Bathroom renovation...

With the exception of the floors and a few more pieces of trim around the door, our 1st floor bathroom renovation is pretty much done. Remember what this room looked like before? Gross! This project took 6 months of inconsistent work and cost $385 total (cost breakdown below). My dad helped me rip out the original sink, but PRH and I did the rest of the work else ourselves. It is refreshing to have at least one bathroom in our house that doesn't make me feel sick to my stomach. Let's take a tour around our miniature bathroom, shall we? (please forgive the sketchy photos- it's kind of tricky to photograph a tiny bathroom with zero natural light.)

As you know, every other room in our house is painted white- I tend to prefer bright white walls and pops of color. For this project, however, I decided to leap waaayyyyyy out of my comfort zone and experiment with dark colors and pattern. The wainscoting and trim appear black in these photos, but the color is actually a deep navy blue (Valspar's Corduroy Black).

We kept the toilet, but the old wood toilet seat had to go. I was sort of shocked by how much cleaner the room looked once it was gone. The t.p. holder and towel holder came from our local Habitat for Humanity Restore. We stash extra toilet paper in a vintage gym basket. We bought a huge supply of gym baskets at a school surplus auction several years ago- they've come in handy.

I found the cast iron pedestal sink on craigslist and was happy that it cleaned up so well. I still have to do something about that light switch cover- maybe swap for a porcelain cover? We're also trying to find a small shelf to hang above the sink.

Funny story about the mirror: on Wednesday afternoon, Kicky and I drove past our dear friend Ken, an avid thrifter. I flagged him down and asked him to keep an eye out for a crusty, old, gold-framed mirror at the thrift store. He laughed, ran over to his car, and pulled this mirror out of his trunk. Apparently, he paid $5 for it a couple of weeks ago and had been driving around with it in his car ever since. It's exactly what I was looking for and he wouldn't even let me pay for it! I'm sending happy thrift store mojo Ken's way.

The flush handle...a weird little detail I couldn't resist.

You may remember me hemming and hawing about wallpaper. My friend Renee, probably exhausted from listening to my incessant bitching, mailed several rolls of this wallpaper to me and I love it. It's hand-screened, vintage wallpaper designed by Alan Campbell. This pattern, called Criss Cross, is still available through Quadrille Fabrics. Hanging wallpaper was the most difficult DIY project I've ever tackled and I don't plan on trying it again.

PRH made this drawing in grad school. We played around with smaller artwork in this room, but nothing seemed to work as well as this large drawing. I found the 'magic moon machine' flashcard at the thrift store.

You can't see the light fixture in these photos (trust me, it's nothing spectacular)- it's this. It's a cheap stand-in until I can find a light we actually like that doesn't cost two million dollars and my first born.

We still have to refinish the floors, but are planning to wait until we can open windows.

Cost breakdown of our bathroom renovation:

• pedestal sink $20 [vintage- craigslist]
• light shade $5 [Lowes]
• light fixture $17 [Lowes]
• toilet handle $10 [Lowes]
• mirror [gift from friend]
• toilet seat $25 [Lowes]
• wallpaper $30 [vintage from Renee Garner- Criss Cross pattern designed by Alan Campbell]
• wallpaper paste/supplies $28 [Ahwaga Paints in Owego]
• towel holder $5 [Habitat for Humanity Restore]
• toilet paper holder $3 [Habitat for Humanity Restore]
• trash can $15 [Target]
• soap holder $10 [Target]
• artwork $0 [by PRH]
• vintage gym baskets $2 [school surplus auction]
• Paint/supplies $46 [Lowes- Valspar's Corduroy Black]
• Electrical outlet/light switch $10 [Lowes]
• plumbing $50 [Home Central in Owego]
• wainscoting $49 [Home Central in Owego]
• drywall/spackle/screws $60 [Home Central in Owego]

Grand total: $385