Just do it # 18: Make over the smallest room in our house

Dan and I are bad about endlessly talking about a project before starting it.

Take our bathroom.

You might remember from my earlier post that at first it looked like this:

It might not photograph as bad, but up close it was.

Dan and I talked about doing two minor changes (floor and vanity) for years. We kept complaining about how there was too much white: the curtains, shelves, vanity, mat, towels, baskets... everything, except the dingy linoleum that was once white but had turned the color of a dead tooth.

Finally, we decided to do something about it. You all already know the first step we did was ripping up all the linoleum and discovering vintage tile underneath. Well, since that post three weeks ago, we have:

1. Thoroughly cleaned the tile
(Dan went nuclear on it with mineral spirits, then soap and water, then bleach.)

2. Picked out a new vanity and faucet from Lowe's

3. Took two hours putting said vanity together

4. Hired Lowe's people to install it for us

5. Purchased a few new accessories

6. Painted the wall tile where it had chipped.

7. Rocked out with our caulk out

(No, I didn't make up this home improvement pun, but it applies. We caulked everything within an inch of its life. :)

Anyhoo, keep in mind this is a minor makeover since we're two teachers on a budget and are planning on selling in the next few years, but I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out!

Before:

Now:

Once we cleaned up the vintage tile, I kind of liked it. There are a few that are slightly discolored or cracked, but overall they look pretty damn good for being from the 50's. It just didn't make sense to rip all of this up, so we're leaving it.

Vanity before:

Vanity now:

I have to say I like the modern look of our new vanity! It's sleek, has a fairly roomy cabinet, and now I finally have a place for a couple towels:

Before, we had one of those tacky faucets that looks like a crystal ball:

Now, we have this brushed nickel one:

In terms of accessories, I picked up expresso brown towels and face cloths since I'm so sick of the constant bleaching of the white ones. I also bought a basket to store toilet paper and a cushy brown mat.

This picture doesn't look as good as it does in person, but here's the cabinet now:





And here's the new cushy rug that will hopefully hide dirt much better:

Insane close up of cushy rug:

So that's how we finally finished our tweaks on our tiny, 1950's bathroom.

Verdict of this "just do it": DONE

that is, until we stop endlessly discussing the outdated light fixture (not pictured) and actually do something about that too.

I give it two more years... :)