Thursday, September 22, 2011

While the Husband's Away...

Every September my husband leaves on his annual hunting trip back to the Yukon for two weeks and every time he leaves I have a list of projects to complete before he gets home.  This year is no exception...so I decided it was time to tackle the bathroom.  It certainly wasn't a major "gut" of the room, but I updated the light fixture, painted, added some moulding, etc.  Just things I could do to give it a "fresher" new look.  Before I go any further, I just want you to know that I am aware that the shower curtain, towels and bathmat DO NOT MATCH the room...I just haven't had time to go out and look for new stuff, but I will get to it!  So, here it is...




It started out looking like this...



I absolutely hated the Hollywood lights!  Over at Pretty Handy Girl, she gave a tutorial on how to change out such a light fixture, so I gave it a go.  It was very easy to do, however, the electrical box was not centered over the mirror...it was to the left which ticked me off!! 



Not much I could do about that as I am not an electrician nor was I calling one to do it!  So, I made due with what I had and the new light fixture I bought actually fit perfectly.  Again, its not centered over the mirror, but I'll live with it. (Oh...just when I started to take pictures the middle bulb burned out...nothing will every be perfect around here!)




I painted the walls a light blue color called "Live" from Home Hardware. (I love their paint!)  It's a very soft color and very calming.  I added beadboard wallpaper...yip, wallpaper!  It was cheap and doesn't look too bad!  I used MDF (1/2") to add trim to the beadboard, top and bottom.  I painted it with a white called "Puff Ball".  I also painted the existing door trim and door with the same color.  As well, I painted the vanity. 



Speaking of the vanity...if you look at the before picture closely, you will see that the countertop extended over the back of the toilet. 



Now, without trying to bore you, but I must explain, you will see that the "extension" has a big hole cut out of it.  When we replaced the toilet, the new one was too tall for the space...low flow toilet with the flush buttons on top of the tank.  The toilet fit, but you couldn't get your hand in to flush it, so out of frustration, my husband got out the jigsaw and cut an opening big enough to expose the buttons!  The whole thing didn't seem to bother him...as he said, problem solved!  Okay, I removed that section of the countertop because it bothered me!

I made a frame for the mirror using 1x4 pine and painted it a dark brown.  I also used the same brown to trim the vanity doors and to paint the towel ladder I built...again, from 1x4 pine and dowel. 



The hand towel rack is actually a wrought iron flower pot holder.  It was an off-white, but I spray painted it with Rustoleum's oil rubbed bronze.


I added height to the doorway by using 1/2" MDF cut to the width of the doorway by 4" high.  I trimmed it with crown moulding then painted the entire thing the same color as the door and trim. 



My so-called artwork is a bunch of scrap 1x4's glued together, randomly painted with the same colors used in the bathroom and funky candle lanterns attached to it. 


Not much else to tell you...that's about it! 


Thank you for stopping by...I hope you enjoyed your visit.  Have a great weekend!

Lesa

14 comments:

  1. oops, hit post too quickly...

    I love the hanging lanterns that you put together. I admire that you cut that counter top off. The colours go perfectly with your towels and curtain, think sand and sea.

    Smallish spaces are always the hardest to do and you've done a great job.

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  2. I absolutely love the chunky wood and fun laterns! Too cute! Great job on the bathroom! I am impressed! You have inspired me to work on my wood working skills!

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  3. you are SO talented! move over Sarah Richardson... I love you lantern/art piece, just beautiful. thanks for sharing!

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  4. Looks great! Quite a transformation and I love the new color scheme!

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  5. I love the scrap wood and lanterns.
    Inspiring idea!

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  6. I love the colours you've chosen. Everything is so soothing and restful. I've awarded you a Versatile Blogger Award. I love reading your blog. Please check out my latest post on L'Heure Bleue At Home (http://www.lheurebleueathome.blogspot.com/) for the rules if you choose to pass on the award. Please link back to my post if you decided to mention receiving award on your blog. Have a lovely day!

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  7. Beautiful! You did an amazing job! I love the colors. I have to say.. I would be afraid to tackle a project like this without the hubster. Major kudos to you!

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  8. This looks great! I love your artwork, and that ladder! Pinning this one.

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  9. Hi Lesa, This looks wonderful! Can you please tell me where got the flower pot/towel holder?

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  10. Oh I absolutely love this bathroom re-do. I am getting ready to do ours and this has given me so much inspiration! Thank you for posting.

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  11. Oh I absolutely love this bathroom re-do. I am getting ready to do ours and this has given me so much inspiration! Thank you for posting.

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