DIY Bathroom Remodel on a Budget

So, it's been about 3 months since I've last blogged, and I just want to thank you guys for being so supportive via social media. The time constraints that come with being a new mom have been a really difficult adjustment for me, and since I don't have many mom friends in real life, it's been such a soul-balm to have this community of women online who have been down this new-mom road and can offer words of kindness and reassurance when I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. 

I haven't had the time to blog, but Instagram has become my lifeline to you guys in the past 9 months, as it's an easy place I can share things when my day is otherwise jampacked with chasing an energetic little tot around (She's crawling at warp speed now....omg!). So, to all of you who have interacted with me lately....thank you. Your words have done so much for my little world, and I hope in some way that this blog pays it forward and can make someone else feel less alone in their own journey. 

So, you guys, that's where I am today...chasing this little girl around. She's about to be 9 months old, and my world has been totally rocked. I'm so happy and excited and hopeful and filled with love, and also sometimes I'm just straight up drowning. But, mostly, I just want to be honest about it all because this mom gig is the hardest thing I've ever done, and I think it's a total disservice to other moms to pretend like it's easy. But, I love her like crazy and I wouldn't trade this experience for anything.

I mean, just look at that precious face. I'm pretty sure she was sent to this planet to break me in.

Now that the life updates are out of the way, let's move on to my small bathroom remodel.

I know that's a weird transition, but how does one really talk about the trials of motherhood and a crappy bathroom remodel in the same post? I'm thinking you just mash them together and pretend like it's normal.

So, I recently spruced up our small guest bathroom. It's the same bathroom that I painted stripes in a few years back in this post that went unexpectedly viral. I know a lot of you guys loved that bathroom, so don't get mad at me. But, sometimes you just get sick of things and need to change it up. And that's how I was feeling about this bathroom.

Just to remind you, here's what this bathroom looked like when we first moved into the house about 5 years ago, before I did anything to it at all.

And here is what it looks like today, after my most recent updates. The good news for all of us on normal budgets is that this entire bathroom remodel cost me less than $100 and pretty much all it took was some easy paint ideas.

Here's what I did.

I painted the walls with one of my favorite colors, Benjamin Moore Chelsea Gray. It's a beautiful deep gray that works really well with almost anything. It feels modern and inviting without feeling too dark or heavy.

For further examples, I also used it here and here.

I also removed the builder grade bathroom mirrors and hung a framed mirror I found at a salvage shop several years ago. It was originally a gross bronze color, but I spray painted it with Krylon Champagne Nouveau (affiliate link) and I love the way it turned out. I kinda think it makes the space.

Also, fyi, that is the my favorite spray paint color. Hands down. I use it on all my mirror frames, including the one in the master bedroom that so many of you guys ask me about.

The bathroom vanity I painted with some oil based enamel paint (the same paint that I used on this dresser), and then I updated the hardware with some great polished nickel pulls.

And then, also, because this vanity is stinky and old and from the 1970's, I took out all the drawers and painted the insides of each drawer with oil paint in the color Sherwin Williams Urbane Bronze. I also removed the old faucet and drain, and replaced it with a new brushed nickel bathroom faucet. Nothing fancy, but with paint, new hardware, and a new faucet, you can really spruce up an otherwise outdated vanity.

The countertop is just your basic white faux-marble. It's not great, but when you update everything around it, you almost don't even see it. In an ideal world, I would just gut this vanity and start fresh, but I have a child to feed.

I added some artwork to the little half wall. 

Nothing fancy, just some Homegoods loot.

Also from Homegoods....the little peony arrangements and the black and white horse art over the toilet.

And that's pretty much the whole makeover!

Oh, and one last thing....something that I think makes a huge difference. I painted the bathroom tile grout. I did a tutorial about this years ago when I painted our kitchen and master bathroom tile, and it continues to be one of my most popular posts ever. So, that leads me to believe that I'm not the only one trying to figure out how to clean tile grout. :)

So, when it came to this guest bathroom, the tile in here isn't bad. It's just old white marble tile, but the grout was 30 years old and really needed some help. So, here's the before pic. You can see how dingy the grout is.

And here's a pic after I painted the walls. You can see just how much of an eyesore the grout was. 

The product I use to paint grout is called Polyblend Grout Renew (affiliate link), and for this bathroom I used it in Snow White. I probably used 10% of this bottle when I painted the tile grout, so a little goes a long way. 

And I won't repeat the tutorial (because my original post goes through the entire process in detail), but let me just tell you....this is the easiest project. It's time consuming, but it's so easy. All you need is a toothbrush and some paper towels. 

And maybe a glass a wine to distract you from how tedious it is. 

You can really see what a big difference it makes when you see the painted tile grout next to the dirty tile grout.

And once it's done, it's crazy...it truly feels like a new bathroom floor. I've done this in three separate rooms now, and in my master bathroom, it held up for nearly 3 years before it needed a touch up. So, totally worth the effort.

And that's the new guest bathroom, you guys. It's crazy how happy this crappy little room makes me. Nothing in here is new, but I spent a lot of time in here by myself, sitting on the floor in sweatpants so ugly they should be banned, scrubbing tile with a toothbrush, listening to podcasts, and enjoying a few spare moments of private peace knowing my precious baby was snoozing blissfully in the next room. 

So, is this what 32 is supposed to feel like?

Love ya'll.

Thanks for being here. 

I've got some major things in the works for this spring and summer, and I'll definitely be blogging about it, so I hope to be around a little more than I have been. Fingers crossed.

xo,

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