DIY Bathroom Remodel

Friends, I have been so so excited to share my bathroom remodel with you! From the minute we moved into this house in 2016, I have wanted to do something to spice this space up. Annndddd, the reality is, with work and kids AND mostly choosing update public spaces that most people see {cause let's face it...no one sees your masterbath!} ...it just fell by the wayside. 

I finally was inspired to actually MAKE IT HAPPEN when two of my favorite DIY bloggers, Cynthia Harper and Angela Rose, teamed up to host a 2 day/$200 challenge. I was IN!! 

First...please view the "before" pictures....they are pretty uninspiring and incredibly ugly....

Can we please talk about this floor for a hot second? It is vinyl, which isn't even the worst part about it. THE PRINT!! THE COLOR!!! Who would EVER pick this flooring? I.can't.even. It's original to the 1950's house, so evidently it was a popular option in the 1950's? Who knows!! But the creepiest part is that whenever I sat on the toilet and looked down, I would inevitably see weird faces in it. And then I COULDN'T UNSEE THEM!!!! This floor slightly traumatized me...bye bye floor! 

Ok...let's be done with the before pics (I'm getting depressed at how ugly it was! haha). Here are the AFTER PICS!!! Soooo much better!

 ...and...a little side by side action..

So...what did we do to change it so drastically and on a budget? Here's the breakdown...

1. Paint the floors to look like tile! 
I have seen SOO many people do this on Pinterest, and I really wanted to try it. I found this stencil here on amazon. There are so many stencils to pick from...lots of great ones on etsy...but I chose mine based on fast shipping (I decided I wanted to do this project like 4 days before I started, haha! So prime shipping was my best friend!). I scrubbed my terrible vinyl floors until they were sparkling clean (but lets be real, that terrible vinyl never sparkled ha) and then used Rustoleum Chalk Paint in white to paint the base coat. I gave it 3 coats. Then I used Rustoleum Chalk Paint in gray to paint my stencil! I used an adhesive to stick my stencil to the floor, then rolled over it with a small foam roller. FYI- Stenciling is not hard...but boy is it time consuming!!! And for this mama, who was rolling during nap time...this job took FOOORRREEEVVVEERRR!!! If you had childcare for the day, you could totally bust it out. But it does take some time to get into a rhythm...at least it did for me!

After the whole floor was stenciled and dry, I used a non toxic sealer. Normal Polyurethanes or polyacrillcs are full of chemicals and smell terrible, so I set out on a mission to find something non toxic, and I did!!! AFM SafeCoat, Polyureseal BP, Matte is a wonderful non-toxic option. It did not smell at all, in contrast to normal polyurethanes that give me the biggest headache! It's definitely more expensive, but SOOO worth it in my opinion!! I did 4 coats just to make sure my floor was sealed, haha!! So happy with how it all came out! And I've lived on it for over 6 months now without as much as a scratch! It's held up sooo well!!

2. Paint the vanity! 
The reality is, you don't need to buy new furniture! Paint covers over a multitude of sins, right? hahaha!! Because I'm neither a perfectionist and I'm slightly lazy and hate sanding...I turned to my go-to Rustoleum chalk paint to get the job done! I wipe down the vanity, and then just went to town and painted it white (2 coats!). This made a huge difference!

3. Hung a new light fixture! 
The old light fixture was just plain ugly and screamed cheap. I found this one on amazon for a great deal, and then spray painted it a matted gold color.

4. Spray painted the hardware gold! 
I used the same gold spray paint to spray the toilet paper holder, and the new towel holder we bought at Home Depot. I love the warmth this matte gold color brings!

5. Built a towel rack! 
We used a piece of wood that's been sitting in our garage and screwed some gold hooks into it! I found the hooks at Hobby Lobby, and the wood is from Home Depot.

6. Made a macrame wall hanging!
As you can see, we have that very awkward wall to the side of our toilet. I was trying to figure out what I wanted to put there, and didn't want to hang any picture frames as it would feel too cluttered. I found some yarn in my craft closet and and part of an old dowel I had used for another project. I YouTubed "how to make a macrame wall hanging" and 30 minutes later I had made this! It's amazing what you can make with YouTube and some odds and ends hahahah!!!

7. New rugs, shower curtain, hand towel, plant, and painting!!! 

Here's the budget breakdown:
$18: Rustoleum Chalk Paint Linen White
$18: Rustoleum Chalk Paint Aged Gray
$39.99: AFM SafeCoat, Polyureseal BP, Matte, 1-Quart
$69: Light Fixture 
$15: Stencil
$20: Handtowel
$18 :Handtowel Holder 
$7: Gold Spray Paint 
$0: Rugs (from World Market, but I had a gift card!)
$0: Shower Curtain (from Target, but I had a gift card!)
$0: Plant + Painting (from Hobby Lobby, but I already had them in other parts of my house!)
$ 205 GRAND TOTAL 

Friends, I hope this inspires you that decorating CAN be on a budget! We don't have spare money for a renovation now, but we did put a little aside each month to make these small changes:) And what a CHANGE it is!! One I look at each day with a little smile on my face! Let me know if you have any questions or if I missed anything!!!