@palimpsest if you are still out there I want to thank you again for being the first to suggest this hallway configuration. It turned out to be a feature instead of a pedantic passageway. It allowed me to put a window at the end to bring light into the whole house where I needed it. It allowed me to play with that light using anaglypta and mirrored doors and maybe some interesting shades. It makes the entire upstairs feel huge and welcoming without changing the size. And I love how it shows off the dandelion light fixtures. Right now this hallway is my favorite part of the entire renovation. THANK YOU! And I am grateful to all who continue with me on this journey with its ups and downs and scares and joys. Thank you for the likes that let me know you are still there. Thank you, especially, @RedRyder for your continued comments and ideas. I know early on I was urged to get off this forum and get a real designer. And I did get a designer. But the forum isn't just about that, is it. It's about going together on a creative journey, and I am grateful to all who came along popping in and out or staying the whole way. You are great companions and have taught me how to be supportive of others on Houzz.

I like the Sumatra stain. No, it’s not showing red. It looks rich.
The hallway is looking good. Make sure the rooms are as glamorous…..😉

@RedRyder I'd love to! If only I had help... 🤔😁 Of course the most important thing is to not clutter it when we bring things back in. I do want to hang the art in the bedrooms. Right now I don't want to hang anything over the anaglypta, even though we planned for it. I'm still toying with the idea of putting a snail on the floor and a moth on one or both walls...maybe letting hubby buy them for me for gifts: https://www.yumiokita.com/
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One of the pendant lights in the secondary bedroom didn't have all its parts. On the same day I learned the two wall lights in the "workout room", were tired for China instead of the US. In the whole renovation, that was the most frazzling day. I bought replacements without getting a refund. It's been over six months. I have learned I need to push hard to get the electrician to inspect the lights before the return window closes. They didn't seem to care, but I'm not an electrician, so how fair is that? I hope someone reading this can learn from my experience.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Bronze-Snail-Statue-Collectible-Home-Decor-Garden-Art · More Info

https://www.etsy.com/shop/YumiOkita · More Info

Your updates are great! Your painter did an excellent job on staining the mahogany door. I enjoyed your photos so much that I was inspired to go dark-smoky in 3 recently painted rooms.

I can understand your caution about putting holes in the anaglypta .

Keeping clutter out is an ongoing effort.

Have you considered picture railing? 3 inches from the ceiling and no nails through the wallpaper. I just finished installing it in my bedrooms and hallway. I used the Star system with zipper hooks.

@Design Fan (NE z7a) I'm so flattered to hear you painted three! rooms dark! But now I want to see pictures if you are inclined to share. And I'd love to know what colors you chose and how the dark paint affected the appearance of the items in those rooms.

I'll tell the painter you liked his staining. He was going to have his boss do it. It sounded like his boss thought he was ready. He does so well painting. It's always fun to tell people others admired their work.

@john3582 you are right. I should be thinking about that. My designer recommended a thin black rail against the crown molding. A system like this: https://www.picturehangingsystems.com/stas-cliprail-picture-hanging-kit-black-78-75-inch

Is that what you meant?

So, as an update the contractor is waiting on two items. One is the non-wood crown molding for the bathrooms. That's frustrating because we specified that from the beginning. The other is the closet and pocket doors that had the wrong-size holes drilled for the hardware. This is so frustrating but my designer says this is normal. Today we are expecting the painter and electricians, so maybe I'll have more pictures of lights for you!

Opinion? I'm trying to decide between two kinds of cord covers for my plug in wall sconces. One is a squared-off metal from Lamps Plus that has no corners or joining pieces and comes in 30" lengths: https://www.lampsplus.com/p/30-inch-long-matte-black-metal-cord-cover__98y85/

The other is a rounded type that you can get lots of places and comes with elbows and joining pieces: https://www.lowes.com/pd/Sanus-CordMate-II-10-Piece-48-in-x-1-in-PVC-Black-Cord-Cable-Organization-Kit/5005531639?store=&cm_mmc=shp--c--prd--elc--ggl--PMAX_ELC000_Priority_Item_Omni--5005531639--online--22871716942--&gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=23526985167&gbraid=0AAAAAD2B2W8Wn7KWbp-Umq2-5UeqwDZPT&gclid=CjwKCAjw0dPRBhAPEiwAE5vTTj2l8VzaQ-u_9OWTKscc2NDIVXQFjl6-1JqZ5WNTMBCx2ynyJI8gthoCnioQAvD_BwE#no_universal_links

I'm leaning towards the latter, not for price but for the tidiness of the joining pieces. What do you all think? These are all for hubby's room. Two wall lamps over his bed for reading and two over his desk for more reading.

What do you think? Which looks more finished to you?

More lights went up today. These will flank a bed headboard.

Star is correct. Spell check was not. I used their zipper hooks and hanging wire. I used a different molding and different hooks. I think it was House of Antique Hardware for the hooks that fit on the railing.

One handrail was installed yesterday. My husband noted what a good grip it provided compared to the wood handrail we had previously. I looked it up and apparently that's a feature of acrylic. I liked it for the transparency and am very happy it also functions better. I also noticed how the window glass reflects back the light fixtures so I have even more dandelions.

The doorknobs also were installed yesterday now that the mahogany doors are "varnished". This photo doesn't do the colors justice. Both the mahogany and the bronze handle are much more chocolate brown instead of golden brown door and grey handle.

The door handle on the door to the bathroom associated with the workout room again looks more grey than reality. The door is SW Rock Bottom on the hall side and SW Charcoal Blue one the bathroom side. It looks comfortable with both paint colors. I especially like the contrast of the chrome rosette.

Your handles are unique. You've got some bling minus the fingerprints.

@enajasereht yeah, I wanted the bronze for its anti-microbial qualities (copper-based) and chocolate color. But I wondered if it would be too hard to find in the dark. So, loving chrome and squares, I thought I'd try a contrasting rosette. I never would have had the idea if my designer had takin me to a shop where you had to choose all the handles and rosettes separately. Her emphasis was on how the handle feels in your hand and this one feels marvelous. She thought it was different and was curious to see how it would work. It doesn't look weird to me and it functions as desired, so all in all I think it landed.

Ah! This is more color-true.

Nice handles. Yes, the feel and grip are critical. I like the finish in the last photo.

The pulls were installed today. They are bail pulls.

Here's the vanity in the primary bathroom.

Shower doors were installed today in two of the three bathrooms.

Wall sconces were installed where hubby's desk will be. The cords will be hidden in channels but not yet.

Here's a funny gadget to pull down the attic door from the ceiling.

The big piece of paper on each shower door says to squeegee after every shower. But the doors are supposed to have a finished that's "ionicly bonded" to the glass that is supposed to prevent water spots. I got them because I assumed Hubby wouldn't squeegee, and neither would guests. So... why are there instructions to squeegee? Was I naively hooked by the advertising to believe these were lower maintenance than advertised?

The protective paper was removed from the bedrooms. The warmth of the chocolate cork flooring brings the organic to the rooms. Nice balance of warm and cool colors. I hope when I add the art, the lighter colors will add additional balance.

The mirrors were added in the bathrooms.

Lots of progress!

They made almost all the progress they could make until certain things arrive: PVC crown molding for the bathrooms instead of the wood that was ordered, closet doors and two pocket doors with the correct cuts for the hardware, supports and shelving for the shallow closets in the hall (behind the magic mirrors), a missing part for one of the toilets.

There's a series of articles in Houzz about all the phases of renovation. This is the only one I don't like. This phase where we are so close and I have to wait because someone ordered the wrong thing, or the company delivered the wrong thing. I haven't seen this phase described yet. So I have to wonder if there's something different about my contractor. Maybe other contractors don't go through this. I don't like it because I see it as avoidable. Someone on the project could have caught these mistakes earlier, couldn't they?

I've been following along, but this is my first time commenting. What has been surreal to me is how smoothly your process has gone....sounds like design was a long time, but the actual construction! Wow, I've been thinking all along you must have a stellar team- especially working with some of your unique materials. I'm sure it's frustrating to be so close, and now have to pause and wait, but in my experience, and all the Houzz watching I do, it doesn't seem at all unusual.

One bathroom renovation, my otherwise excellent team ordered the wrong measurements for a custom corian shower pan. I think that set us back three weeks or more- and it wasn't discovered until demo had happened. Great people still make mistakes.

@GW Thank you SO much for chiming in and giving me a snap back to reality. Normally it wouldn't bother me hardly at all. I'm not really myself right now. My son asked if he and his family could come visit first week in August, and he sounded so dejected how could I say no. I thought he'd want to stay with his sister though. Plus there's some crazy stuff happening at work and the vice is tightening on me this month especially, forcing me to choose between the impossible or the forbidden to save a project that's been contributing to the economy for over a century. I'm just losing my mind. I should just "let go" and get my patience back.

THANK YOU! My contractor and the trades are really wonderful people. Most of the project has gone really well. I know what it's like to have lesser quality people working here. These are really great people. And, yes, even the best folks can make mistakes. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! I have my head screwed on straight now. 😊

Because the two wall sconces intended for the workout room were not wired for the U.S., (not ordering light fixtures from Amazon again) I needed to move up one of the plug-in floor lamps I bought for this is room. I like the way it is in the same theme as the anaglypta.

Now that I've given up on hosting my son at our house, I feel such a sense of relief and have all the patience in the world. I still look forward to coming home to see what was done each day. Yesterday all I could find was that the door to our downstairs bathroom was fixed so it didn't stick in these hot muggy summer days. That was important to me, because a door that couldn't be shut for privacy seemed to upset the younger of our two local granddaughters, and our soon-to-visit grandson is of an age when he is likely to react similarly. Here's a link to that project. It was the first project with the current contractor and our first experience using dark wall colors: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6196804/new-bathroom-on-main-floor

Tuesday was a day nobody was supposed to be here but the joint was jumping! A crew blew insulation into the attic to replace what fell down when the ceilings were open. Another crew replaced the siding around the window at the end of the hall that had to be moved to line up with the stairwell. It also was smaller. It was like a skin graft where they took siding from another area and then put new siding on that area. I thought they did a great job.

The contractor did an internal inspection of the showers to make sure they would drain well and decided the would not. We discussed various options and made a decision together. This is their understanding of the solution. What do you think?

What are we looking at?

A regrading of the border between the shower area and the vanity area. I requested they make the grade more gentle. We'll see how the next attempt goes.

Thank goodness he did the drain test!

I agree @RedRyder . It's not ideal to have to re-grade and re-tile, but I am glad to do it with half-cut pebble instead of a large-format or even square mosaic tile floor. With the pebbles I feel like it's almost natural looking to have a "berm" at the threshold. I'll show pictures of how it turns out in case someone else has this sort of what our Houzz writers like to call an "uh-oh" moment. I'm sure the contractor is not thrilled with the grade failure, but it's admirable that they care enough to get it right.

A little progress on another front. Today our red oak stairs got sanded and stained with Minwax semitransparent stain Jacobean mixed with some other color. It definitely looks chocolate! I have to find out what the other color is and what proportion was mixed. They said they were told the stairs were white oak so, when they sanded it off and saw it was red oak, they decided to add something to the Jacobean. Bless my husband for saying I hate yellow and love red. Hubby has been listening! Wow! One picture is of the stairs. Yes my anaglypta is covered in sanding dust. The other picture is of the bottom step with a sample of the titanium travertine below it that will be the flooring there at the end of the downstairs renovation: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6372549/renovating-the-main-floor-of-this-1979-split-level-builder-grade-home

The steps look good!

The clear top coat was applied to the stairs. Here is a picture from the bottom of the stairs and another picture revealing a comparison with the cork flooring. I think the stain and top coat are a good match of hue and gloss level. Now we just have to repair the wall damage and paint the white pieces down the sides. I keep wanting to call them stringers but was told that's not the right term.

Thinking my son's family would need privacy upstairs, I pushed the installation of window treatments. They are the top down kind I've never had before but seemed right because they help me avoid less than stellar views of the street but see pretty tree tops and clouds. The color for all is called "Space Gray". These are in the workout room in day and night.

Just one in the primary bedroom, day and night.

In the secondary bedroom:

And the end of the main hallway:

Turns out the stain on the stairs was Jacobean only. The thing that my husband thought was an additional stain was just water popping. That's a relief to me since I want the two steps around the corner to match some day.

So this is the "fix" for re-grading the shower and not seeing that huge grout gap. What do you think?

Now that my son and family are done visiting, the contractor got right back to work with the electricians first. In addition to installing paintable cord covers for two pairs of wall sconces in the primary bedroom, they installed these mood lights in the workout room at 300 lumens each: https://vakkerlight.com/products/kinetic-shadow-wall-lamp?_pos=166&_sid=9258c2b5d&_ss=r

And I plugged in one of two lights of the type I ordered for this room's west wall, to repeat the idea of grasses implied by the anaglypta on the south wall in green.

workout room · More Info

workout room · More Info

I had to laugh as my husband marveled at how innovative it was to entertain the grandkids by having puzzles on the cork floors upstairs being renovated... no furniture. He previously was concerned, thinking the floor would be too hard. But my 7-year-old grandson first sat down on it and spread his hands on it and said, "Oooooo" at how comfortable it was. After a couple days, my 10-year-old local granddaughter declared that bedroom should always be for puzzling on the floor. Cork flooring up here was a great choice.

At the end of the hallway, by the window, the shelving for the two shallow closets with mirrored doors went up yesterday. After they are painted and the doors go back up, we won't be able to see them as clearly, so I got this picture. I left more space at the top (17") and more at the bottom (24" or 18") and had smaller spaces in between. I look forward to moving items upstairs as soon as these closets are finished. Our downstairs bathroom and utility closet are packed full of cleaning supplies and back-up personal care items during this renovation.