Ok, here is the 411 on how I transformed our dated half bath into the bathroom everyone wants to use, ha! Also, these are instagram stories pics, so bear with me on the quality ;).
Everything seemed dated. The old oak cabinet, the walls, the light, the faucet, mirror, everything!
To me it is like a challenge. I take an old crabby looking space, change just a few things (usually just colors) and make it cool! The challenge is fixing up a space that most people would think needs to be completely remodeled. Most spaces do not need full remodeling as long as they have good bones. They just need their colors tweaked.
First up was the mirror! I knew that taking a mirror off the wall would be a pain and would probably require drywall repairs, especially once I moved the light fixture. So I took the path of least resistance and just made the mirror better! I wanted height! I called a local mirror/glass shop and had them cut me a mirror the size of the empty space above. I glued it to the wall with heavy duty mirror glue and VOILA, bigger mirror. Since I had that seam where the mirrors met I wanted to camouflage it. I measured the entire mirror and went to Lowes for wood. I cut the wood, sanded it and stained it. (If you do not have a saw, most big hardware stores will cut your wood for you). The top piece is a crown moulding piece to give the mirror more oomph and put a middle piece of wood over the seam the hide it.
Once the frame was ready I glued it to the mirror with wood glue.
Since we were covering up that back wall, we were able to cut a higher hole in the wall to get the light fixture onto the ceiling, without messing up the ceiling at all. The light fixture is from world market. I am not a fan of bright lights in a bathroom. You know how restaurants and bars have darker lights? Its so you can't see the filth. And everyone looks better. I like that, ha! Not great for online pictures, but great for anyone reapplying lipstick :)
Lord knows I love wainscoting and appreciate fine wood craftsmanship. But, it wasn't in the budget here. So We simply painted the bottom part in white. And it looks great! And was budget friendly :).
I painted the cabinet (sand, kilz, paint, seal with polyacrylic) and the top part of the wall in the same color, Lincoln Cottage by Valspar. I originally painted this color on our fireplace and did not like it because it looked blue. But here it looks just right!
New counters make a huge difference! If you call a local granite installer, they typically have small slabs left over. You might be able to find just the right one like we did for this small space. While we replaced a few things, we kept the major pieces, like the mirror, the faucet, towel ring, cabinet and floor trim. Who knew these old crabby pieces could look so good!? ;)
And you can never forget about the impact of artwork! This piece is a 24x48. I love the height of it because once again, it gives the small space a bigger/taller feel. And everyone knows that artwork in the guest bathroom means you are extremely cultured ;).
Find similar pieces here, on paper here, or framed canvas here.
So there you have it! A brand new bathroom, that still has all the old stuff plus new lighting that makes everyone look extra gorgeous ;)
TAGS: bathroom remodel, half bath update, bathroom light fixture, half painted wall, navy bathroom, charcoal bathroom, bathroom remodel on a budget, 90s bathroom, half bath remodel, Grand Rapids artist, Grand Rapids art, copper corners art, painting cabinets, tall bathroom mirror, mirror to ceiling, grand rapids artist, grand rapids art gallery, michigan artist