I am a DIYer, to a fault. I only say that because, often I just throw things together, haphazardly, only in hopes to move on to the next project. However, the older I get, the more my heart wraps around each project with earnest desire and care for an honest, result with integrity and beauty. When we first bought our "fixer upper" house, 9 years ago, the en suite bathroom was put together with a very tight budget. Stock vanity, paint for the shower walls and a quickly as possible to ensure a move-in date was efficient, as we were anticipating the arrival of our second child, Zander, while he grew in our hearts and snuggled in Tess' belly.
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Sadly, I forgot to take a before picture, I was too anxious to just get started on the project. Here is the vanity, with its 20" girth and glory.
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A few years ago, I wanted to update the bathroom a bit, but still with my "reuse, reduce, recycle" ambition, I simply created a counter top with painted MDF, set that on top of the whole sink base, cut a hole in for the water to drain and fashioned a new sink out of a upside down light fixture, found at Restore for only a few dollars. It was genius, so I thought, very little money spent and I didn't have to do any plumbing. While this was a great idea and worked for a few years, eventually, the sink cracked and all the water running into the original sink, was just creating a buildup of hard water and mildew....ewwww! We were breathing this in, with our teeth brushing rituals. YIKES! Something had to be done. Again, on a budget, and quite honestly, I still like to find the old and bring it new life. I did however, order a counter top sink on Amazon, about 6 months ago, with the intention to start this redo then....life got a little in the way.
Here is where my project becomes more of a life lesson, than just a project. I needed a base for the vanity, and with only 22" to spare, I was on the hunt. Antique stores, Restore, DI, Salvation Army, you name it, I searched. I certainly didn't want to just by new, and this needed to be custom made, for the space available, and for my own soul. So I came across this darling sewing desk, just begging to for a new purpose.
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Isn't she quaint?
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As I began to sand away her layers of dirt, grime and stain, her glorious natural beauty began to peek its way through. I could feel her breath a sign of relief, of gratitude, for the ability to shed her past, to brush it away. Her past didn't come without pain, sorrow and of course many beautiful and precious memories. She has a wonderful story that has made her who she is, but some of her tarnish has been holding her back from her new purpose, her new story.
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| She's breathing, opening herself up for a new story |
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| She even found a friend, looking for a new story as well. They will build their story together. |
With her authentic beauty exposed, she's ready and willing to accept this new story. For her, it begins with the addition of structural support and design, adding a drawer to the bottom. Then she dressed in a new coat of rich stain, adding a deep enhanced beauty to her physique. And finally, a new top to support her purpose, as a bathroom vanity. She wears her new story well.
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| She's clean, and elegant and now owns her new purpose. She will continue to share her story for years to come. |
We all have a story, some desperate to burn the old, but unsure of how to create a new. Through our infertility years, my story was messy and some days I wanted so badly for it to just go away. In hind side I am truly grateful for the struggles, the nicks and bad stain, the spills and wear and tear. But now, I am grateful to be writing my new story, just as our bathroom vanity has done. A story that's been developing since the day our daughter was born. Honestly, long before that, but just recognized then. I love a good story, what's your new story?
