Master Bath Makeover

I actually did this several years ago. We purchased our home in 2008 and it needed a LOT of work/love before it was habitable, so from August 2008 to February 2009 (which is when we got married and moved in), we did a ton of work in there. Every room got a makeover, and I really wish I had taken "before" pictures of every room, but I just didn't think about it. Before the wedding, we managed to repaint every single room except the two bathrooms. I totally despise painting bathrooms, so I procrastinated there. For months after we got married, we used the smaller second bathroom off the living room. Its ugly in there but we ignored it.

Because it wasn't nearly as atrocious as the hot mess that was our master bath:

Hideous, right? It was even worse in person, trust me. When we moved in, I shut that door and didn't open it for several months. Seriously.

Now, granted, it didn't look like this all the time. When I took this picture I had already started working on it. I attempted to remove the wallpaper, which is why you see so many white patches in that picture. Whoever applied the wallpaper did it incorrectly, and no matter what I did, when I pulled off wallpaper, I also pulled off sheet rock. Not good. I tried every method I found on Google, and nothing worked. So finally, I gave up. I patched up the edges of the remaining wallpaper, painted Killz over everything, and got to work. Much easier.

I originally envisioned this bathroom looking kind of like a personal spa. I wanted it very light and airy (the complete opposite of what it was!), and I wanted very pale walls, but not white. I was thinking a blue-grey. It had to "go" with the vibrant blue walls in our bedroom. Well, when you have half-wallpapered walls, you have uneven walls, and any imperfection in a wall is amplified when you paint over it, especially with a light color. So I decided to do an old-school technique. I painted the walls a soft bluish grey color, then got a sponge and sponged a lighter grey color on top. That way, the walls looked textured and kind of hid the actual imperfections. It works, as long as you don't look too closely!

I was extremely pleased with the results:

Much better, huh? So much nicer than the dungeon that used to be the master bath! Oh, and to make it even more dungeon-y, there used to be a cabinet over the tub. Yep, right on that bare wall back there. I'm sure it would have been nice to have extra storage in there, but I just couldn't imagine taking a bath with a cabinet looming over my head....*shudder* Plus, it just looked so cramped. DH took that out for me.

That wrinkly white curtain (I did later iron it, just FYI!) hides the closet, which used to have annoying accordion-type doors. I like the curtain because its more airy and just goes nicer with the room.

I would love to replace the light fixtures (there's another sink at the other end of the counter), those awful medicine cabinets, the counter tops (hard to see here, but they're purplish - and all over the entire house, ugh), and the floor (you can't see it, but its a dark green, which matched the ugly "before" wallpaper perfectly), but I've been ignoring them for 3 years now, so I suppose I will continue to do so. At least for now! ( :

Eventually, I added a little decor to the room, but not too much. Now, I wish I had done something a little different, but this is okay.

I decided to go with a "Charleston, SC" theme, but not an obvious one. It probably only has meaning to me and DH. But that's okay. Charleston is where we went for our honeymoon and we go there almost every year. LOVE that place!

I made this little cutie myself. Just a couple of hydrangea blooms from Michael's, some opaque accent rocks, and a glass bowl.

I decided to use shells I'd collected over the years to hold soap. I still love that idea. (I also use a shell to hold hair accessories that I use a lot, like bobby pins and clear elastics.) I took that picture myself. Its of a tulip tree blossom in, you guessed it, Charleston.

I took these two pictures, too. They're of camellias. The camellia should be the official flower of Charleston. I'm in love. On our honeymoon, we visited Magnolia Plantation, which we decided should be renamed Camilla Plantaion because there were so many camellias in bloom there. It was beautiful! Anyway, I really need to paint that flower pot white, but I never remember to! On the shelves there are also some smaller shells and smooth rocks, all meaningful. They were all collected on fun trips with my husband. ( :

So that's it. Even though its been over 3 years, every time I walk into the master bath I smile because I remember how ugly it used to be, and I love how pretty it is now! No, its not perfectly decorated, and no, I never have found a curtain for the window, but I still love it. And like I said earlier, there's still some changes I'd like to make in there, but is a house ever really finished? I don't think so.

This room was not easy to redo. Not at all. I worked so hard on it, and I really don't think I'll ever forget that work. Which is why I appreciate it all the more now. And I love that I did it completely by myself. I told DH I wanted to do this one alone, and I did. Well, almost. He helped patch up some really bad places in the drywall, and he did some sanding, but that's it. I just love that accomplished feeling.

The reason I'm posting this is because now I'm finally motivated to do the other bathroom. You know, the one that is ugly but not so ugly we feel the need to keep the door shut. After completing the master bath, I was so tired that I just couldn't bear to think of doing another bathroom. And I knew it would be the same issues, because that bathroom is wallpapered, too. So I put it off....for 3 years. I know. But I did get pregnant and have a baby during that time, so cut me some slack. (And let's not forget also during that time, I lost my job, started a new one, and finished my graduate degree, so its not like I wasn't busy!) A few months ago, C and I picked out a color for the other bathroom. It will be a pale green. Our living room is a really awesome green that is extremely hard to describe. I'll post a picture soon. Since the bathroom is off of the living room, and you can completely see it, it needs to flow. So a pale green it is, with white trim to match the rest of the house. As far as decorations go, I am clueless, but I know it'll come to me eventually, so I'm not stressing over that.

Anyway, I finally feel ready to tackle another bathroom. Thankfully, this time I know what not to do. I'm not even attempting to take down the wallpaper. I have a plan. And I'm excited! The goal is to start the prep work this weekend (when C takes her naps in the afternoons), and then get the painting done next weekend (I'll be home 4 days over Thanksgiving). I'll post pictures of my progress to keep me motivated! Wish me luck! ( :