the blue bathroom that gave me the blues

Catching up on some "before & afters," this bathroom was one of my first priorities when we moved in. Although it took significantly longer than I'd planned, it was well worth the wait. Here's the before:

Before we moved in

Where do I begin?* Although the room was a nice size and had potential, I can't say I liked anything about it other than the sink and the radiator. From the mini blinds yellowed with age to the broken and sticky medicine cabinet, it was hard to even feel clean in here.

*I'll tell you where I began. During a shower, in a fit of rage, I tore down all of the stupid sea shell decals that were glued around the top of the shower. 


So here's what went down:
- I took down that stupid medicine cabinet. Not only was it just mounted on the wall and about 4" too deep so that you hit your face on it all the time, but the bathroom closet is roomy; No need for more storage space.
- I pitched that giant random cabinet. Again, it was falling apart and completely unnecessary.
- Instead of curtains or blinds, I went with another window film to allow in more light. You can read more about how awesome window films are here.
- I used a spray of 1:1 vinegar and water solution and a scraper to remove the seashell border. I found that if I sprayed a few feet ahead of myself, giving the solution time to work, it did come off easily. 
- I re-stained all the trim and wood work. Most of the trim was not original for whatever reason, and it didn't match the rest of the house well.
- I measured how high I wanted a chair rail and put marks all the way around the room. Then, I painted the ceiling white (it was dark blue and bumpy...I don't want to talk about how long that took, even with Behr paint/primer in one) and the top half of the wall.
- Then, I painted the bottom half of the wall up to the line, and my Dad helped me install the trim I had bought and stained to match. Although he made it look easy, I could have never done that part by myself.
-  I bought an extra long shower curtain liner, to allow room to install the shower curtain rod much higher. I originally did it because our shower head is unusually high on the wall, but I also love the way it looks...it makes the ceilings look higher.
- I hung the new vanity light and towel bar! (There was never an existing towel bar...?)

Since we didn't replace anything major like the floor or the sink, this project was relatively cheap. We already had a ton of white paint for the ceiling, so all we needed was paint for the bottom portion of the wall and the wood trim. There are still a few things that could be improved. I'm keeping my eyes peeled at Restore for a larger old mirror and I'd like to purchase this faucet to match everything else, but it's hard to stay focused when I've got a whole house ahead of me!

Hope this inspired someone to keep on DIYing!

The corner with the awesome fern that died exceptionally fast.

Light fixture close-up (Allen+Roth)

diy windows for dummies

Let me preface by saying I'm not calling anyone dumb. But I know that anything involving windows can be intimidating when it comes to "doing it yourself." Never fear! Window film is here!

A lot of people have asked me about these "stained glass" windows in our upstairs bathroom. I've even had people touch them, shocked to find the totally smooth surface. Unless you are right in front of them, you really can't tell at all that they're not real, especially in those old wooden frames.

These window films can be found lots of places nowadays and they come in all sorts of great patterns and styles. You can make a bold statement like this, or just do a simple frosted pattern for privacy. It only takes a few minutes to apply:

- Measure (or eyeball) the window and cut the paper, adding about 1/4" (don't forget to do that because the paper shrinks up a little bit)

- Using a spray bottle with water and a few drops of liquid detergent, spray the window surface. Detergent helps it adhere a bit better.

- Peel off the backing and place on window. You'll be able to slide it around to position it. 

- Using a credit card or squeegee, smooth the film from the middle outward to the edges.

- Last, just take an x-acto blade and trim the excess to the edge of the window frame.

By the time you would purchase curtains and hardware, window films end up being cheaper and also allow for privacy and light. Perfect for a bathroom! Not only that, but they're only applied with water to stay put, so they could be easily removed if you change your mind.

I won't be removing these anytime soon though. Check out how naked the windows looked without them! Anyone else tried the films? What did you think of them?

The "before" windows