The Great Frame Up!

Even my husband is impressed.

For U Create's Create with Me project for July, Kari and readers chose the mirror frame tutorials features on Sausha's blog Show & Tell. The hall/kids/guest bathroom was my target for the month. My sister having her baby, school starting, sick kids and life all got in the way but I plugged away and got this little tiny bathroom 90% done. All that is left is a faucet, some accessories, and some trim detail. I had hoped to get it all done over one long weekend. Ha.

For those who know me well, they will not be surprised that the answer to the question "How's the kitchen coming?" is that it isn't done yet. I felt I needed to renovate a bathroom before I finished the kitchen. Cuz that's how I roll.

This bathroom has been bugging me for a while. It is pretty and tasteful and not really ugly or anything. I was so over the styling. The butter yellow and coral colors along with the honey oak was just something I was done with. Since this bathroom needs to be easy for my kids to use yet nice enough for guests, I have to work the decor to be kid friendly (there was a bug theme in here - bug hooks, bug fabric art, bugs in the plaid curtain) yet sophisticated for guests.

But it was time for a change. I saw the Create with Me project was the mirror framing and before I knew it, I had planned a total bathroom makeover.

I decided to go for something more crisp and cool. I was inspired by Sausha of Show & Tell as well as several other bathrooms, specifically, The Framed Mirror at House of Smith's. I needed a big color change and cool crisp spa blue is the exact opposite of warm Belgian waffle yellow. But I also wanted to cottage it up a bit with some beadboard paneling. And anyone who knows me knows that I keep SAYING I am going to paint my cabinets but I keep FAILING to do it. So I decided to go full out and make over the whole bathroom top to bottom. (Without removing major fixtures, cabinetry, or flooring.)

The makeover list included:
Painted cabinets
Beadboard paneling with a 7" base and a 5" cap
replace light fixture
get rid of all traces of brass or cheap basic builder chrome - door lever, faucet, TP holder, towel bars, etc.
frame mirror
remove medicine cabinet and replace with a builit-in niche
pull-outs under the sink

First, on the cabinets, I sanded the crud out of them with my palm sander.

Then I removed the chintzy trim on the sides and beefed it up a little with 1/4" by 4" boards. Not a huge change but enough to add extra dimension.

And the paint. I have read every blog and article on the web that discusses painting cabinets and I tried something completely different from what I had read. Have you seen those commercials for Behr "He is painting while he primes. She is priming while she paints?" I went for the premium primer included stuff from Home Depot. The black color is Behr Beluga. I painted 3 coats, sanding lightly between each one. I didn't remove the doors but I easily could (and probably should) have. I decided to distress them. This my husband wasn't too thrilled about but I know how my kids and their stool had already distressed them over the years so I figured I would save myself the headache and heartache and have them start distressed. I hit it several places with the sander and then used a darker tinted glaze (some watered down acrylic craft paint) over the sanded spots to darken up the distressed areas.

On the Behr primer/paint - so far, so good.

Left is distressed but not glazed. Right is glazed. Just a subtle difference. I then used a hand rubbed poly in satin.

I added some brushed nickel knobs I had left over from a craft project from years ago. New faucet in a brushed nickel with a gooseneck is being ordered soon!! The toilet paper roll holder is from Home Goods, $10. It is currently receiving mixed reviews. It is the one-sided mount style. Everyone likes that it is easy to take on and off...especially my 2 year old.

My method for the paneling was as follows:

*Have Home Depot rip down a 4x8 1/2" MDF to use as my base (7") and cap (5") piece. I was also using these pieces in my kitchen so it made sense to buy a whole sheet.

*Have Home Depot cut the 4x8 beadboard sheet in half
*Adhere the 4X4 with liquid nails and the occasional nail with nail gun. Filling nail holes on beadboard is not super fun so do it sparingly.
*Caulk and wipe and caulk and wipe and sand and paint

My whole body would be shaking after using the sander so much!!

After wiping the caulk with my finger it left the little grooves of the beadboard full of caulking. I found a wooden skewer was a great tool to clean up the grooves. This is a bit tedious. I am a details girl.

Not right.

Next, I got to work on the blue-green walls. I started with Behr "Aqua Smoke" but it was too bright. I took it back and worked with the paint tech to tweak it. "dirty it up" she said. I got home and it still wasn't right. So I did what I usually do. I got out a bucket and started dumping and four re-mixes in my kitchen later, (adding a lot of white and some green) I was quite happy.


The old light was one of these jobbers. I cannot find a real life picture.

I replaced it with this one from Lowe's. $36 for the fixture and $6 for each seed glass shade. I broke one on the way home so I had to go back and buy another one. So my $54 fixture ended up costing $60. Had I realized 100 years ago when I first hated that light how easy it was to replace, I would have done it years ago. Replacing a light is so simple. A couple of screws, twist a couple of wire nuts and voila - a new beautiful light fixture.

Underneath my cabinet looks like this. I have 3 girls. We have NO drawers.

I used the plans for kitchen pull outs from This Old House found HERE Go look at Norm Abram's tutorial - I didn't take any pictures of that process.

Still need to work out the bin situation but I love these!

Yup - built these myself. The dead space above? I am still going to be adding a fixed shelf that will be right next to the water valve. And I have a great idea for hair accessory storage mounted to the cabinet door. Coming soon!

I was really almost done and then this wall was making me nuts. I could see how everything else was looking so clean and crisp and this wall was BUSY!
Outlets! Side splash! Beadboard! Medicine Cabinet! Hair accessories!!
So I ripped it all out and started fresh.

Pulled off the side splash. That was HARD. I busted out so many tools to hack at it! That thing was on their good.

I took out the medicine cabinet and started by cutting a piece of beadboard to fill the back. Used liquid nails and free weights worked very well to hold it tight so I didn't have to use the nail gun!

Then I framed it with MDF cut to 4.25" - the depth of the new niche.

Frame with 1.75" MDF, caulk, fill, sand, and paint. I got a local quote for 2 shelves cut from 1/4" glass for the niche - and if I do shelves for my other bathroom at the same time, it will cost $43. That is $10.75 per shelf. Clips to hold the shelves will be $10-15 a pair. Steve loves the idea for our master so I am taking out our medicine cabinet too.

And finally the mirror!!

I went with Shelley's mirror style from House of Smith's and bought my mouldings at Lowe's. I bought 2 pieces of 12 ft "Victorian" baseboard moulding, 5 1/2" wide or so. I am glad I had this much as I had to re-cut one piece. Perfect miter cuts, even with a laser miter saw, take some practice. Also, lucky me, the builder used the track at the bottom, mirror clips, AND mirror mastic to hold my mirror in place! Yea me! So I could remove the mirror clips but the track at the bottom was going nowhere since the mirror was super stuck to the wall so I had to figure out how to work around it.

I decided to use my jig saw and took a little notch out of the back of the vertical pieces where it met the track.

And I trimmed about 3/8" off the bottom of the bottom horizontal piece. Then when I added the shoe moulding (almost like quarter round but not quarter round.) as the perimeter detail it would sit proud of the mirror track and cover up the missing 3/8" of the bottom piece of moulding. Basically I boxed in the track.

Then I primed and painted the chrome mirror track the same color as my wall. That way if any showed, the illusion would be of wall showing. And by the way - re-doing a bathroom is messy work.

My little helper...washing my level. Mouldings all cut and getting glued directly to mirror. This didn't work for me.

In this post Sausha said she glued her moulding directly to the mirror. I tried that. It didn't work for me. It started to slide even as I was taping the first piece to hold it stable. And my 2 year old kept taking my level and washing it for me. And it kept sliding. So I did as Shelley and Cason at House of Smith's did and I glued the pieces together in the garage but I used wood glue and let it dry overnight. Next fill the joints and sand. Then I used wood glue to attach my shoe moulding as the finished edge of the frame. I gave it three coats of my black satin paint.

These weights sure are coming in handy. And this framed mirror makes the room.

I added a small trim moulding around where the beadboard meets the countertop. It isn't much - just enough to finish it off.

So here it is again. We have had the clock in there for a year or so and we love having it in there...with three girls getting their hair done, it is nice to keep an eye on the time.

And again. These hooks are from Ikea - $4.99/2pk.

And again - looking in from the doorway.

List still yet to do:
faucet
hand towel hook - I have bought two and have still not found "the one"
glass shelves for niche
art/decor
accessories (minimal)
Shower curtain (but I have a plan in the works!)
Frame the window above the shower - windows around here rarely have casings
shoe moulding where 7" baseboard meets the tile

What will this little makeover cost in the end?

Paint: $50 Home Depot
Beadboard: $40 Home Depot
1/2" MDF 4x8 sheet cut down into 5", 7", 4 2.5" and 1.75" strips: $35 Home Depot
Light fixture: $60 ($54 if I didn't break one shade) Lowe's
Pull-Outs - heavy duty glides and lumber: $30
Glass shelves & clips: $50 Local supplier, Gilbert Glass (clips online)
Brushed Nickel TP Holder: $10 Home Goods
Brushed Nickel Door handle: $30 Lowe's (Schlage)
Cabinet knobs: $4
Caulking and Liquid Nails - I went through a couple tubes of each - maybe $10?
Assorted random stuff like new switch plate covers, small trim moulding, etc: $15
Faucet (hopefully no more than) $75

Total: $349 + a few bucks for art/decor & shower curtain/hand towel hook

We LOVE how this bathroom turned out! I can't wait to do the master bath. But my husband has asked that I finish the kitchen before I move onto another room.

He has a point!

Thanks for stopping by Tuesdays with Molly - watch for more regular posts again!! Yippie! Molly just had a baby 2 weeks ago so we will do our best!

Headboard for the girls

Heard there was a "Painted Wood is Pretty" linky party - thought we show off a bit! Life in Grace first shows off her stinkin' adorable retro inspired kitchen re-do and I adore it. Check it out!

If you know me, I am constantly re-doing my daughter's room, currently 5 & 7 years old. Not because I am a design and decor schizo but more out of necessity. My friends think I am nuts. My 2 oldest share a room. We have tried it all. (Skip to end if you want to read my sad tale of beds and bunks and trundles...) I decided that since they almost always got in bed together, then sharing a bed was where it's at!!

Off to Craigslist I went in search of a full size bed/headboard/mattress set - whatever I could find and make work. I found this lovely 70's specimen and knew I could work with it.

A full/queen headboard - turned posts are wood. The middle part...not so much. A crummy veneer.

We sanded to knock down the shiny surface. We kind of goofed on the veneer and the sandpaper was too abrasive and scratched a bit too much. But it all worked out.

First, we sprayed with an appropriate primer. I think primer is usually a good idea, especially on a slick fake wood veneer surface!

Then lots of sanding. Spray. Sand. Repeat. I think I ended up with 4 coats of paint, sanding between each spray.

Here is the final project in their bedroom, dressed down.

Here is the bed all made up. Still working out the side table (currently a shelf from my laundry room), a makeover of the lamp shade, maybe one more pillow on the bed, and I am, gulp, painting a piece to go over the bed. The walls are pretty bare right now. Check out the cute white slipper chair to the side of the bed - inherited from my great great Aunt Irintha. I have been waiting to use this in a girl's room! We may slip-cover it, may not. It needs a killer pillow though.

I think it worked out perfect for what we needed and wanted. It will go the distance for us. Almost every night they fall asleep snuggled together. Love it!! And, whichever girls in our family are sharing a bed, (we have these two and a 1 year old baby girl) they will use this. My middle daughter wants to always share a room. My oldest would like her own. Baby currently shares a sewing room/nursery with me. We are good roomies but she may move in with a big sister some day.

Keeping it real...their bedroom from another angle. This is pretty tame! Note the crafty girls in training - they turned a box, next to the chair, into a two level dog house for their stuffed doggies.

Someone once asked me about the window seat - it is two over the fridge kitchen cabinets from Ikea. A lot of mis-matched throw pillows that don't exactly go together but the girls like it.

My sharing a room and bed woes...continued from top of post...

They have been back and forth between two bedrooms. They started sharing a room with a twin bed and crib. Then two twins - I made adorable white slip-covered headboards with embroidered initial a la PBKids. (Took up too much space in small room that also is a play space.) They are stored in the garage. sigh. We decided bunk beds were the way to go. Couldn't spend a lot at the time so I found a new set on Ebay and was reasonably happy. Well, I got what I paid for when a side rail split. (Plus I hated making the beds and the kids never made them either...) So, we decided to use the top half of the bunk as the top part of a bed/trundle combo and we built a trundle drawer. I really liked how it worked out but the girls usually ended up in bed together. Well, deja vous - a side rail split again and I threw in the towel. That was the end of it for me. I then decided they would share!

Nothin' a little spray paint can't fix!

Have you ever looked at something and thought it would look good if not for the horrible paint color? Meredith has helped me realize the endless possibilities with just a little bit of spray paint! I recently purchased this wooden "welcome" sign as I thought the size would be perfect above my refrigerator. The color however, seafoam green, was not what I was going for! This frame has been sitting in a box since I got married - oak is also not my thing. I decided to work a little magic and let Andy use it in his office for pictures of the family!

1 can of black spray paint did the trick!

The only tricky part is getting the inside of the letters, I sprayed my first coat with the sign laying down and went from there. I used a satin black spray and did one last top coat with chalk board spray paint to give it a nice even, matte appearance.

The finished product

This took about 1 hour start to finish, even with drying time in between coats!

A Bathroom remodel...but not what you think!

So we are having trouble keeping up on our posting with all the nasties running through both of our families so I will borrow this post from Molly's personal blog to keep the momentum up a little bit! - Meredith
---------------------------------------------------------
Never, ever, in my wildest dreams would I have thought at 18 years old that this would excite me the way it has. You decide how excited you would be:

Together, Andy and I ripped out our Powder Bathroom and built a food storage room! It only took about 6 trips between 4 different hardware stores to get it done. Sealing off the toilet hole seemed to be the hardest thing. It was imperative that it be sealed off correctly so as to not leak sewage gasses into the room. This type of project is not something people do very often apparently. Start to finish, we were done in 6 days. That was with a 2 day break between finishing the construction and painting. I am pretty proud of what we did, we make a very good team!

A funny story... You'll notice in the above pictures that Andy is using a shop vac to drain the toilet. I, along with my oldest son, was standing behind the vacuum part when suddenly my son said poop water was coming out. Sure enough the vac was spraying our feet and legs and it stunk pretty bad too! Not sure what was up with that.

Painting in progress

The finished product, not perfectly organized yet, but it's a start. I didn't take a picture of it, but we put our freezer where the sink used to be.

This is my kitchen pantry which now has a lot more space than it did before. (Although I just realized this picture was taken during the reorganization so it doesn't actually have that much bare room but it is very organized now) I am so excited to have so much storage room. My master bedroom closet no longer has to serve as my second pantry as it did in my old house! It's a good thing too because our current master closet is quite a bit smaller.

Don't worry... we have another bathroom just down the hall, this one was a little pointless.

So... Next time you need a bathroom turned into a storage room, we're now experts!

What space do you have in your home that should be turned into something else so you are getting every penny out of your square footage?