Studio Bathroom Back On Track! (New Quartz Countertop Installed)
Y’all, I can finally get back to the studio half bathroom and get that finished up because the new quartz countertop was installed yesterday! And I absolutely love it.
I had originally made my own DIY countertop out of MDF and resin. If you missed that project, you can check it out here…
Here’s how that countertop looked…
That countertop looked great until I decided that the resin I had used (which was perfectly fine and durable) wasn’t right for a countertop, so I ordered a different brand and did a second coat of resin. After a month of curing, that second coat had turned my beautiful bright white countertop into a horrible and yellowed antique white. You can see the original bright white color that I mixed into the resin compared to the month-old yellowed counterop here…
Ugh. Horrible. Had I just left the countertop alone after the first resin pour, I think it would have been fine. But something with horribly wrong with that second coat of resin using a different brand.
Anyway, as many of you encouraged me to do, I headed to a local countertop place and found a remnant of quartz in Snow White. I didn’t think it would work at first because Snow White has tiny little flecks of gray all throughout. But I brought a piece home to test it out, and it looked great!
And now that the countertop is installed, I don’t even see those gray flecks. It just looks bright and white and beautiful to me.
Maybe if you look up close, you can see the gray flecks. But they’re still so faint that they’re not really noticeable. It’s not like a visible design in the material, like veins would be.
The only issue is that this countertop isn’t as thick as my original, and so there’s a much larger (and much too big) space between the countertop and the bottom of the backsplash tiles. So I’ll need to make a minor modification to the vanity by adding some round pieces of wood, painted to match the legs and to look like they’re an original part of the turned feet, to lift the vanity up about 1/2 inch to fill that space. But that’s a simple problem to fix. And it’s worth the little extra trouble when the payoff is having a durable, beautiful quartz countertop that won’t turn antique yellow over time.
I was shocked at how long it took, though. I ordered this countertop almost exactly a month ago, and the amount of back and forth required for such a tiny little countertop seemed over the top to me. The phone calls, the two trips out to the house for measurements, the long contract where I had to sign and initial in about 50 places. I can understand how that’s need for a full kitchen install. But for a small $381 job using a tiny remnant piece for a half bathroom, it seemed over the top.
But at least it’s done, and I now know what minor adjustments need to be made, and I can move on and FINISH THIS BATHROOM!!! 😀 I see a finished, usable half bathroom in my near future.
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
Hurrah! I’m glad you’ve found a resolution – the final choice looks great.
Isn’t it interesting how we’re all becoming sensitive to “process design” these days? The more companies institute processes, and then apply them to all situations (sometimes not the best fit, as you’ve seen), the more the process and lack of intention around your particular situation are obvious. It’s expensive for companies to build and maintain alternate processes, so they’re not going to do that unless they can get a competitive advantage from doing so. (I’m an architect, and have done UX design for a giant corporation, so I get this frustration from both sides. We humans are just far more adaptable on the fly than we give ourselves credit…I rather miss the days of dealing with an experienced and empowered human rather than a process, which even when executed by humans, turns them into machine cogs.)
This is gorgeous. I long for quartz in our (new to us) Arizona home. Currently it’s a dark brown mottled granite. But being on a fixed income, changing it just won’t happen. For your gap area, would a section of some listello tile work out? Almost like quarter round does for base molding.
But it probably isn’t the look you’re going for.
I was one of those that suggested going with the quartz counter and yours looks exactly like I thought it would. You will love the clean up as it is just so easy. I will say that my experience with getting both kitchen and bathroom counters was not as involved as yours. They sent a guy out to do measurements and a template and all I did was give them a deposit and sign the contract.
They came back on the scheduled date and installed and had the plumber here within two hours of their completion to install three sinks and faucets.
It is a business owned by one man and he also was one of the installers so maybe he doesn’t require as much paperwork etc. I also was getting my installation in late fall after his busy season in spring and summer.
No matter the difference in our experiences ….you made the right decision and I know you won’t regret it. Looking forward to seeing the finished studio as I think finishing up the bath will give you that last push to the finish line.
You really have accomplished so much more than most of your followers could in twice the time or maybe a lifetime as would be my case. I would still be working on the stripes in the bathroom!
Looks great! I love quartz counters. It was the one of the few upgrades I chose when we built our house. It was either that or I would have gone with laminate. I didn’t want to deal with the maintenance with granite and the options our builder had for granite were extremely blah. I know there are beautiful granite, these were not those. So quartz it was.
Using a remnant piece is such a great idea and saves so much money. Nice job!
Beautiful job! I want to get rid of my granite and add quartz to my kitchen counters. BTW, saw your post/pics on a Carnivore Facebook site. Welcome to the club! You are looking healthier each month. I’ve lost 95 pounds since 2/4/2019 with no exercise. My goal weight is about 25 pounds away. I’ve got more energy now, so just doing normal “projects” around the house give me the only exercise for now…. and I sit for my day job. I wanted to prove that good nutrition is really the key to weight loss. I started carnivore to help with my autoimmune issues of hashimotos/hypothyroid inflammation, gut issues, and high blood pressure. I’m 52. I was thick, sick, and tired of being thick, sick, and tired. Keep up the good work. Carnivore is not for the weak minded, so it shows just how tough and smart you are. I don’t preach carnivore to anyone since there is so much misinformation out there in the mainstream media and from our own medical communities. I am just living by example. Anyway, keep up the good work in both your home remodel projects and your health!
Wow! 95 pounds since February?! That’s amazing!! I absolutely love eating a carnivore diet. I wanted to try it because my husband has M.S., and I thought it would be good for him, but I have to admit that the thought of giving up even more foods that I love (I had been keto for a year) kind of made me panic. but now, literally the only food I ever crave is ribeye. No more sugar or carb cravings at all. It’s amazing! I hate that we’re not allowed to talk about fasting in that group, though. (I’m assuming you’re talking about the Zeroing In On Health group.) Matt and I do a lot of fasting. I’m a BIG believer in the miraculous power of autophagy, so I plan to take full advantage of it with fasting when I can. Carnivore + fasting seems to be the key for me.
Hi Kristi. I will respond to you separately somehow. I think I have your email. But yes, Zeroing in on Health and ribeye carnivore + fasting (18-22hours) works best for me, too! Hugs from WA State.
Just wondering, because something like that happened to me once upon a time, if it would be easier to raise up the counter, using trim to cover the new gap between counter & vanity, rather than raising up the whole vanity. I would think it would be easier to fiddle with raising the counter on all four sides then trying to reach the leg in that corner and raising it up.
My vanity isn’t attached to the wall yet. I needed to keep it detached because since I used a huge kitchen sink, installing the faucet from the front is impossible. So I have to move the vanity out and reach underneath from the back to install the faucet. So that makes it easy for me to make adjustments to that corner foot as well.
Have you thought about looking in a Michaels or ACMOORE type of craft store for the department that has little wooden turnings and bits and bobs. I’ve used the round discs that are probably meant to be wheels on toys as feet wooden boxes. Nicely curved, sanded smooth, hole for attaching pre drilled, was the perfect solution for my project.
Hi Kristi,
and to all the other gals that love projects ….. I love what u have been doing yet not a real big fan of a bit of the green color …. I too have issues with trying to figure out how to do something to make it look wonderful ,,,, like flooring to cover over tile flooring ???
But I wanted to say yes, on the counter , beautiful ….. but I am a gal that has to finish one whole thing before I get into another ,so please finish this little bathroom and the shadowing of the wallpaper in that hallway , please, it just drives me crazy so please finish off something so I can relax a bit …… your a doll .
Shadowing of the wallpaper in the hallway? I don’t know what that means, unless you’re talking about the music room walls. If so, I finished those over a year ago. 🙂
https://www.addicted2decorating.com/music-room-progress-the-walls-are-finally-finished.html
Beautiful ….. I missed that video of the finished music room stenciled walls …. so sorry I called it wallpaper but hey you are a fill -in , happy moment and I just did not remember …. the chairs are wonderful and the picture is just a surprise and so very eye catching …. finished and inviting .😊
Sorry, a little proof reading would be a good thing. I sometimes let my enthusiasm get the better of me.