile so I don't zip my finger right off.

Dude #2: Ha ha. Oh yeah. Hey do you remember that time Charlie almost disemboweled himself when the blade came off?

Charlie: Oh heh heh. That was a close one. Do make sure you tighten the screw on the blade. I'd check it twice.

CoolJ: Gulp

2. The local guy is local.

As in, you don't have to waste your Saturday driving to 40 minutes each way to get lost in the frigging industrial suburbs. The local glass shop just up the street from my favourite thrift store, can probably order me anything I might need (a 1/4 thick piece of plexiglas at 20cm x 56 cm, for example). Why I didn't just call the local guy on Friday and pick up on Saturday after thrifting? I don't know. But I do know I would not have gotten lost for an hour on the way, nor wasted my Saturday afternoon if I had bought plexi on Commercial Drive instead of driving to PoCo!

3. The small shop/tradesperson has to care about customer loyalty and referrals.

As long as I don't organize a large-scale consumer boycott (or lezcott, for that matter), it does not matter a whit to HomoDepot if I never shop there again at 9:56 pm. But we picked the tile shop because a friend said they solved his tile emergency. We hired the plumber through a colleague's brother, and we hired the electrician through our much-trusted Contractor Advisor. When we first got our place and I cracked a water pipe during our basement renovation, I (foolishly in this case) waited a week for a plumber used by friend to come, rather than call one out of the phone book.

In any case, my fear of being swindled is diminished by a referral from a friend, and my delight is immense to recommend a skilled tradesperson to a friend.

4. Local shops create a small town feel in the big city

I grew up going to the Beaver lumberyard with my Dad in Westbank BC. I wish LezRenovate could shop at a Beaver Lumber. Sometimes we make do with Dick's but that is another story. The Beaver was owned by the family of a girl I went to school with. I got my first 1980s perm in a woman's basement family room-cum-salon. I bought retread tires for my 1977 Honda civic from Hugh's tire shop, behind the barbershop on Main St. In any of these settings, my parents would chat with the other shoppers, who they knew from town, and my dad loved especially to kibbitz with the proprietor and try to get a deal.

And now as a grown up Lez Renovator, it is fun to shop in the village in the big city.

I've sat and heard all about one of my suppliers' shoulder operation. It was a bit gross and I almost fainted, but it was great to get to know the guy. At local shops, I sometimes get a little freebie thrown in with my order. I get help loading my car. I get to know the people who live and work in my neighbourhood, and that my friends is great fun. How about you - are you doing all your shopping for DIY materials at 9:45 - 10:00 pm and therefore can only shop at the box store? Or have you seen the benefit in making local contacts? It takes a village to renovate a 83 year old bungalow!

Lez Lay It Down - VIDEO

2012-02-21T10:51:00.001-08:00

Alright, you asked for it. You got it. A new video! Holy cow. It has been awhile, I know. So, because you are so patient and loyal, here is the newest crazy, zany renovation antics from your favourite lesbian renovators!

Lez Lay It Down - 3.10

This week on Lez Renovate, LL and Cool J remove the toilet for the umpteenth time and install flooring into the new bathroom.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

We are super close to the big reveal! So stay tuned.

How to tile around a window - lez resolve the latest crisis

2012-01-27T22:02:00.003-08:00

At the end of the last video, your intrepid DIY tile setters were sweating and strained in the last moments of tiling around a tiny window ledge in our shower.

If you like dramatic tension, or tunes that remind you of Luscious Jackson, you'll want to watch the video AGAIN, because when it comes to laying tile, you just have to do it.

Here's how it went down:

The Tile Miracle

LezRenovator #1: "Have we measured to see how this is going to fit?"
LezRenovator #2: "yeah, it's fine. We'll figure something out when we get to the window."

As we got closer to the window, we realized that we had not "mathed it out" quite right: we had about 1/2 inch of space to make up. We thought of putting a thin trim piece, but an hour in the tile store & we found nothing to our liking that said "Peachland beach" without being too seashelly.

As tempers were getting hotter and a PDA (public display of aggravation) was imminent, Doug the Tile Guru at Lower Mainland Ceramic Tile had an Aha! moment and ducked into his secret second storeroom. After a few minutes of clanking about, he produced a Minor Tile Miracle: edging pieces, typically used on a counter edge. Hurray! Perfect to tile around our tiny window in the shower, hide the 1/2 and save us a huge headache.
Of course we had not measured, so we had no idea how many pieces we would need. Mr Tile Miracle let us take the whole box, counting how many we used and paying him on Monday. Have I mentioned how much I love local business owners who go the extra tile (ha ha) for their customer??

With only a few miscalculations we managed to get the edge pieces stuck around the window. A fun fact: eyeliner pencil works brilliantly to mark tiles for cutting if you don't have a grease pencil handy. I wonder if grease pencil works as eyeliner? With only 1 more trip to the tile shop for more grout, we finally got'er done.

Total project cost: $438.82
This includes

about $200 in tools (diamond blade for the grinder & the tile cutter)
tiles & grout (including the extra tiles we kept in case we need to make repairs later - they will be of the same production lot and therefore seamless in color)
spacers
edging and wall-specific mortar

Total labour: at least 100-125 lezrenovator hours

Doug's quotable quotes:
"Well, my guy probably could have done it in 8 hours, for about $500 plus material. But good for you! You'll be a lot faster next time."
Yeah, next time, right LL? Tiling is messy, time-consuming, and in our case, was full of surprises.

Must say, we did a good job and really appreciated getting to know the folks at Lower Mainland Ceramic Tile. The advice about techniques, and material was so helpful and kind. Which is good because we needed that relationship once we got to tiling the floor.... Sigh. See it all in the next episode.

How about you? Have you tiled a shower or kitchen counter or a floor? If you need a tile cutter you can borrow ours. If you need advice, you can borrow our expert, Doug!

Lez Lay Some Tile - VIDEO

2012-01-16T14:25:00.000-08:00

So we have been busy recovering from the holidays and now are just back into the swing of things. This week, we revisit last summer, when we first put up new tile in the bathroom. And, it was a pretty big job. But, we got it done. Take a look at the video:

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

And we have to thank Doug at Lower Mainland Ceramics for the saving the day, a few times. We went running to to him with crazy tile problems and he would fix them with a wave of his magic wand. More on him and his awesomeness in the next episode.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-09T15:21:00.000-08:00

LL says:

It's a new year. A new year for renovations and a new year for videos about renovations. We are working on the latest installment and will have that posted soon. But in the meantime, lets talk about resolutions.

Did you make any resolutions? Like lose weight, call your mom more or start a band? Enough about me.

Maybe you made a resolution to pick up tools more or finally start that bathroom renovation that you have been putting off. Well, believe me - its easier than you think. First off, picking up a tool is a cinch. A saw? Easy. A screwdriver? Easy. A jackhammer? Well, not so easy but you will feel uber strong after that!! And once you get a hang of your tools, you'll start using them and before you know it, your bathroom will be demolished.

That is what happened to us! We were procrastinating about the bathroom renovation for so long and one weekend we just decided to wield a hammer and demo the whole thing. It's quite cathartic, I recommend it.

That's what the new year is all about. Getting rid things that are annoying and/or holding you back. And a dirty, gross, moldy, falling apart bathroom was definitely annoying! It felt good to rip it apart and throw it out. Cleansing. Like a good Wild Rose detox.

So, go to it! Rip up your old laminate floor and replace it with hard wood, paint your living room, build a bench to store all your sewing supplies, build a porch from scratch, repair the foundation in the corner of your house where it has been rotting since 1979 and build a new shelving/storage system for all your CD's and massive speaker system.

Oh, and call your mom more.

Happy Holidays from Lez Renovate

2011-12-20T08:11:00.000-08:00

Well hello there. Nice to see you. How have you been? What have you been doing? I bet that you have been preparing for the holiday season. So have we. And we have also been trying to get this gosh darn bathroom done! But, we are taking a break so we can enjoy the festivities! Here is a little video with us in cute Christmas sweaters.

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

So we hope you have a fabulous holiday and a fantastic New Year. We'll be back in 2012 to bring you more renovation mayhem, laughter and general wackiness!

LL and Cool J

Happy Birthday Lez Renovate!

2011-12-13T12:18:00.000-08:00

On Dec 13, 2009, just 2 weeks after I (CoolJ) was laid off from my highish-paying high-tech job that financed the whole operation, we took possession of Georgia Cottage.

Luckily, that was also the day that I got the offer from my current highish-paying corporate job.

You can imagine that the blood sweat and tears of Lez Renovate started with a fair amount of sweat.

We came right over to the house that evening, and were filled with a thrilling combination of emotions. Mostly fear. Remember the first day we came to the house?

The place was filthy, cold, slanty, and small. And pricey. Ah well. Now it is not as filthy, warm and cozy, still small, still slanty. And still pricey!

Two years in, Georgia Cottage and Lez Renovate have grown a lot.In season 1, we built a basement suite as a mortgage helper (let's face it, this is a necessity of life in Vancouver), and really got to know our charming neighbourhood.

We were so grateful to family and friends who pitched in, and loved the hired tradesfolk who provided both great assistance and painful reality checks. And needed to be paid in cash or cheque. We learned a lot, spent a lot, and acquired a substantial collection of tools. Our big reveal in the season 1 finale, Extreme Homo Makeover, made the pain of countless hours and lost weekends fade (somewhat) into memory.

Through Season 2, we putzed around with little projects here and there - first hoping to build a rock&roll jam space under our porch, then procrastinating undertaking the inevitable horror show of renovating a rotting bathroom by lounging about on our porch.

Finally, Season 3 Bathroom Guts and Glory is wrapping production. The bathroom project has taken exactly 6 months so far, and will be finished "soon". We lived through 3 weeks without a shower, a week flushing the toilet with a bucket, and months of dust, angst, and paint. You who are following along online are living in our past and the videos will catch up soon. If you want to have some real holiday fun, you can book a live tour to see a behind the scenes glimpse. book early. Karaoke Wrap party to be held Dec 31, so fans can sing along to such hits as "Metal Mortar Minute" and "Pony Wall"

We hope that Santa will send us the roofer elf to cut the hole for our exhaust fan, and maybe another crew of elves to do the paint touchups, and then we will start the new year with a complete bathroom. Just in time to plan the next project! Who wants to guess what next??

Happy birthday lez renovate! Maybe if we're lucky, Homes on Holmes will jump out of the birthday cake!

How about you, loyal fans? What have you managed to do with your lives in the last 2 years that we've spent dashing through the drywall dust? Probably some have had babies, completed advanced university degrees, taken wonderful vacations. And some of you, like us, have been wearing work clothes & scouring Craigslist for gently used plumbing fixtures...

Lez Put Up Drywall - VIDEO

2011-11-28T11:29:00.000-08:00

Well hello renovators and renovating supporters. First, let me apologize for not having a video for you last Friday, we had some technical difficulties. But now, we have a new video ready for your enjoyment.

In this video, we are dealing with the ups and downs of drywalling. Have you ever drywalled? Have you ever mudded a wall? Have you ever sanded said wall? Well - if you have, then you know how messy and annoying it can be. Even if you are good at measuring the cuts properly, you inevitably run into some kinda problem. Plus, the sanding stage is not pretty. Take a look for yourself.

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

And just as an FYI, this marks our 35th video on Afterellen.com! Cool hey?

Happy Monday!

Tis the season, to decorate

2011-11-18T11:22:00.000-08:00

Yep, its that time of year again. The time to put plastic on our windows to keep out the drafty Vancouver rain/wind/slush/snow. It snowed last night for the first time this season. It's quite exciting, until the snow turns to slush and my shoes turn to mush.

But its also the holiday season! Which means family gatherings, parties, shopping and decorating. Decorating. This is something that I like to do, every year. We even cut a tree down in our front yard to put in our living room. The smell of pine needles always flashes me back to days of 'ole, when the Consumers Distributing catalogue existed (See previous post about that), tinsel wasn't considered dangerous for pets and the use of real candles on the tree wasn't unheard of.

Now, its plastic this, plastic that, safe this, safe that, energy efficient this, energy efficient that. I want to smell the real holidays in my home! Pine needles, egg nog, peppermint and excitement. So, I put this out to you - if you are decorating your house for the holidays, use all natural materials! Ok, I know its going to be difficult and dangerous to hang different coloured candles on front porch awning but I'm sure you can figure something out!

Here are a few DIY projects for making holiday decorations from natural materials.

1. Pine Cones


Gather some up and make a wreath, center piece or a string of garland.

2. Fall leaves

Create a bouquet to hang in doorways or on a mantle.

Or you can be super fancy:

3. Sticks and branches

Create a fancy wreath!

Those are just a few suggestions. Do you have any other ideas? Share! Let make this holiday naturally sustainable. Oh and, fun!!

Lez Just Keep Working - VIDEO

2011-11-11T10:03:00.000-08:00

Holy cow, the time just seems to be flying by! Another video already. Wow. Well, I tell you, the bathroom renovation is STILL not done. I am, however, going to ask Santa for a finished bathroom this year. I will put aside my desire for a PS3, my little pony and the Animal drumkit from the Consumer Distributing catalogue just so we can have a finished bathroom. I have been a good girl, really I have. Such a good girl, in fact, that I deserve a finished bathroom AND the Animal drumkit from the Consumer Distributing catalogue.

Do you remember the Consumer Distributing catalogue? If you do, then you are from Canada and over 30. Great, I just spilled my beans for you. If you don't know what I am talking about, it was basically Ebay and Ikea rolled into one. Consumers Distributing aimed to reduce costs for customers by stocking merchandise in a warehouse type stocking system instead of displaying them in a costly showroom. Customers made their selections from a catalogue, filled out a form with product identification, and waited for stock staff to retrieve the items from the warehouse.

I remember the excitement of looking through the catalogue at Christmas. I would circle everything I wanted in a red pen and dog ear the pages so my parents couldn't miss it. And every year I would circle and circle and circle the Animal drumkit. 5 years of circles. Nothin. Then, one year, I found a guitar and amp under the tree with the disclaimer "THIS you can plug headphones into!". Fine.

But to this day, I have longed for the Animal drumkit. And I haven't been able to find it anywhere. Not even a picture! So for now, I will have to settle for a finished bathroom. Which is almost as exciting. Check out the latest installment:

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

Have a great long weekend!

Lez Get Ducty - VIDEO

2011-10-28T08:29:00.001-07:00

Happy Friday! And what happens on Fridays? A new video!! Yayyy

Lez Get Ducty

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

Now, I don't know about you but, creating a ducting system from scratch is something I have never done before. It's all so riveting.

Have a fabulous weekend. Oh yeah, its Halloween! What are you dressing up as? Well, whatever you do - be safe out there!

Bathroom renovation is taking for *@#%ing ever!

2011-10-22T13:19:00.001-07:00

So the bathroom renovation is taking for *@#%ing ever! And to be honest, I have emotionally moved on from it. I know physically I haven't, since I have a band aid on my finger from the recent mishap in there the other day. No, I have moved on to thinking about another project. One that will give me somewhat immediate satisfaction. Well, it won't take 6 months to do.

We, as renovators, are always looking around our house to see what we can get up to next. I know there are a couple pressing issues that we need to deal with, but it needs to be nice outside to do them. Well, it doesn't NEED to be but, I am not working outside in the rain. Remember, we don't get paid to do this!! So lets do some indoor work over the winter and make our little house even comfier than it already is...minus the bathroom.

We had discussed that re-organizing/painting the living room would warm things up. Also, getting a cozy couch. So we are going to do that, soon. But - I found something else that can immediately change the aesthetic in our kitchen and nicey-nicey up the area we spend a lot of time in.

The kitchen is the last on our list of things to change, since its not too bad. The cabinets are the thing to change but will cost the most money. So, we thought that changing the face of the kitchen will do the trick until we really do it up.

We replaced all of our appliances when we first moved in, which was a great treat to ourselves. The last time I had a dishwasher was when I was living with my parents.

Lets meet our appliances:

Franz - because he's European

Newman

Stacey

We have steel appliances. Fine. And they all have names so we treat them with respect and last longer. Well, that's my hope anyways.

And our tile is white with gross grey/yellow stained grout. We were thinking of dying the grout a different colour. I also got some advice from the internet that letting Oxygen Bleach sit on the grout line, eating away for 30 mins does the trick. And it did! But, I think we want to dye the grout a different darker colour because white gets dirty so fast! Take a look at the before and after shot.

AFTER ----------------------------BEFORE

So yes, that trick works. Probably do the rest to clean it up but then dye it. Also, we want to put a new backsplash up around the counter, maybe like the one we put in the basement:

Remember this? Nice silver backsplash.

We also want to replace the hardware on the kitchen cupboards and couple other things.. So lets take a look at the list of things we want to do:

1. Clean grout lines
2. Dye grout lines
3. Put up new backsplash
4. Replace cupboard hardware
5. Replace faucet
6. Replace tile-laminate transition

How long do you think it will take to do all of these things? In Lez Renovate time?

Lez Go Green-E - VIDEO

2011-10-14T08:19:00.000-07:00

Season 3 - Episode 4

Have you ever had to race against time? We have....a few times. Ya see, if it weren't for our tenant being away for weeks at a time, we wouldn't have been able to do this bathroom renovation. Not only because he allowed us to use his bathroom while he was gone but it also allowed us to rip out his bathroom ceiling when we busted a pipe and was told by our plumber that the sewer line had to be replaced.

So, things have to happen quickly. But, we are far from quick with our renos. To be honest, I just want to sit around a sip lattes on the weekend, not rent a van and go pick up very expensive and very heavy Green-E board to put in the basement bathroom. You see, we picked Green-E because of its eco-ness, durability and resistance to mold. Perfect for a bathroom. But, holy heck - its heavy!!!

CLICK TO WATCH VIDEO

So, if you choose to install Green-E board in your bathroom, workout for a couple weeks first.

Thanksgiving and birdies

2011-10-08T15:34:00.002-07:00

Ok, so its gobble gobble weekend for us here in Canada. That means we get to stuff our faces with friends and family while we reminisce about the good 'ole days when we stuffed our faces with friends and family. Of course we could use the weekend to work on the bathroom but stuffing our faces must not wait.

What is left to be done on the bathroom you say? Well, finish installing the floor, build recessed shelving, stain the wood on the medicine cabinet, install a sink, stain/install wainscotting, cut a hole out the roof for the fan. Stuff like that. And the last one has been on the "research" list for quite some time now.

Let me tell you a little how Cool J renovates. First off, if she doesn't know how to do something, she watches a bunch of videos on the internet. Then, if she still doesn't feel confident, she starts asking around to get advice. If she still doesn't feel confident, she watches more videos and asks more advice. Convinced that she can do anything, she usually does a fine job but sometimes, well, not. And then, eventually a professional is called in. It takes a bit of hemming and hawing before she comes to that conclusion.

Case in point. She wants to climb the roof and cut a hole out of it to run the venting for the bathroom ceiling fan. Yes, she has used many cutting devices. Yes, she has run venting for a ceiling fan before. And yes, she has watched many videos on how to install a roof cap. But she hasn't been on a roof before.

I have. Back in grade school (speaking of reminiscing). It was the roof of my dad's garage. I was playing badminton with my best friend in the backyard. I think it was one of my lobbing moves that landed the shuttlecock (heehee) on the roof of the garage. We only had one. It was the 80s. Anyways, we fought back and forth on who would get it. "You get the birdie!" "No, you get the birdie!!". Eventually it was decided that I would climb the ladder and rescue the birdie. As I climbed we could hear our neighbour yelling over the fence, "You kids leave those birds alone!" To this day, he probably thinks we snatched some birds out of their nest. Kids.

Anyways, I got onto the roof, grabbed the shuttlecock, turned around and noticed that my best friend, soon to be ex-best friend, removed the ladder, layed it on the ground and ran into the house giggling. Leaving me to rot on the garage roof with a birdie in my hand. I had no way to get down. I think she left me up there for 5 mins but it felt like 5 hours!! I'll always remember the feel of roof shingles on my thighs as I sat up there. Of course short shorts were all the rage for badminton. I eventually came down, was mad for 5 mins and then we resumed playing.

That is my experience with being on a roof. Not sure Cool J has any experience being up there but I feel nervous about her "giving it a whirl" and then falling flat on her face before she calls a professional to do the job.

Have you been up on a roof?

Lez Go Crazy - VIDEO

2011-09-30T09:34:00.000-07:00

Season 3 - Episode 3

You know how your hair stands up when you discover something unpleasant? Or how your cursing quota goes way up when you a forced to deal with crappy situations? We do.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

Aha, I said crappy and we are doing a bathroom renovation. I'm so witty. Note to self: Comb hair BEFORE turning the camera on.

Have a fantastic weekend!

A break up letter to our toilet

2011-09-25T16:30:00.001-07:00

Dear toilet,

I really find it hard to believe how inconsiderate and inconvenient you are being, even after the love letter I gave you. I professed my love to you, gave you a public appreciation and this is how you respond? I don't think its going to work out for us. I have been tolerant and understanding but now you have sunk to a new low. You cracked under pressure. Literally.

I know that its important to be delicate with you, treat you with care and not over tighten your bolts but, you were leaking. So, I tightened. And before I knew it, the water works came. And so did mine. You're broken and some am I. Porcelain is delicate and so am I.

So here we are, back to square one. Back to the days of flushing with a bucket of water and a sense of being incomplete. Time to look for someone/something else new.

I raise my toilet bowl brush in anger.

Jerk.

A love letter to our toilet

2011-09-23T10:24:00.000-07:00

Dear toilet,

Oh how I missed you. I am so happy that you are back. It seemed that you were only partly present the last few weeks and I wondered if you were ever going to fully come back. Months ago you left, only to reappear for a few short weeks and then disappear again. I felt lost without you, incomplete, incontinent and full of longing. You know how its said that 'you don't know what you've got til its gone'? Well, I didn't, but now, I do. I think we, as a society, under appreciate the privilege of having indoor plumbing. Toilet, you are under appreciated and I recognize that. From now on I am going to clean you religiously, hug you a little bit more on those particularly difficult drunken nights and praise the Water Closet gods that you exist when I have a stomach flu again. Which, unfortunately, had to happen when you weren't there. Well, half of you was there, but it still made it difficult.

But I digress. Now that you are back, I can relax and get back to living a privileged life that includes indoor plumbing.

I raise my toilet bowl brush in honour of your greatness.

Love,

LL

Lez Gut it...Wait, Still? - VIDEO

2011-09-16T08:23:00.000-07:00

Season 3 - Episode 2

Today on Lez Renovate, we experience what every true renovator experiences at one time or another. Exhaustion. Demolishing is hard, especially when you do it with dinky little tools, like we did. A hammer? We used hammers. Not sledge hammers but, carpenter hammers. What? Why? I don't know.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH VIDEO

Thanks for watching!

Small bathroom design mood board

2011-09-11T11:05:00.000-07:00

CoolJ here. I'm someone for whom the words "mood" and "bored" do not find themselves in close proximity. This post however asks for HELP from our friends. I am finally making public my interior design idea for our tiny bathroom.

So I have created this 'mood board' as the designers call them, to share my idea about how our bathroom should look when it is finally done.

Would love your input. The specs
Bath is about 35 square feet, with a ceiling height over 8 feet.
One small window in the shower, one ceiling light fixture.
If you've watched our latest video, you've seen some of the before.
Here's my mood board for the bathroom decor theme "Peachland Beach".

Let me walk you through it
Shower is already DIY-tiled with 4x6 subway tiles, white with alabaster (grey) grout. Recommended by our Tile Savior, Doug the owner of Lower Mainland Ceramics Tile and Stone. You will see more of that project in an upcoming video. It took a loooong time but we think it looks good

Shower fixtures are likewise square shaped. Chrome. So far we chose a transparent curtain to let some light through the one window.

The longest wall will have "weathered" wood running horizontal, to a height of about 4 feet. As shown in the pic (sampled from Design Sponge), the boards are different widths, some are pine, some cedar, some unknown pulled from this house, most of the rest rescued from futon frames. Weathering technique will be covered in a separate post.

Flooring is ceramic tiles by Marcacarona, 10 inch squares pretty much as shown. They likewise appeared on a clearance pile at Lower Mailand Ceramic Tile and are sparkly brown & grey & black with lots of color depth and texture. Like a sandy beach. Again, sourced at Lower Mainland Ceramics Tile and Stone for an AMAZING bargain on their clearance rack! Yes!

This lesbian renovator wants to step out of the tub onto riverstones, not the burning hot pointy rocks of the real Peachland beach, but since I spend all my money on this house, going for a shower might be all the beach vacation we get! I hear that grouting around pebbles or pebble tile is a pain, but I'm still looking at the landscaping yards and may do some rock hounding. I wanna rock! or as Doug at Lower Mainland said "Rock on girl. Don't let them talk you out of it!" Pun intended.

Light will be marina-themed too, and above the door a box light with a pic of Okanagan Lake fun.

Dear friends, these are the design questions about this bathroom renovation.. i put it to you:
What do you say to light blue (close to as shown) walls and a darker blue ceiling? I'm thinking Behr's Regatta Bay for the ceiling. Will dark ceiling and light walls make the room look small, or will it look punchy and feel like we are really at the lake? Would you instead do walls/ceilings all the same paint color? If yes, light or dark blue? Or maybe dark blue walls, light ceiling? White ceiling? I'm biased because we already have a gallon of light blue paint :-)

Help!

Lez Gut it - VIDEO

2011-09-02T11:16:00.006-07:00

SEASON 3 - BATHROOM GUTS AND GLORY

EPISODE ONE

This season kicks off with a brand new video, complete with a brand new intro! Let us know what you think. And thanks to Afterellen.com for hosting our program!

CLICK HERE TO WATCH

Demolishing a bathroom isn't as easy as it sounds.

Lez agree. Vancouver is awesome!

2011-09-01T15:12:00.003-07:00

Hey Lez Renovate fans
Only 1 more sleep until the launch of Season 3 videos! Huzzah! We wish we could tell you that means our bathroom is done. It is not. We wish we could tell you that we will launch on major network television. We will not. HOWEVER, we are still very excited to be syndicated by the formidable, vast, and welcoming online community at AfterEllen.com, the pop-culture site that plays for our team.

We also much admire many other blogs and webtv creators, and we love to connect folks who are making waves in the online renovation tv world. Or who would like us to make waves with our bathroom project! and want to help out.

This season you'll see some celebrity guests - tradespeople, neighbours, and mentors helping us out.

While you are waiting for our first video, have a look at VancouverIsAwesome.com.

A great initiative to celebrate vancity, introduce local folks and activities, and they won the Urban Culture Award as best lifestyle blog in vancity and best event blog in vancouver. Thanks so much to the DIYVR section for profiling us this week in their weekly spotlight on "...all things handmade, done-by-oneself, crafted and hacked around Vancouver, featuring profiles of makers, event announcements, exhibits and general DIY fun."

Maybe with support like this we can win next year's award for "best lesbian DIY bolog" in Vancouver.

May we suggest you enter the DIYVR home improvement challenge - share your tips on how to do stuff (like wire up in-floor heating or building recessed shelves, etc etc)! Visit their flickr group & share your DIY bragging rights!