Before..Before...and After. A $150 Guest Bath Makeover!

My Mission:  To Un-Gold and De-Red my home. Room by Room.

On a Budget. (of course!)  :)

I thought I would start with the easiest of rooms. The Guest Bathroom.  It would be a way for me to get a perspective on this new style I am leaning towards.  I am gonna live with it a little longer, and let it sink in.

I will already admit....Mr Grits absolutely hates it.  (sigh)

We have always seen eye to eye on the design of our home.  He's nervous. :)

I wanted to start by showing you the evolution of this bathroom.  Some of you may remember this from a previous post.

The "Before" Before...

When we first moved in, this bathroom was covered in horrendous wallpaper from the early 90's.  Ick.

I wanted to work with the existing countertops. Although they are not my fave,  I want to eventually replace the whole vanity.  I chose Wet Concrete by Ben Moore. (such a bad name) Its actually one of my fave BM colors. It appears very purple here, but it has a warm brownish-grey undertone to it.  I found the large silver mirror at Ross, and because of a small chip in one corner which was easily repairable, I paid under 

$50 for this beauty.  

 

Quick fixes until later.  "Later" was two years in the waiting....

With some bartering and budgeting....the Guest Bath went from Wet Concrete to 

Chocolate Brown, Crisp White and Sage.

The "Before"...

To this day....I love, love the wainscoting.  Such a simple change which added so much drama and detail to an otherwise architecturally bare room.

We also added a new tumbled marble floor. This was our splurge.

 Brown and White Transferware plates...

Some vintage accessories....

A No-Sew Window Treatment from a few yards of silk fabric from the clearance bin...

A little "bling" on the plain shade...I used self-adhesive gems from the scrapbooking section to

decorate the shade.

An over-the-toilet freestanding shelf was cut down to become a hanging wall shelf, and was filled with more vintage treasures.

A vintage silver tea-cake stand filled to the brim with local seashells.  I live on the coast. My home may not be a "Coastal" home but there will always be shells around. :) 

The silver mirror from my previous re-do.

And now the "After"...

(well, until I decide if I am going to go back to the "Before.") haha

A coat of white to make the vanity crisp and clean...and about 2 hours of fun shopping...

 Love, love this modern bowl filled with glass orbs from Pier1.  I used some sea glass as a filler.

 A square white dish holds a bath sponge and a pretty teal blue soap dispenser. 

 

What started this concept?  Besides me need to un-gold and de-red my home? 

These two pics. I found them at Marshall's and fell head-over-heels in love with them.

I have a "thing" for birds....which I find ironic since I love cats. haha

I paid $19.99 each!!!!  woot woot

 This is the other culprit...this beauty of a lamp.  I love the linen burlap-ish shade.  I might try adding something to it, but for now...I am trying to wrap my mind around the simpleness of it.

 

You know I have to add my signature flower arrangements. :)

A wooden container of grasses found on clearance at Ross for $12.99 created the perfect base for this arrangement...all it needed was four orchid stems. How is that for easy-peasy?  

 Another No-Sew Window Treatment....this time using a single curtain panel. Love the fun polka dots.

 Here's a closer detail of the flooring.  Love these tiles.  Fluffy rugs keeps things soft and warm under foot.

More sea glass was added to the existing container of shells.  Love how this looks paired with the vintage silver stand.

 Devin "Roo Roo" loves how it matches his "pie pie."  :-D

More square white plates replace the transferware.  And the ole' silver mirror...still standing faithful duty.

So there is the "After #3."  Whatcha think?  Keep in mind this is a little bit more Modern than I am envisioning for the rest of the home. But, I am seeing touches of vintage, mixed with more neutral colors, sea grass rugs...and still some seashells here and there.  Not sure what that style would be classified as....but that's okay - I like that my home is "Declassified."  haha

Which "Before" do you like better?  The Vintage Before or the "Transitional Modern Before?"

I need to decide before too long....I am eyeing my kitchen next.  You know those red cabinets everyone has so adored.....???  Yep...they are outta here.  They will be painted white within the next few weeks.

Oh and by the way....the white cabinets is all because of a new blog I discovered.... 

"for the love of a house."   Thanks a lot, Joan - its ALL your fault.  LOL

And if you have not been to Jane's blog...please run over as quick as you can.  But be prepared to have your breat stolen away.  Oh yea....and want to change everything about your house. :)

Thanks my bloggy freinds....for letting me share.  By the way, just a quick update on my Design Star audition. After a successful Atlanta audition and two call-backs...its been three long weeks since I have heard anything. Unfortunately, they work under the theory of "don't call us, we'll call you." 

For anyone interested...here is the link to the SECOND video I had to submit.  It was not my greatest work.  But, there is next year.  Plus, I am excited to announce that I will be producing several "How-To" videos, and possibly my own online show.  More details to come! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IEx-Rxbetg 

Have a great week....Barb

I am participating in:

Met Monday: Between Naps on the Porch

DIY Project Parade: The DIY Showoff 
Sunday Showcase Party: Under the Table and Dreaming Masterpiece Monday: Boogieboard Cottage  Wow Us Wednesday: Savvy Southern Style 

Having an Estate Sale....any advice?

I think that at some point in everyone's lives, they reach a period where enough is enough. I am talking specifically about enough "stuff."  I have reached that point. I actually reached it about a year ago, but it has taken me the past few months to realize just how ready I really am to let it all go.

It hit me hard a few weeks ago while I was watching one of those hoarding shows.  No, no - I am not a candidate yet, although Mr. Grits would argue I am close.  LOL  But what struck me was that I have held on to much of the "stuff" because it represented a time in my life when I was very happy - when we lived in Europe.  I was like a buying banshee.  I cannot tell you how many flea markets I visited throughout Europe.  I have quite the collection....mostly dishes...but various other items, as well.

The problem is - my style has changed.  I am becoming more clean lined and transitional in my style.  Also, I have also realized that my son and daughter-in-law could care diddly for that stuff, as they are all about the modern style. Sigh

So..... I have emailed several Estate Dealers.  I do not even know if I have enough for an actual on-site Estate Sale, but I know one thing - there will NOT be any Yard Sales going up in my yard any time soon.  I abhor those things.  I cannot bare marking something for a quarter, and someone trying to bargain me down to a dime.  Really?  :-D

So - if any of you have had any past experience with Estate Sales, I would love to hear your input.  In the meantime, I am heading back out to the garage for more packing and purging.  I see many plastic bins being purchased in my very near future. :)