In early March I began renovating our half bath to give it a new French style. Little by little I have been updating each room in the house from an American Country style to a French Country style, and the guest half bath is the latest room for French-inspired updates. 

And here are the results... 

F I V E  Major Changes 

❶ New Mirror 

Exchanging a vintage hand-carved pine mirror for a new white metal French-style mirror was the first of the five major changes to the bathroom. The pine mirror was once part of a natural-finish pine washstand, a classic American Country piece of furniture found in modest early American homes. 

The carved pine vanity, blue sink, and faucets have not been changed.

French Design on Friday 13

~ G A R D E N ~ 

Espalier 

Remember one of the two key elements of French design in a garden is structure?  French-style garden structure is achieved by sculpted plants and by geometrical garden designs. Espalier is a specialized form of both sculpted plants and a geometrical garden design.   

es·pal·ier

əsˈpalyər,esˈpälyər,esˈpalyā/

noun

1. 1.

   a fruit tree or ornamental shrub whose branches are trained to grow flat against a wall, supported on a lattice or a framework of stakes.

verb

1. 1.

   train (a tree or shrub) to grow flat against a wall. 

_______________

Source: Google 

Examples of espalier abound in public gardens throughout France. One well-known garden is the kitchen garden at Château Chenonceau that is bordered by apple trees espaliered along a low wire. 

5 Joys of Spring Porch Living

Spring is a time for enjoying the great outdoors and no better place than on a covered porch... especially in Texas. In the good ole summertime, Texas will be sizzling, but the months of March and April are perfect months for 

5 joys of Spring porch living 

① Lazing on a chaise lounge 

There is nothing more relaxing than stretching out on a cushioned chaise lounge surrounded by fresh green Spring leaves under blue skies. Temperatures in the 70s and low 80s invite soaking in all of Mother Nature's new greenery. Letting your mind wander as you breath in the fresh Spring air rejuvenates body, soul, spirit, and 

c r e a t i v i t y. 

Or, a soft chaise lounge is a perfect spot for an outdoor nap to re-energize. 

Refinished Oak Floor in the Living Room

Upkeep to houses is an never ending task, and updates can set into motion a series of interconnected renovations. That's how refinishing the oak floor in the living room came about at my house. What began as a half bath renovation quickly spread to include a complete update of all the flooring on the first floor of the house.  

Yesterday the contractor sanded the living room floor, applied white oak stain, and applied the first coat of clear polyurethane satin sealer.  Here is how the floor looked at that stage. I love it! 

Half Bath Update Progress

Do you enjoy seeing what others do to update their houses?  I do, and can spend hours reading about kitchen and bathroom updates in magazines, online, and on Pinterest. We are in the progress of updating our half bath. 

Of course, once you start an update, one thing leads to another, and before you know it, more than a half bath is being updated. 

The flooring contractors are removing old flooring, scraping, pounding, and repairing sub-flooring today. This is the second day of removing old flooring and getting the sub-floor ready for new tile as part of the half bath update.  

New tile flooring is the biggest renovation for the half bath update to change the style from American Country to French Country. After looking at thousands (no exaggeration) of flooring options online and in local stores, I chose Rialto White porcelain tile to cover the floor in the half bath, utility room, mudroom, entry, and kitchen... almost 500 square feet of new tile.