apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Fantastic! I love how she embraced the orange countertop.

It looks great! Good job!

hmmm part of me likes the before better..LOVE the drama of the window treatment; yes the after is brighter and cleaner looking but definiltely not as interesting!!

Dandy... I highly doubt that she will be kicking herself for changing that bathroom with such a drastic change... I'm not going to say it was ugly because the wallpaper was pretty awesome, but it definitely takes a certain person to live with something like that... definitely not my style overall and I would say definitely not most people's either. I personally enjoy brighter bathrooms like the after picture. The counter tops are great, I'm so glad they stayed. I don't think it looks sooooo suburban, the other bathroom just looked like it belonged in a horror movie. Just my own opinion. Great job!

guess I have a thing for the Drama lol

I totally agree with Lafferteezy - I imagined two small twin girls standing in that bathroom (and in my head I heard a quote from The Simpsons spoof of The Shining, "Huh, that's funny, the blood usually gets off on the second floor.")
The wallpaper was awesome, but perhaps too awesome to face first thing in the morning. Awesome budget makeover!

Glad that the orange countertops have remained...nice renovation on a budget!

I completely understand not being able to live with the before, but that wall paper is kind of extremely really cool.

NOOOOOOOOOOO
Keep the insane wallpaper, some rustic and some black, some shiny...

Best post EVER!! I can only imagine being Darby, looking around the house and then walking into that bathroom.

I'm with the insane wallpaper camp. Use it! I mean come on, you do have a bright orange countertop! Genius!
www.urbanfleadesign.com

OMG, I loved the before.

With two little daughters I understand the change though.

i love it!!!

OHHHH I kinda liked the before....

The before looks like what someone's hideous old grandmother living in Florida would think of as "classy"

omigod!! the before looked like a bathroom in a cheesy chinese restaurant. the after is so light and fun. so glad they kept the counter. it makes the room.

the before was so awesome. but yes, i think after initial fun it could really grate on you and your eyes...

but man. that orange sink. killer.

I love the before!!! The after is great too very cheery and probably more family comfortable except the drawer pull hardware on the upper drawers bothers me for some reason it just throws off the lightness of the room- too industrial for my tastes.

I think the before would have been okay for a half bath. But was just too much for one that gets lots of everyday use. While it photographed kinda okay I can imagine that shiny wallpaper just looking hideous in real life.

The new bathroom is much better for two growing girls. Nice work!

Amazing work!!!

I would really hate having to see my reflection on the wallpaper in the before every time I used the bathroom.

That's not to say I hate the wallpaper, I just think there's too much of something that there doesn't need to be a lot of.

I actually like both bathrooms though. I have to say, for $500, they did a great job at replacing a lot of things.

The before wallpaper was beautiful!!!
Some white roman shades,modern light fixture,painted cabinet would have done a more interesting job without losing the oomph.

Huge improvement. The wallpaper was hideous.

Jesus God... those"before" window treatments look like they were hung at the gates of hell. Is this Satan's WC?

Great un-fugly-ing of the room.

the before bathroom is cool in a photo, but not practical on a day to day basis. it's visually overwhelming and for a place that, um, er, well, you need to poop in, you made a good call making it more chill.

Wow, one of my first apartments looked almost exactly like that except the counter and sink were yellow. Even the wallpaper is almost the same just a slightly different pattern. That was in the early 80's

In the hallway outside the bathroom the walls were papered with a geometric shiney foil paper.

Man I always felt like I was trippin out every morning.

I love the before...in someone else's place. An ex-girlfriend once had a bright brick bathroom and it was punishing at 3am.

Holy cow, the before just crazy! I think I would have left it and charged admission.

I love the after, with the orange sink, and really admire the budget used ! Cool pattern on the window's shades.

The before shot creeps me out... that is like Dracula's bathroom. Therefore: really, really cool, but in other people's houses !

I think the old wallpaper was gorgeous. Agree with someone who said that a few modern touches would've gone a long way.

Great job, can't help but wonder what the rest of the house looked like.

hmm.. the 'before' is not so bad afterall..

Wow, I am not sure I would have had the vision to cope with the Before. The After is delightful! (LOVE the fabrics she chose)

I... kind of love the before. Sorry, guys. But I like most of the stuff in Maranian's book Pad -- I like dramatic bohemian stuff, and although it's not my ideal bathroom, I would have left it the way it was. I can admit that the revamp is also very nice.

Except that the original window treatment -- as OTT as it is -- did more for the room than the current one. It's something about the scale of each of them. The made-over window looks a bit too small for the room, in comparison.

I prefer the before to the after...it seemed to lose its character.

Wow, the "before" is awesome! It's a shame that they had to get rid of it, but I totally understand. Although, I think some young kids would have fun in there! Especially if there were a lantern hung on that hook above the toilet.

I really like the fabrics in the "after" bathroom though.

The after is so much better - actually like it.

i think they should have framed a section of the old wallpaper and hung it between the mirrors or over the towel rack

Woah. That before photo is crazy! Haha I like the comment about keeping it and charging admission!

I don't think I could live in a space that "Shining"-like for long. I really like the change, you give me hope for all these hideous bathrooms I've been seeing during my house hunt. And $500!? Wow, what a huge difference for that small cost!

I LOVE the before (as a visitor to someone else's home - lol) but my own taste runs more toward the after - very nice job!

i'm glad so msany people like the before picture. it is definitely more interesting than the after. after just looks like everything else you always see, nowhere near the freshness and orginality of what was there to begin with.

I love the orange counter and sink! Glad she kept them. I just looked at her other bathrooms... one has a bright yellow counter. I want it!!!

i loved the before- mostly the wallpaper and countertop.
i have purposely never watched "The Shining", so I myself safe from any nightmarish kind of associations. the after is cute and bright, and she did a great job... but i think its kind of sad that the wallpaper had to go.

the before made me think bowels of hell. the after is so much better!!

I too was digging the before.
so hard to authenticate "that" look, today.

good job on the after.

i cannot believe how many people prefer the before. it's hideous!

the after is great, and easily one of the best renovations i've ever seen. love it!

I found the "before" interesting and unexpected, the "after" nice but dull. I think she should have tweaked the before to freshen it up keeping the window treatment and the wallpaper. The cabinets look worst painted white.

What an amazing job! The room is now so happy and bright, I just love it. So inspiring to see how you can transform something that hideous (oh my god! that wallpaper was AWFUL and those window treatments just look like they smelled of cigarette smoke and 30 years of mold) to something so CLEAN and fun looking. It's a look I prefer to that whole zen spa light greens and pale blues you always see at any rate. This is perfect for kids and guests alike!

This is totally hilarious. The before version, and... the comments!

i fall in line with the other posters. the wallpaper was badass but combined with the orange counter and the window treatments, it looked "funky glamorous eclectic grandma chic".

the after is perfect for her little ones - playful and grown up at the same time.

The after is OK and practical.
The before was friggin' awesome.

I am surprised so many think that the 'before' was fresh, original, charming, beautiful, etc. Maybe I've been in too many homes that went after that decadent rococo-in-the-burbs thing, but it is not pretty in real life and doesn't make sense for anyone but an elderly vampire or a faded silent-era actress.

The after is a big improvement (cheery and less claustrophobic) and more much appropriate for a young family. I do think the slightly industrial feel of the mirrors and hardware seem 'off', but maybe they were trying to prevent the bathroom from looking too Anthropologie.

Darby: I actually liked the "before" bathroom: the window treatment and foil wallpaper are so dramatic (*badass* hell yeah!) and play very well with the orange counter and sink. It's like visiting another world -- like Morocco or Persia. But, as I looked further, I noticed it's not a powder room at all but a family bathroom with shower and bathtub. The "after" is delightful and more appropriate for a hardworking family bathroom. (I might rip off the "before" for my own powder room). I really liked your interdependent use of fabrics (roman shade, skirted stool, shower curtain) and how well it connected with the orange counter and sink. The wall color is just perfect: not too soft and not to saturated. It complements rather than competes. Bravo! It's not Persia but it is delightful.

what is that crazy ceiling in the "before"? maybe to protect the original surface from aqua net?
there is something about the before that makes me want a fluffy perm and some sparkly shadow. it's sort of fabulous.

great job with the after though!
i've had this love affair going on with orange and yellow. i'm especially liking the fabric choices here. well done.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this!!! I'm so glad she kept the countertop, because it looks amazing in the new room.

I would maim for that wallpaper!

Great job on the redo. The Before could have been turned into somethine art-deco-ish though, something architectonic would balance the wallpaper out and be amazing.

were the window treatments like that throughout the house? and was it considered a "perk" to keep them? yikes. love the after, and the use of the orange counter. great for a kids bathroom.

what an incredible job! $500?? i'm impressed!

The "after" is so much better than the "before".

The before looks like the bathroom Elvis Presley died in.

Beautiful job!

We're renovating an apartment building that has many of its original fixtures from 1955. It's difficult to decide what to keep and what to remove, and I think you did a great job with your bathroom.

I love that you kept the orange counter and used fabrics that complement it well.

The after is much better for a bathroom. I can't even imagine what I would look like coming out of the before bathroom after putting my makeup on - maybe Betty Davis in Whatever Happend to Baby Jane?

Oh my god! That before!!! I would never have been able to look at that and imagine the after. You must really have a great eye. I love it!

Great job, but still, personally I prefer the before. It's so hilariously insane.

I love your "after"! You did a lovely job... where did you get the shower curtain. The foil wallpaper brings back memories from an old house I lived in when I was little, only ours had a flocked floral design on it.

I thought the window treatments in the before were supposed to be drips of blood at first glance. SO glad you kept the orange counter tops though! I'm in the 'brighter = better' bathroom crowd. Great update!

Are you guys kidding? The before looks like Lucifer's lair. Those window treatments are like dripping blood, it gives me the heebiejeebies. I was just going to comment that I'm amazed at how much better it looks with just those few updates, and I think she did a great job of incorporating the red/orange of the countertop and sink into her new color scheme - I actually really like the pop of color there.

Good job! It was scary before.

Wow - The remake is nice, except those handles on the drawers don't work at all.

With the exception of the yellow sheers, I loved the "Before".

Picture #1 is the most hideous bathroom I have ever seen.

I don't live in this home but I still want to thank you for doing your part to beautify the USA.

I will agree for a full bath that before was way over the top, add to that the luminous lighting in the ceiling.

When I saw the before, I was not to crazy about the reddish orange counter and sink (though love the sink's design) but when you toned down the other stuff, the sink/counter color was actually nice.

That said, even for a main bath, I'd have taken it and gone semi mod w/ it utilizing the orange, added some yellow and a touch of glam here and there but kept it much more understated, but modern than it was.

I love it when you get an older home and it has its original colored bath/kitchen fixtures, avocado green, um, no, but orange, yellow or blue, hells yeah! I'm fortunate that the bathroom in my rental apt is original and has it's original sink/vanity and tub, and both are blue and the bathroom has its original lumious ceiling too, but otherwise basic bathroom.

What an amazing transformation!!! The after looks clean and much more spacious. It's now a beautiful room.

I would have kept the "before" window treatment and mirror. I can kind of see how it looks like dripping blood, but I think out of that "before bathroom" context, it would look regal.

Sorry, wallpaper lovers, the wallpaper had to go (though it would have been great to see pictures matted with a bit of the paper), and painting the cabinetry was a good choice.

But I would have added gold/brass accessories and hardware to go along with the gilded mirror; I think it would make two little girls feel like they have their own little princess bathroom.

Very inspiring!

I can't believe you didn't save any of that wall paper. I like the before better.

The before was SO much better ... should have worked with that amazing wallpaper.

Like many others, I almost like the before better but probably would have made the same changes with the same budgetary constraints (assuming I had to keep the orange counter and other items retained).

I agree that the "after" is more appopriate for children, and the before was fit for a roccoco glamour queen (which in my book is a good thing). But I really want to see what the rest of the house was like....

I loved the wallpaper in the "before"... but I don't think I could have lived with it covering my main bathroom. The "after" looks so much better for actual use.

But the "before" makes a great photo!

I think you did a great job transforming the bathroom. I don't think I could have seen so far past what was there!

I love the after! Great job! The shower curtain is so pretty, source?

put me in the love the after category. i agree with okgoodanswer that the before looks like a grandmother's idea of classy. love that you kept the orange counter too.

that before pic was SC-HARY!! I do like your great new AFTER pic though and those countertops work well now with the new colors and fabrics. congrats...

oddly i think the old wallpaper could be used in a modern way, I don't think that context was appropriate but I think it could work well in some circumstnaces. I do like that wallpaper though.

Sometimes I love something but don't want to live with it. I think the before falls into this category. It's amazing how much brighter the after is. The before window thing was very interesting, but odd for a bathroom. It's the kind of bathroom that a gothy teenager might like, but would be wrong for small children.

I have to say this is frickin' brilliant. I would never have thought beige and orange would work.

But the owner took the color of the beige tiles and painted everything else that color, honoring the power of orange. By adding two additional touches of orange, it looks like it was always meant to look like this. Although the knobs are 'mismatched', the tops match and the bottoms match (right?), and don't look mismatched to me.

This is just frickin' brilliant. A lot of design power, one paint color, and two cloth patterns. I am so impressed. I give triple points for using what you have, and doing it basically on a dime.

I'd like to know, did the OP think it was going to look this good, or was she surprised? And what does the OP do for a living? Is she an artist?

RE: The old bath treatment. I don't take off points for tacky (due to the entertainment factor), but the old bath was beyond tacky, all the way around to great. For certain restaurants, and of course bordellos, this was a beautiful bath, well executed. And long narrow baths are a extra challenge to begin with.

Grade A post. Thanks for sharing.

The pics reminded me of Winter Palace -vs- Cape Cod House. Both are great for the right situation.

The before is sort of Tony Duquette, if he lived in Des Moines. It's okay after, but it's suburban.

Boo. The before was fab. Just needed a few minor updates. The after is pedestrian.

I think that's the bathroom Elvis died in- much improved after the make"under"!

In this case, pedestrian is a good thing... Great job, that old bathroom would have scarred your little girls for life! ~:o)

I'm with the Seaside: The before was fab. Love that wallpaper. Had they changed the mirrors and the window treatment, and repainted the ceiling and lighted the color on the vanity cabinet, that would've been perfect.

Ha! I love how the redo was considered pedestrian! How can that be bad here? Honestly, I agree with most of the expressed comments here. The previous bathroom could have used some simple alterations to be pretty fab (that wall paper is cool) but for regular daily living... this "makeunder" does an excellent job.

Love the after. Everyone makes comments about loving the wallpaper before but I bet they wouldn't live with it! Good job. :)