The half bath in our house was covered from floor to ceiling in paisley wallpaper born in the early 90’s– for about a day. I think it was the first room we tackled when we signed the papers and received the key. Unfortunately I can’t find a before picture of the bathroom anywhere. Oh well. Just thought you’d appreciate the lime green more if you saw what we had to work with.
Over the years, I have removed/painted several rooms of wallpaper or borders that weren’t my style. So out came the Kilz primer (love that stuff!).
But from the moment the lime green was swiped across the wall, I was unsure. It was electric, for one. Don’t get me wrong, I do love this color. (The music room, guest room, and laundry room all wear it after all.) But in the small, windowless half bath, it was too much. (Who chose this color, anyway?) 😉 Even the wood floor reflected the green and looked yellowish in its glow. Besides, who needs an electrifying, energizing, and bright bathroom?? You get the point.
After I finished the hallway project, I had some “Sea Sprite” left over and decided to do what I had long planned to do in repainting the bathroom.
Immediately the mood of the bathroom changed to calming, soothing, and relaxing. The way a bathroom should be.
I did do one crazy thing in here.
What?! Yes, I spray painted the fixtures “oil rubbed bronze” while they were still on the wall! Obviously I didn’t mind if I got a little splatter on the green since it was getting painted anyway, so rather than hassle with turning off the electricity and taking down the light fixture and towel hanger, I opted for the lazy option. It actually worked quite well, although I’m sure some of you are shuddering at my bravery, er, laziness. Anyway. Much improved, don’t you think?
Callie is my 15-year-old border collie/Australian shepherd dog. She follows me around everywhere and is a constant companion. But as much as I love her, I didn’t want her prints forever painted on the wood floor after she walked through the paint tray to get closer to me. Thanks, Cal.
The bathroom was coming along.
A few finishing touches were needed. One was the gold ends of the sink handles. I removed them and spray painted them silver.
Next, the thrifted black shelf had to be painted. Hanging with the off-white shutters, it looked stark and intense. And since I had spray painted it the first time around, it was in need of some TLC.
I painted on about 3 layers of antique white, letting it dry between each coat.
When the final coat was dry, I used a rag and rubbed on some Zar stain, giving it a worn, vintage feel.
Ah. Much better.
The last project was to make something fresh to hang on the wall. I rummaged around in my garage and came up with a piece of barn wood that I had attempted to stencil at some point (a complete failure, by the way- the wood was way too ridged).
So I nailed a picture hanger on that side and attached a hose clamp to the good side with two small nails. (I tried screwing through the slats, but was unsuccessful.)
After filling a mason jar with pea gravel and potting soil, I grabbed one of the broken-off stems of houseplants that I keep in this jar and planted it in the soil. (Did you know that almost any plant will eventually grow roots if kept in water?) Also as a side note, did you know that houseplants improve air quality? NASA did a study on it. You can read about it here. I love houseplants!
Then I slipped the mason jar into place through the hose clamp.
The half bath is much improved and has a calm, relaxing, organic, soothing feel.
In case you forgot, here’s another look at the before:
Like this:
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I taped off the ceiling and along the baseboard (such an easy way to cut in, I’ve found… even though the “experts” say you should never tape to cut in!) Well, it works for me.
Doodles!
Buntings are cheap, easy to make, and take only a few minutes!
Buntings are a simple, chic way to add character to your decor! Be creative and have fun making one (or a few) of your own! 🙂
