Last week I told you about my U-G-L-Y bathroom and how annoyed I was with myself about leaving it half painted and letting it make me miserable for so long. Instead of being my own worst client and a procrastinator when it came to my own home design, I decided that it was BEYOND time to do something about it.
So what would I do if I was working with me as a design client? (First off I’d pat myself on the back for hiring someone so fantastic who was going to help me finally get stuff done. Snort!)
Back in the real world (!), I’d get to know my client, her style, and her goals for the project by asking a bunch of important questions, like…
If you could wave a magic wand, what would your room be like?
Before we purchase a single thing or launch into demolition, we’d talk about what needs to change and what the room should look and feel like.
As a sad reminder, this is what my bathroom looks like right now. Any questions about what I might be wanting to change?!
Here was my wishlist:
finish painting the room (duh!)
PRIORITY! change the hideous Formica countertops - - ideally to a marble slab
update the drab cabinets
replace the old sink and faucet
do SOMETHING about the laminate floor
pull everything together with some bright pops of color
Next question: what’s your budget and your priorities?
Like most everyone else in the world, I’m not made of money, so this project was going to have to be purely cosmetic - - Design on a Dime, here I come! Besides, someday I want to gut the whole thing and start over. (Being my own designer and my own client, I read my own mind and already knew all this!)
Marble countertops might be out the window, but I told myself there had to be some clever things I could do to snazz everything up without spending a bunch of money, including that horrific countertop.
Next step: research and collect ideas
Pinterest is my best friend when it comes to looking for ideas. I’ve been pinning things to my DIY Tips board for quite awhile, so I went over there to do some browsing and found this gem:
This is a vinyl decal that can be applied to a wall or a countertop and looks just like marble! I probably wouldn’t put this on a kitchen countertop in a rental like one woman did, but in a bathroom where the countertop doesn’t get such hard use, I thought this might be just the thing.
It's waterproof and re-positionable. And for $16.99 on Amazon, there wasn’t much to lose if I hated it, or if it only lasted a year or two. Plus it was exactly the size I needed. SCORE.
I also discovered on Pinterest how great painted floors can look and how easy they are to do. Bye-bye, crummy laminate flooring, I won’t be missin’ ya!
The vanity cabinet can easily be painted as well and updated with these glass knobs. I found them on Amazon too and they’ll go great with the mirror you’ll see in a minute.
Three big hurdles already jumped over. The rest of it, the accessories, will be a cake walk.
Another piece of advice I give my clients when re-decorating:
Go shopping in your own home
Lots of times you already have items that can re-purposed, moved to another room, freshened up with paint, grouped with other stuff, you get the idea. Here’s some extra good junk I already had that I thought would work in the bathroom:
A vintage-y mirror similar to this one that had belonged to my nice Aunt Delores:
This decorative plate and huge glass goblets I’ve had for years:
A zebra print shower curtain that was already hanging up:
Plus a nice black picture frame I found stuck back in the closet that could be used to display some cool wrapping paper from my collection.
So I’m going to go out on a limb and say, with the help of my designer, (wink wink) I finally have a plan and I love it! Woo hoo!
Here’s what it looks like with everything pulled together:
I’m so excited I'm finally doing this, and can’t wait to actually get going on my zippy bathroom decorating plan. I’ve already ordered the glass knobs and the decal for the countertop. It's gonna be fabulous, I just know.
What's up for next week: decide whether I want to spring for a new sink and faucet and … PAINT THE BATHROOM.
What are you working on? Are you someone who lives to plan or do you need help making one? Leave your comments or questions below. :-)
