Before: The Downstairs Bathroom

Not satisfied with a new back door, new appliances, and a crop of new accessories, I have decided that I want to redo the downstairs bathroom. Here's how the bathroom looks now:

While I don't exactly hate this room, I....OK, I hate it. I don't know what I was thinking with that color. It looks like the curtains my dad's second ex-wife put up all over their house. I like the shower curtain, but it doesn't exactly fit in to my design plan. About the only things that will survive the makeover will be the little white cabinet above the potty and a pretty 4-hook towel rack that was added after this photo was taken. Oh, and I'll definately hang on to the plate Kyle painted for me.

I will be painting the room a light, dusty lavender color called Vintage Violet. I also found the mirror I want. It has beveled-edge glass and a white, distressed shabby-chic wood frame. The mirror is $100 at Joann ETC, but they routinely send out a mailer with 40% off coupons. So I put myself on their list, and when my first coupon arrives, I will go buy the mirror.

I'm also planning on painting the vanity. It will go from a white-washed oak-look finish to white with beadboard paneling inside the cabinet door frames similar to what I did to the playroom wall unit. Quinton suggested that we get a pedestal sink. It's a nice idea, but bringing in such a sink would eliminate 90% of our storage for that room (I have a problem with leaving a dozen TP rolls out in the open). Plus the area under the current cabinet is not tiled. Bringing in a pedestal sink would require us to retile the entire room, and that's a lot more work than we care to do right now.

I also want replace the current faucet. The one we have now is a cheap-looking piece of crap that came with the house. The handle is a clear plastic ball that's cut to look like a prismatic crystal. I refer to it, and other such features as the Contractor's Special.

Problem is, I need to convince Q to let me buy a $140 faucet. Here's a picture of it. Look at it. Drool longingly. Isn't she pretty?

While it's not the most expensive faucet in Lowes, it's certainly not the cheapest. Also, it's diffent looking than most of the other faucets out there. And anyone who knows me knows that I like to do things that aren't necessarily normal and conventional.

I'll also be putting in a new vanity light. Or more aptly, Quinton will. The one I want is shown here. It will be replacing cheap chrome light bars with the exposed bulbs, just like the ones sold at The Depot for $8.

I'll be doing this project in stages. I'll do the walls, mirror, and light first. The faucet and cabinet painting will happen later. I'll need that time to work on Quinton. I think I'll print out a picture of the faucet and tape it to the mirror so he can see how pretty it looks.

Oh, and as always, I'll post photos of my progress.