Sunday, March 15, 2009

Once upon a time there was a plain beige bathroom

Thanks to Susan for hosting Metamorphosis Monday. Click the butterfly to the right and it will take you to Susan's site for a list of other great projects.



Before


This past week I have been very busy trying to take my sons' boring beige bathroom and turn it in to something they would love. Their rooms are upstairs and they share this bathroom. They hated it and would never use it, even in the middle of the night they would come downstairs, at 2 a.m., turn on all the lights and use the bathroom downstairs.

One day I was reading Nester's blog and she said something about, "it doesn't have to be perfect". Nester also had a post about how they fixed their kitchen up to sell the house and how she wished she had done it long ago so she could have enjoyed it. I decided I wasn't going to wait for a carpenter or someone to come do it for me, I was going to do it all by myself, it didn't have to be perfect. Thanks Nester!

This is what I started with, a boring beige bathroom

One week and $400.00 later, this is the after.

At first I was just going to paint the bathroom and buy some matching towels. Well, you know how one thing leads to another. One day while reading Karla's blog
It's the little things that make a house a home I came across this. (Hi Karla, hope you don't mind I stole your picture)
I knew this look would be perfect in the bathroom. Go check out her blog, she gives directions.

I called my friend, Cindy, told her to come over I had a project and this is how we spent the day. That is me in the photo.



By the end of the day, this is what we had accomplished. Is it perfect? No. Does it matter? No.




Next came the paint. I found several old looking sports pictures, I pulled the colors for the paint from those pictures. I love the red.


We started out with the cheap premade cabinets that you buy at Lowes or Home Depot. Even though this bathroom never was used, the cabinets looked pretty sad. I painted them black. So of course, they needed new handles and hinges. I can't believe what a difference the handles made, cost was around $30.00
Before
After

The nice new paint job on the cabinet made the big plain mirror look terrible. I bought trim, cut it to the length I needed and attached it to the mirror with Velcro. The trim for the mirror was $30-$40. The nice new trim around the mirror needed a new light, $100.00. I called the electrician to come hang it for me. He couldn't come until next week, so I did it myself. And Hey, it works!!
After
Before

Next came the accessories. I knew my kids would never fold towels neat and place them on towel bars, so I put up hooks. I think they were around $5- $6 each at Home Depot. I am loving these, I will probably put these hooks in all of my bathrooms.



To finish the bathroom I hung shelves, place hand towels in old locker baskets I got from our local grade school, added old tins that I bought years ago, placed soap and other bathroom items in jars that I found at Wal-Mart on clearance, added a light because that was one of the things you need in Nester's post on "Having a bathroom you love". And there you have it, hopefully a bathroom my kids will use. And I can not tell you how satisfying it is to be able to say that I did everything in there by myself (My friend, Cindy, did help me hang the boards).




Thanks for stopping by my blog. Keep scrolling down to read each day's progress and the "how to" on framing the mirror.

54 comments:

Stephanie said...

*****Applause!!!!!!******

You did a great job!

Barb @ The Everyday Home said...

Wendy! Awesome job! I love everything you did, and kudos to you for hanging your own light. (I have always hang my own, too) I love the vintage touches such as the basket and the jars. 5 stars!

Unknown said...

Wendy, what do you mean it "doesn't have to be perfect!" It looks like a professional job. You rock!

Anonymous said...

Wendy, that looks so good. You really made it look like it was done by an ID. I love it.

Anonymous said...

You crack me up, girl. Waiting at church on the camera crews to bust through the doors. LOL. Have you read some of the comments that people are leaving in the HGTV blog? Apparently, people are upset because this was supposed to be aired live.
http://blog.hgtv.com/dreamhome/2009/03/15/are-you-watching/

ellen b. said...

Wendy! hats off to you!! This is a fabulous transformation. Nothing boring about this bathroom!

Anonymous said...

I really don't see how it could be live. If the homeowners were not at home, the networks have lost time and money. Read some of the comments and you will see what I mean.

Knitty said...

That looks great! I am going to show my husband this and prod him into working on our bathroom!

Anonymous said...

Oh, Wendy! This is marvelous! I love what you've done - a total transformations! I'll bet those boys fight over this great bathroom now! Kudos to you, Dear One!!
Be a sweetie,
Shelia :)

Karla said...

LOL! I don't mind at all! :)

It looks GREAT! I love all of the little touches that you added. Made the whole room come together! And, by the way, I agree with the previous comment...it DOES look perfect! :)

~Karla

Susan @ A Southern Daydreamer said...

Oh my! what a transformation! You did a wonderful job!

Susan

The Nester said...

Is it perfect? NO. Does it matter? No.

LOVE THAT! IT looks so good--I added it to the Nest Files tumblr!

Jenny@ L.O.T.s of Love said...

Fabulous! You did a great job! I'm so inspired!

Carrie @carrieloves said...

Wow! I am new to your blog, but I have to say love your bathroom re-do, those walls are amazing! I think I'll have to copy you.

Chandy said...

Yay, that's a great bathroom! Great job!

susan said...

Now that's an HGTV episode!!! Congratulations on a perfect transformation.

Julie said...

Wendy- Your 2 aunts in Olathe LOVE your bathroom! When I spoke to Debi this morning, she had already seen the finished room & said what a good job you did & how much she likes it! I could hardly wait to see it....I'M AMAZED! WHAT A GREAT JOB! It looks like a step by step, before & after re-do that you'd see in a magazine! Way to go!!!

Anonymous said...

What a difference.wowow.You really made it standout.How corect were you.Once upon a time.I love it...ann

Melissa Miller said...

Oh my goodness Wendy!

This is truly a remarkable transformation.

I adore the gorgeous Red and all the extra details!

~BRAVO!!! :)

Julie said...

You've really inspired me! I'm ready to give one or two of the cats a makeover!!

Mom in High Heels said...

WOW! That is amazing. I'll bet they love their bathroom now. And the hooks! I love those!

Connie said...

I thought I would stop by and see what Wendy was up to. You did a great job on your son's bathroom. I love the red ! I couldn't tell what color the mirror frame was ~~ a guess would be black ??
Can't believe you tackled the electricity........ I know how to do it, but I am a big chicken when it comes to doing that. My daughter does all hers in her condo with no fear. I think if you do it once, and it doesn't kill you, it's a walk in the park.
Seriously, great job !!!
Connie

Linda (Nina's Nest) said...

I hope your boys love that bathroom because it is fabulous! Love the wall trim, the color, and all the little touches. Especially love the light fixture - I have got to change my old one in the hall bath - it's all re-done except for those Hollywood bulbs. Way to go, girl! Linda

Kelli said...

I'm Kelli. May I ask what color you used on the top of the walls. I like it.

Farmer's Wife said...

This is so great I cant stand it. I was going to put beadboard in my boys bathroom, but this has way more character. can you tell me, do your walls have texture or are they smooth? I am wondering if the orange peel on my walls would look funny with the trim. thanks, Molly

Wendy said...

Hi Molly,

I too was going to put beadboard in the boys' bathroom. I thought this was much more masculine looking, and cheaper. I think the trim was around 40 cents a foot.

My walls are textured, not heavy but up close you can tell they do have a texture to them.

Linda in AZ * said...

*** What a SUPER SPACE, Wendy!!! Creative, great-looking & FUN, too!!! K*U*D*O*S, kiddo!!! Warmly, Linda ***

Farmer's Wife said...

Thank you Wendy. I am definitely doing this as my next project. I cant stop looking at your pictures, just in love.......Molly

~CC Catherine said...

Wendy, What a fabulous makeover, you can see all the hard work and attention to detail that you dedicated to each task! Super job! Your son must love it! ~CC Catherine

Michelle, All Home and Love said...

Hi Wendy,
The bathroom looks great! I love the colors in there. Glad to hear they are using it again, yay!
~Michelle

Laurel @ Ducks in a Row said...

Wow - That's amazing. Everything looks really really great! I'm so inspired.

Connie said...

Oh my, you just answered a dilema I have been having about a bathroom makeover. Brilliant!!!!
I love, love, love the wainscot idea, I think I could even do that.
That bathroom went from ho-hum to Ta-Daaaaa!!

Rainy Day Farm said...

Wow!!!! That is so fabulous. I even got my husband excited to try that. It's so easy! Thanks so much for sharing!

Unknown said...

what an amazing job you did!! My daughter and i actually did our own electric by changing out the bathroom light, the oven exhaust fan/light, and the ceiling light in the entry hall, very satisfing and not hard at all. I am glad the boys love their new bathroom! sue

Christi said...

It looks fantastic! I'm really digging the locker baskets for the towels - I'll have to be on the lookout for some.

Thanks for the inspiration!

Traci @ The Bakery said...

OMG....SUPER!!! I'm adding you to my blog roll...so creative you are.

Vanessa {Bloom Right Here!} said...

Wow! That bathroom re-do is amazing! I am so inspired!

Tracy said...

Wow! What an amazing bathroom re-do! I'm inspired! = )

Kimba said...

Oh my stinkin' cheese!!!! It looks fantastic!!!!

I'm tucking this away in my faves to refer to later. I am so impressed! Thanks for telling me.

Kimba

Astrid in Bristling Acres said...

Gorgeous! I came here via Soft Place to Land. I'm going to have to do that wall treatment! It actually looks do-able. What an amazing transformation!

Heather said...

A perfect boys bathroom!! Wonderful redo!

Katy said...

This looks GREAT! ...very Pottery Barn Kids. Yay for you, do your boys like it?

queenbee said...

This is beautiful!!! I love the boards, I think I want to try this in lots of rooms in my house. Thanks for the inspiration.

Crafty Niche said...

What a CUTE bathroom!

The Soladay Family said...

Wow...what an amazing job you did! SO creative, and such a transformation!

Funky Junk Interiors said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
redsoxmom said...

Awesome,awesome job. The hooks are great for kids (especially boys), who don't like to hang up their towels, aren't they? Being a baseball lover, I really like the prints. The wood framing was a great touch, too. The old locker baskets--what a find! Love it all! Bravo!

philben5 said...

Fabulous!! We too are in the middle of a bath project. We had a leak and one thing led to another. Thanks for sharing
Blessings
Roxanne

Lori said...

Simply amazing.

Funky Junk Interiors said...

I LOVE it!

The velcroing mouldings on the mirror... that is my kinda reno!!!

The board and batten looks simply exquisite. I love how you made it work with a colour of your chosing rather than just white. It's so warm!

And hey, it's no easy feat hanging a light fixture. It's downright kinda scary in a way too. I'm impressed. Ever try a chandelier? I had to use a coat hanger to dangle the fixture with while I fiddled with wires. It was so not on my top 10 list of fun things to do.

Just, outstanding. Thanks for my incredible urge to go buy some thin sticks now! arg..

Donna
at Extreme Home Renos and Funky Junk Interiors

Kim said...

I'm so glad that I came over to visit! I have been hunting around for inspiration to redo my boys' bathroom. Our bathroom has the exact same layout as your's and I love how it turned out.

I saw the board and batten technique on Karla's blog and was trying to figure out which room I could do it in.

Did you use MDF for your wood pieces?

TidyMom said...

I LOVE LOVE LOVE what you did with this bathroom!!

~TidyMom

Mrs. Jones said...

I am so inspired to do this myself! My kids bathroom needs help. Thank you!

(what did you use to cut the wood?)

~Heather

Thrifty Decor Chick said...

This is SO COOL!!! I have been thinking about doing a similar look with the molding in our guest room. I love it! Yay for you doing the light fixture too!!