Second Bath Facelift, Episode 1

Our basement had a yellow-and-forest-green bathroom. (Don’t stress…this is the “before” shot):

I know, it wasn’t bad…but it also wasn’t as fresh/soothing/pretty as it could be. It also wasn’t very US (meaning there wasn’t a lick of gray in the place!).

Since the room itself is well built and in good condition, and since other projects are demanding more cash, I wanted to see if I could amp up the little bathroom on almost nothing.

So, while Chris was away on a trip last weekend, Mumsy came by to help me paint the walls with the leftover Gull paint we used in the living room, which you can see here and here.

After doing so, the horri-ugly curtain, located in the narrow window above the mirror, became even more of an eyesore.

Plus, it didn’t exactly provide privacy. See the neighbor’s house?

So I used the same etched glass window vinyl in the bathroom that I’d used on the front door in the living room. It allows a soft, filtered light to come through while keeping prying eyes OUT*.

Even painted Gull, the room was in desperate need of MORE gray (which, if you ask me, is usually the answer, whatever the question). So, I used an oil-based gray stain I found for only $5 (mis-mixed at the local hardware store) and got to work on the vanity.

Here’s the orangey oak vanity and shiny gold handles BEFORE:

And here it is after a good sanding and one good coat of cheap (price, not quality!) dark gray stain:

I LOVE that you can still see the wood grain. And did you notice the cool new chrome handles? Extra special at only $1.50 each! See how they compare to the scuffed (and SHINY GOLD!) old ones? I just couldn’t bring myself to put those back on!

Old:

New:

See how pretty the now-neutral bathroom looks? The soft light from the “etched” window is especially nice.

One more time BEFORE:

And AFTER:

It’s now in serious need of towel rods, artwork and SOMETHING needs to be done about this door, don’t you think?!

You’re looking into the room from the entry. On the other side of that door is a huge storage closet and the entry to the crawlspace under the master bedroom above. It appears to only ever have been painted with either primer or flat white paint so it, and the shiny gold knob/hinges, are on borrowed time.

All in all, at only $8 for supplies? Not a bad start!

Wishing everyone a great week!

Hugs,

T

 

*Not that we’re making any accusations—I’m sure our neighbors are lovely.