Hands-on home improvement guides, what Karen has done herself, what she hired out, and the honest lessons from both. · 8 posts
Months on the travertine, two on the faucet finish, and one overhead light that meant mascara by feel. The sconce fix, with exact heights, and the $580 it cost.
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Count the holes before you open the catalog. Three faucets, two returns, one that's been there four years, and everything the spec sheet should have told me first.
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Two people said I'd regret the water spots and my husband voted nickel. Fourteen months: a wipe every couple of days, no chips on the PVD, and he conceded at month three.
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Open shelves and a frameless mirror looked better in photos and worse on a Tuesday. A 16 by 26 recessed cabinet with a thin black frame closed the storage loop, and the counter has been clear for two years.
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A 14-foot hallway with a smoke detector and nothing else. Two sconces, $150, two screws each, and the battery numbers the box doesn't give you.
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I have brass on the front porch and black on the back. Here's the honest two-year comparison.
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Bought before measuring the drain, standard depth in a 5-foot room, finish before fixtures, a linen tower that blocked the door, doors instead of drawers. Five mistakes, about $500 of fees and fixes, one card.
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Wet plaster behind the tile, a vanity ordered after demolition, sconces discontinued between order and install. The full accounting, and the 20 percent line nobody's allowed to touch.
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