When we moved into our house just after Christmas, our bathrooms were in working order but were not complete. So I finished a couple of easy projects.

To provide natural light in the boys' windowless bathroom we had left a 4-foot-wide hole in the wall between the stairwell and bathroom. The hole was to be filled with a piece of Polygal (dual-wall polycarbonate) to obscure views while allowing light to enter.

I've had the polycarbonate cut and ready to go for three months but had not taken the time to cut the aluminum channel and fit it into place. After measuring, I cut the aluminum channel and pre-drilled holes to fasten it into place. It certainly is industrial but fits perfectly with the rubberized flooring and metal garage-style door we used to hide the boys' mess.

In the master bathroom we had planned to use a wood front on the tub surround. However, from the moment it was installed, Stacy and I knew it wasn't the right material. The wood interrupted the flow of the concrete floors and didn't fit with the sophisticated look of the zebra wood cabinets. I replaced the wood front with leftover pieces of concrete board and brought the room back into harmony.

But the bathroom still wasn't finished. After taking a shower, I pulled on the shower handle and it came off. Apparently, it hadn't been tightened well or worked itself free over time. It was easy to put back on, but Toto fixtures are very heavy-duty and high-quality so the handle had some serious weight to it. The impact as it struck the tub floor shattered one of the tiles -- one more project to complete.

Jason Hammond is at hammond@mojosolo.com.