New shower on the main floor

The main floor shower has been bugging Christine for years. It was just fine in my opinion, but according to her (yes, she's the one that cleans it most of the time), it quickly gets yucky on the grout and the porous tile surface accumulates soap scum easily. So, out it came. I decided that I could tackle pretty much everything on my own, except the plumbing, which Kenny helped me out with.

As you can see from the photo tour, I went with Kerdi board again - it's so easy to work with, and it only added another $150 to the overall cost, so it's worth it. Also, to make my life easier tiling and from a maintenance perspective, I went with a acrylic shower base - we never take baths, and if someone wants to, they can use the basement tub. I'm proud of the shower niche I made - the rest of the tile is normal ceramic, but I used 4 x real marble tiles to finish off the edges of the niche rather than use Schluter Rondec like we did in the basement. I also used a small piece for the soap shelf in the corner. I was skeptical of the Rona shower column I bought on sale; but after removing the water restrictors, the shower really pours out of the rainfall head.

Refreshing the basement bathroom

While it's been a while since I've posted an update on the happenings around the house, I can assure you that there has been no lack of things that have been done. Mostly maintenance perhaps, as there's always something to do with a 70+ year-old house.

Recently however, we got married, and while we did not ask for gifts, got some cash from friends and family. What to do with it? "How about fixing up the basement bathroom?", Christine suggested. Sure, it was dingy and dark in there, but it worked, and I didn't see much need to do anything there. But with a friend in the tile retail area, we got our product at cost, and decided for a full facelift.

While it's hard to tell what's going on from the pics, we took out all the old tile (ok, hired a guy to chisel it out) and the home-made vanity. Since we don't use it often, we kept the tub in place. A minor adjustment on the wall between shower and vanity made a world of a difference, as did the light in the shower. Most of the other product came from Home Depot either on sale, or bought on a budget.

We're pretty happy how it turned out - I think our house-guests will be happy too!

The backyard transformation

As I sit here, on the upper deck, enjoying an evening cocktail, while the girls watch the birds and squirrels, I realized that I had not documented the last couple of years' worth of backyard renos. I had put some pics on Picasa, so here it is.


When we had originally moved into the house, the patio at ground-level was never used. It was always in the shade, and a large brick bbq/firepit occupied most of the area where you might put a chair or patio furniture. We finally decided to get rid of the brick monstrosity, and then by expanding the concrete only by 6 feet or so, we'd get a place to sit in the sun in the backyard. I struggled with whether or not to put in a traditional fireplace, as I thought we really needed a focal point, but I finally decided upon a firepit, with an Allen brick "feature wall" to act as a fire barrier and provide a backdrop for our patio.

Suffice it to say, that we moved TONS of dirt, gravel, concrete, Allen blocks, and soil over the last two summers. We didn't tackle it all at once, and the first spring/summer we poured the new patio, and built the new firepit and brick planter areas. We also had the yucky fibreglass deck cover removed and replaced with a new glass one... awesome. I also reclaimed the cedar I had used for a little patio area, and made them into some deck lounger/benches.

The next summer we finished the rest of the Allen block garden walls, and put in a little paver patio at the other end of the lawn, for a place to sit in the sun in early spring. During a few days off last summer, I tiled the patio, since the old concrete was cracked and ugly compared to the newly poured area. Somewhere along the way, we wanted to take advantage of the home reno tax break, and put in a new fence as well. With this year's relatively cool, damp spring, our garden has grown like gangbusters! We're having a BBQ next week, so I'll post some pics of the backyard in full bloom and glory.

Riquewihr - translation "Rico Villa"

We returned recently from a tour down the Rhine River, where we came across this amazing little town in the Alsace wine region. Riquewihr was developed since the 13th century, and has retained it's historic feel, as it survived WWII with relatively little damage.

During our tour there, we were excited to discover that the origins of the name for this town came from "Richo Villa" (pronounced "rico")... how fitting.

Rico

Quick photo tour

More details about the house

We bought this house in the spring of 2005, and spent the last 3 years turning an original Cambie house into an executive home that we are proud of, and plan on living in for many years to come. Mostly through our own sweat and hard work, we've transformed the interior space into a warm, inviting an open environment, without sacrificing the feel of a 1930s character home. Everything on the main floor has been replaced, renovated, or re-done. Every square inch of the house has been re-painted, inside and out. New fittings and fixtures were chosen with the 1930s period in mind, and except for the modern, stainless steel appliances, the style is one very much in step with the Art Deco/Art Moderne styling of the time.

The main renovation/update occurred in the kitchen; we completely gutted it, removing the extensive cedar paneling and cupboards that were likely installed in the 1960s. We removed the wall between a small bedroom and the 11' x 12' kitchen, added a conversational island, creating a TV room adjacent to the kitchen. This new 24' x 11' room is the central nexus for our daily lives. Rich cherry-wood cabinets, solid black granite countertops and indirect lighting sources create a warm ambiance and cozy feel. Technology enhancements include Wi-Fi and wired high-speed internet access, 34" widescreen TV, over 350 DVD titles to choose from, over 4,000 MP3 songs available through streaming audio, and 5.1 speaker surround audio system with iPod dock.

In the bathroom, we also stripped off the cedar paneling again, demo-ed down to the studs, and replaced the vanity with the same rich, cherry-wood cabinetry, topped with solid marble and undermount sink. We installed a heating mat under the tiles to keep bare feet warm during the cool winter months. 1920s railway-styled towel bars and fixtures, halogen lighting and a huge, beveled glass mirror framed in cherry wood round out the feature upgrades of our new bathroom.

The dining room got a fresh coat of paint, new window treatment, and a new light fixture with dimmer. Our 6-person dining set and art deco sideboard finish the room nicely - a great place to enjoy a scrumptious local BC salmon dinner with your other guests!

The living room got a huge cosmetic upgrade when we jackhammered out the 1970s-era brick mantle/hearth. We removed the cedar (yes, even more cedar) paneling from the wall, put up new drywall and re-framed the leaded-glass windows. I extended secondary speakers into the living room wall, so that music can be played (independently) from the source in the TV room. The finishing touch is the new Art Deco-styled mantle and natural gas fireplace - remote controlled, of course. A nice glass of port, a snifter of cognac or a wee dram of scotch, and this is the place to wind down the evening, and share the stories of the day.

The neighbourhood

Cambie Street was named after Henry John Cambie, a surveyor born in Ireland, who was charged with the task for bringing the CPR (Canadian Pacific Railway) to its terminus on the coast, which he decided would be Vancouver. King Edward Avenue, our nearest major cross-street (1 block), was named after King Edward VII (and not the infamous "Longshanks" King Edward I, from the epic "Braveheart").

The Cambie area is centred around City Hall, an iconic building built in 1936, typifying the Art Deco/Art Moderne styling of the day. The area north of King Edward developed in the boom years following the turn of the 19th century. By 1926, houses dotted the area surrounding Douglas Park, and by the mid-1950s, the last remaining raw land just north of 41st Avenue (used as army barracks during the war) was released by the federal government for development. Our house was built in 1938 along with most of the houses on our street.

A central thoroughfare to get back and forth to downtown Vancouver, Cambie Street is also populated with many shops and restaurants, mostly between 12th and 19th Avenue, known as Cambie Village. The underground, "Canada Line" runs underneath Cambie street, and will operate service from Richmond and the Vancouver Airport, through to downtown Vancouver. While the underground construction was inconvenient, the residents of the South Cambie area are now reaping the benefits, as the City has made extensive streetscape improvements to the area, including improved street lighting, widened sidewalks and landscaping. While Cambie Village offers residents most services needed for everyday living, the central location allows easy access to the diversity of Vancouver.

City Square Shopping Centre, a neighbourhood mall built around two heritage school buildings, incorporates modern design elements with the original architecture and houses over 50 shops and services. If you want more diversity, only 5 minutes (or one tube stop) south, is the much larger, Oakridge Centre offers over 150 shops and services, including The Bay, Banana Republic, Nine West and many other fashion retailers. Oakridge also has movie theatres, so that you can avoid the hustle and bustle of downtown if you merely want to take in a first-run movie.

Just six blocks East, you will find Cambie Street's alter-ego - Main Street. A vibrant, eclectic mix of shops, bistros, pubs and services, South Main (SoMa) is bustling with activity, day and night. You won't find any chain stores here; instead, you'll uncover trendy boutiques, novelty shops and ethnic restaurants of all origin. Vintage clothing shops, antique stores and art galleries dot the strip. A few minutes South in a car or bus will put you at the edge of Little India, where you can get some of the finest East Indian cuisine in town.

Two of the "Top Ten Vancouver Adventures" are only a 10-minute walk from our house; Queen Elizabeth Park, and The Bloedel Conservatory. Stroll through the gardens in the two former stone quarrys and enjoy the views from the world-famous Seasons restaurant. Or escape the winter chill by exploring the indoor lush tropical environment, with over 100 free-flying exotic birds and colourful Koi fish.