What a transformation! Our basement underpin is officially complete!
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Renovating My Toronto Victorian Home - Episode 12!
With a baby on the way, the clock was ticking!
Three weeks earlier, Adam and I had pulled the trigger on phase 3 of our Toronto home renovations, kicking off the project with a much anticipated basement underpin. We had spent the past few months meticulously planning out the project with our structural engineer Ken Davis all while interviewing a variety of underpinning contractors. Now, three weeks into the basement underpin our basement waterproofing and underpinning contractor ICY Reno had finished pouring all the underpinning sections as well as both bench footings and was starting to dig out all the remaining sand to lower the basement floor for good. You could say things were really starting to take shape.
The Baby’s Nursery
As ICY Reno continued to make headway on the basement, I busied myself with preparing the nursery. This would be Adam and I’s first child and I was eager to nest and create a calming space that I would not only like to spend time in but would also last as a children’s room for years to come. Drawing inspiration from my own childhood bedroom, a handprinted menagerie of exotic birds, I stumbled upon a beautiful woodland themed wallpaper mural online from WallpaperMural.com that was reminiscent of quiet summer mornings at the cottage. The soft palette, friendly furry creatures and beautiful meadow scenery quickly became the main inspiration that I pulled from. In addition to ordering enough traditional wallpaper to create a feature-wall, I also ordered a few extra panels of the same mural in a peel-and-stick format so that I could cut out the creatures and stick them around the room as if they walked out of the mural. This charming effect not only helped tie in the adjacent walls but added another layer of enchantment to an already entrancing room.
At the time, Adam and I had taken over the middle bedroom claiming it as our at-home-office space but after relocating our desks and clearing out the remaining furniture, I had a clean canvas to work with.
Installing our Nursery Room Wallpaper & Picking the Perfect Paint
In the last two months of pregnancy I unexpectedly developed carpal tunnel (apparently this is very common but no one talks about it) making my hands go numb and tingly when put under to much stress. Because of this I found it difficult to keep a grip on tools when working long hours. Thankfully my painter Ariel was happy to assist me with installing the traditional wallpaper mural in the nursery and paint the adjacent walls. For the adjacent walls I pulled two colours from the mural, a green and a blue, that I thought would add to the calming effect of the meadow scene. In the end, I went with ‘Silver Mist’ by Benjamin Moore, a soothing greyish blue colour, perfect for our soon-to-be baby boy.
Interested in adding some wallpaper to your next project? Use my code ISTHATSOH_10 for 10% off your purchase from WallpaperMural.com
HOT TIP: If you are going to buy the extra peel and stick nursery wallpaper panels like me and decal the creatures around the room, make sure to wait a few weeks after painting before applying them! This way the paint has plenty of time to dry and you can avoid pulling the paint off your freshly painted wall when/if you want to switch up the placement of the decal.
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Decorating Our Nursery
To complete the room I chose a simple yet timeless walnut crib by DaVinci (a baby shower gift from my wonderful Aunt Shirley) and ordered three beautiful woodland creature prints to display over the crib, which I also framed in walnut.
Since finishing the second floor renovation in our Toronto Victorian home, I had yet to do anything with the twin closet spaces in the back two bedrooms. Fearing my time was running out, I hurriedly ordered a wardrobe organizer online from IKEA that I knew would do the trick (at least for now) for the baby nursery. I had received a lot of gifts and clothes at my baby shower and was eager to organize them neatly and by growth stage. To aid in this goal I also picked up some velvet baby hangers from Home Sense and ordered a 4-pack of large white and grey fabric storage bins with a cute rope handle detail from Amazon which worked perfectly for my change table and as a hamper. Since I didn’t have time to figure out a door situation for the closet I ended up ordering a tension curtain rod and the most adorable velvet ivory curtains with a pom pom trimmed fringe that revealed just enough of the closet to give you a glimpse of what’s inside while hiding the mountain of diapers and wet wipes.
BTW: I have now included baby gear and nursery decor on my Amazon store front! You can check it out HERE!
My Search for The Perfect Machine Washable Rug
In addition to setting up the wardrobe and crib, I was also on the search for the perfect machine washable rug. I had been eyeing a few online but the expensive price tag that accompanies them prevented me from pulling the trigger. It wasn’t until I was walking on Queen Street with my niece, that I remembered a new Cozey store had opened up close by and decided to pop in to see what they had. To my surprise they had a line up of beautiful machine washable rugs at a fraction of the price I was finding online. What really made me fall head over heels for this brand though was their amazing customer service. After ordering their Savannah washable rug (which comes with a non slip cushioned pad for underneath) and seeing it splayed out in the nursery, I was beginning to have regrets about my choice. Although beautiful, the pattern was too busy for the room and distracted from the nursery wallpaper. When I called them to ask if I can exchange it for their Chloe rug instead, they sent a new carpet to my house without hesitation along with a return slip for the old one. Furthermore, I didn’t even have to drop the old carpet off at the store or bring it to a courier location. All I was required to do was call Purolator and schedule a pick up. Purolator than came to my house to grab the carpet. This hassle-free customer service experience made my life so much easier and given I was beginning to have contractions at the time and labour was imminent, I was incredibly grateful for such spectacular customer service.
Two days after baby and I returned from the hospital my fine carpenter dropped off the repaired Bentwood rocking chair!
The Return of Our Bentwood Rocking Chair!
Last but certainly not least, remember the oak Bentwood rocking chair I found on the street and shared via Instagram stories? Well two days after baby and I returned home from the hospital, my wonderful fine carpenter dropped it off! A small section under the seat was in need of repair and my fine carpenter was able to steam, shape and stain a piece of oak to replace the broken section. Both baby and I love the rocking chair! It’s so comfortable, great for nursing and works wonders when rocking our baby boy to sleep. I had the same rocking chair in my childhood bedroom growing up so it also adds an element of nostalgia for me as I begin this journey into motherhood.
WE FOUND A LEAK!
Our main floor front window started leaking after a few days of torrential downpour
To add another layer of ‘fun’ to our Toronto home renovations, while all of this was going on our main floor front window started leaking. One night (and after a few days of crazy torrential downpour) I came downstairs to the kitchen to grab a glass of water. As I passed through the front room my ears perked up as the sound of water dripping grabbed my attention. Upon further inspection it was clear that water had found its way in from above and had created a crack between the window trim and frame.
This area of the house had been a problem in the past but after completing intensive restorative carpentry work on the windows last fall, we thought we had solved the problem. Turns out the windows may not have been our only entry point for water. The small flat roof above the front window was also in poor shape and the aluminum flashing was peeling off the wall. Furthermore, the brick work on the front facade was in need of remediation as huge gaps could be seen in the mortar and under the sills. A stress crack above our second floor window arch had also formed causing bricks to come loose. Needless to say, all of this needed to be addressed quickly before serious damage (or injury) occurred.
To help solve our unexpected problem we called in our friend Pablo who specializes in flat roof repairs in Toronto. He was able to fix the roof in one day and also put us in touch with Arcana Restoration who was quickly able to set up scaffolding, rebuild the arch above the second floor window and take care of the additional tuck pointing needed to prevent water from getting in.
Once the brick remediation and roof repairs were complete, Pablo came back and tackle our deck. Our French bulldog Sophie loves to sunbathe and the second floor front balcony is her favourite spot. Since we had to take the deck off to do roof repairs, I asked Pablo if we could replace the floor boards with something a little more pet friendly. I wasn’t sure what kind of wood the original deck was built with but it was old, the paint was peeling and if there was ever a time to replace it, the time was now. After going back and forth with Pablo about the different products/materials out there, he convinced me that a sealed cedar deck would not only look beautiful but cedar is a non toxic, pet friendly material with great longevity. In the end, the deck floor he built looked amazing and Sophie is one happy pup now that she has her favourite sunbathing spot back again.
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Basement has been completely dug out and ICY Reno has moved onto waterproofing in preparation for gravel and radiant floor install!
Underpinning Progress and HVAC Delays
While Pablo and Arcana tackled the outside of the house, ICY Reno was making progress inside. They started with disconnecting, lowering and reconnecting the main drain, installed Delta Dimpled membrane to complete the basement waterproofing, and laid a new bed of gravel down in preparation for installation of the radiant floors. Unfortunately for us, I had not applied for an HVAC/Mechanical permit prior to starting our underpin and after talking with Igor at ICY Reno, I started having second thoughts about it. What worried me was, if we proceeded without one, later if we ever needed to apply for one because we were finishing the basement, the city requirements could change and the pipes would already be buried under a few inches of concrete. The safest approach would be to apply for one now, install it as per the current requirements so we don’t have to worry about it coming to bite us in the ass later. The only issue with this new plan was that before applying for the permit we had to get an HVAC designer to put together drawing for us which ate up a few valuable weeks in addition to an extra week for the city to processes and approve the permit.
As we waited for the city to approve our HVAC permit Adam and I celebrated the impending arrival of our baby boy with a baby shower! Friends and family came from near and far, showering us in love, well wishes and gifts for our soon-to-be bundle of joy.
Introducing Coronal Loop by Shahla Kareen Friberg!
Coronal Loop By Shahla Kareen Friberg
One person who I was especially excited to have visiting was my older sister Shahla. Shahla Kareen Friberg is a multifaceted creative individual who for the past 8 years has been primarily focused on creating sculptural works using glass, mirror, and solder from which she has earned recognition for internationally. From LA to New York, Stockholm and Copenhagen, her works have been featured in numerous exhibitions and art fairs, and now I too would have the honour of exhibiting her work on my walls. Currently living in Sweden, it’s not often enough we get to see each other and up until this point in my pregnancy we had not seen each other since my wedding in Italy last September. Coming by way of Los Angeles, Shahla brought with her a very special piece that I had been eyeing titled Coronal Loop. It was during this visit to Toronto that she was able to deliver and install the piece above my fireplace mantel. An eye catching, light casting, exploding 3D crown of mirror, lead free solder and copper foil. A magnificent piece of art that will surely influence how I decorate the rest of my home once all our renovations are done.
Wrapping Up Our Basement Underpin
After three and a half weeks of HVAC permit delays, we were ready to rock and roll. With permit in hand ICY Reno was able to rough-in the radiant heat in the basement, pass inspection and pour the final concrete floor in less than a week. The only thing left for them to do was some left over Delta Dimpled membrane installation and a final walk though before the job was entirely done. I have to say Adam and I were very happy with the work ICY Reno did on our basement. Igor and his crews were a pleasure to work with were super organized, efficient, and coordinated, and I am confident we would have been able to wrap up the project sooner had there been no HVAC delays. If you are looking for a basement underpinning contractor or need help with interior basement waterproofing, I can’t recommend them enough.
BEFORE AND AFTER PHOTOS OF OUR BASEMENT UNDERPIN
Of course nothing goes smoothly without a well thought out master plan and our Toronto Structural Engineer Ken Davis gave us just that. With over 3000 residential projects under his belt Ken has been helping homeowners and contractors achieve their design and renovation goals. From new builds to additions, laneway home and garden suits, K H Davis Engineering does it all. Not only has Ken helped us before with previous phases of our Toronto home renovation but he has also worked on many century homes in Toronto, which has provided him with a knowledge base anyone hoping to begin a build or renovation would be fortunate to leverage.
Egress Windows Arrive and Underpinning Permit is Closed
With ICY Reno’s work completed, the only thing left we needed to do before we could close our underpinning permit was install our basement windows (which included a new Egress window). Despite having given our manufacturer plenty of lead time, the windows were delayed by close to a month and instead of having the project wrapped up before the babies arrival, it wasn’t until weeks after we came home from the hospital that they were ready for install. As annoying as that was to deal with while navigating life with a newborn, I’m glad to say its over and am happy to report that our underpinning permit is officially closed! YAY!
Finishing touches on our custom staircase are complete!
Finishing Work on Our Custom Staircase
To wrap things up for the summer, one last item we were able to check off our ‘to do’ list was finish off our custom staircase. It had been over a year since the new staircase had been installed and there was one small triangle portion under the main staircase that remained unfinished. Now, with a baby at home, this large opening/hole would eventually pose as a danger and therefore shot up to the top of our list of ‘things we needed to do to baby proof the house’. Thankfully my fine carpenter swooped in once again to save the day! It took Graham a good part of a day to compete this small but intricate and detailed task, and now that it’s done the only thing that remains is giving it a good ol’ splash of paint!
Now that the baby has arrived I am in no rush to finish the basement. Everyone says the first few months although challenging are fleeting and I have every intention to focus the majority of my attention on our little one. With that being said I will use the summer to gather inspiration, request quotes, source materials, put together a budget and figure out our next steps in our Toronto basement renovation.
Thank you so much for checking in once again on our Toronto home renovation series and reading this blog post. If you have any questions about renovating a Victorian home, what it’s like to live in Toronto or need recommendations for Toronto contractors/suppliers, hit me up in the comments below!
With love from Toronto!
Before I sign off, I’d also like to say a big thank you to K H Davis Engineering, ICYReno, and Wallpapermurals.com for partnering with me on this project. I’m so excited to be working with such reputable companies on our Toronto home renovation but want to reiterate that, like always, all opinions remain my own.
Until next time,
- Soheila
