Planning, Planning

OK.  So back to business.  Floor staining. Bathroom vanities. Counter tops. Light fixtures.

The pic for the floors is the one on the far right, Minwax Espresso.  Its hard to tell how it actually looks, the light, etc just isn't really telling the story here.  Trust.

Bathroom vanities are being fabricated by Pete Moorman. Pete is a artisan / craftsman /design guy with an awesome shop of all-things-cool, located in the Chicago - Lawndale neighborhood. All things seem possible with Pete. I've included a link to his tumblr page in the Professional Services pane on the right, but it is easier to find Pete by googling 'Moorman Design' and getting the phone number. 

The design below is for the Master Bath, it's a long vanity cabinet with two sinks and a tower in the middle.  It sits atop a base fabricated out of iron, with a rivet-y industrial vibe to it.  Ultimately it will receive a driftwood kind of stain, similar to the island cabinetry on the first floor. There are many iron design elements going on in the house with just a bit of industrial edge to them:  The stair balustrade, the kitchen island legs, the bath vanities, the staircase structure, and some banding on the columns.  This is intentionally done in the spirit of the overall vision of incorporating modern elements within a traditional envelope.  A bit of 'edge', if you like. Keeps it from looking like a Pottery Barn showroom. 

Tony Stavish and Pete Moorman discuss ironwork options below:

Examples of the iron work:

The horizontal vanity cabinet:

The pic below is the iron support structure for the cabinet above.  If you're confused, scroll back up to the schematic drawing of the vanity. 

And remember those white, industrial light fixtures I picked up at a flea market for almost nothing? They're back. Another element contributing a more modern edge. Time to decide if they will make the cut and how much to spend on updating them, both money and effort wise: