We FINALLY finished our bathroom remodel and I couldn’t be more relieved! We started it in early June, and let’s just say we were thrown alot of wrenches in our timeline. As with any major remodel, not much goes as planned, and problems arise…but we pushed through and it looks great! I want to thank our dads a million times over for all the help with this remodel. We literally couldn’t have done it without them! They both spent countless hours cutting, measuring and laying tile, along with some tricky electrical work. I’ll admit Ryan and I (mostly me) are wimps when it comes to the tile saw, so it was super helpful that our dads had the skill, tools, and generosity.
With the help of our dads, the four of us did all the demo and tile work ourselves. While it took much longer than expected (angled walls and an old house mean NO straight lines), we saved A TON of money doing it ourselves. For the sake of not putting our fathers through the ringer again with another tile project, we will be investing in some professionals to do our kitchen tile next year. In all, we spent about $1,600 for the project, which is a pretty good amount considering what it costs for a professional installation.
Here is a breakdown of what we spent on, and what we saved on by keeping:
The scheme I was going for was a crisp, bright bathroom, with classic touches and a slightly bohemian flair. The more permanent parts of the bathroom (especially the tile), I wanted stylish and slightly unique, but still classic and neutral enough to stand the test of time. The accessories are where I added color and bohemian touches, easily changed out if our tastes ever change.
One of the motifs I carried through the bathroom was a Moroccan star design. The floor tile, cabinet handles, and Moravian Star ceiling light all mimic this design. I thought it was a neat touch, since our downstairs bathroom floor tile is also a Moroccan inspired tile design, and I have plans for our kitchen floor tile to be as well.
I gathered all the linens and accessories from various stores and websites, while trying to stay as low as possible on the prices. I used the bathmat as my color inspiration, focusing mostly on the grey and mustard. Sprinkled throughout the bathroom are touches of maroon, icy blue, and light pink. In addition to the colorful touches, I brought in some more natural textures and elements, like the woven baskets and faux succulents. We couldn’t have any real plants because there isn’t a window, but the faux plants are just as pretty some as real succulents I’ve seen.
Though the bathroom is very small, and has LOTS of weird angles, we have found creative ways for plenty of storage. The Euro style sink has storage below for Ryan’s hair products, while the medicine cabinet above holds our everyday items. I added a wire shelf to the left of the sink for my rinse cup (a RD Ceramics original), the soap dispenser, and a decorative plant. This way our small sink isn’t cluttered with items (and I don’t break my rinse cup…again). By the entrance we built shelves for on-display storage. This includes our towels rolled in baskets, and our cotton balls, Q-tips, bath salt, and bath bombs in vintage glass containers. Directly beside these shelves are hidden storage original to the house, which is organized with bins for my hair products, our extra shower/toilet supplies, and cleaning products.
The tub fixtures, the sink faucet, the towel rods, the lighting…any accessory with a metal finish, was replaced with a piece in an Oil-Rubbed Bronze finish. Though it is very trendy, it is also the finish of the original door knobs in the house, so I like replicating that color metal.
The classic subway tile we chose luckily wasn’t installed as individual tiles, but there were many complications because the walls of the shower weren’t flush, perfectly straight, and the shower slopes against the roofline. However, after all the complicated cuts were completed, they look really nice with the medium grey sanded grout we chose (darker grout colors are easier to keep clean). Though we did rip out the old floor tile and install new tile on fresh backer-board, we did not do the same with the shower. Per a recommendation from an expert tiler, we installed the new tile directly over the old shower tile with a special tile adhesive we got from The Tile Shop. Since we were new to tiling, and didn’t want to deal with the unknowns beneath the tile, this was the best option for newbie tilers.
Like I mentioned previously, our bathroom is angled because it runs along the roofline of our house. This means our shower is a very unique shape, and requires a very unique shower rod. When I wanted to change all the fixture finishes, I researched buying a new shower rod. Only one distributor made it, and it was expensive and not the right metal finish. I then began to research ways of painting our existing shower rod with minimal chipping. I sanded the rod, used this primer (2 coats) and then sprayed it with a matte bronze enamel paint. I also bought shower curtain rings that slide on little metal balls, which helps the curtain move without scratching the rod. So far, its held up well!
Lighting in our bathroom was not great, and the new fixtures I had purchased were prettier, but produced less light than the originals. While we were okay with the amount of light produced with the new fixtures while we are at the sink (I do my makeup/hair in my dressing room, not the bathroom), we definitely needed more light in the shower. Ryan’s dad was able to install an LED recessed light in the shower and it made a world of difference! I recommend to anyone with lighting issues in their shower to add a recessed light. Shower curtains block so much light coming into the shower, that is definitely needed for a clean leg-shave ladies!
While we did not replace our tub, we did replace our old, stained toilet. We installed a duel flush toilet, which is super affordable and can save 1.1 gallons per flush.
The last design details we had to consider were the medicine cabinet and sink. The sink was an easy makeover of grey chalk paint on the base, a vintage-style star knob, and a new bronze faucet. While the chalk paint didn’t adhere as well to the composite material as it has previously in other projects, it looks really nice and only required a couple touch ups.
We love having a medicine cabinet, since our bathroom is small, but our existing one has alot of damage to the mirror. We researched many different medicine cabinets, but couldn’t find the right one because it was either too long for our angled wall, or too pricy. Ryan eventually found an old medicine cabinet being donated and we got a little crafty. After some trial and error, we were able to remove the mirror from our existing medicine cabinet and attach the mirror from the new medicine cabinet. I painted the wooden frame the same grey as the sink, and then used a furniture stencil to add a floral design. To “age” it a bit, I used tinted wax over the whole design.
The last touch I added to this bathroom remodel was this fabulous macrame hanging from our friends at Coda.Co! I have a dip-dyed macrame hanging in the bathroom downstairs and knew I wanted another one for this bathroom remodel as well. Kelti makes the most insane macrame pieces for home decor and events and I couldn’t recommend her enough. This rustic/bohemian hanging piece was the perfect finishing touch to this dramatic bathroom transformation! I hope you enjoyed this little bathroom tour, and stay tuned for more house renovations and makeovers in the near future!
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