A Boring New-Build Bathroom Transforms into a “Boutique” Stunner for $1,825
There are lots of hotel, department store — and even at-home — bathrooms that feel spa-like and luxurious, but it likely took a lot of design work (think: wallpaper and luxe lighting) for them to feel so serene.
In Michaela Hillman’s home, a once-boring 43-square-foot bathroom is now “grand and moody,” she says, but it took about $1,825 — and lots of DIY effort — to get there.
“The guest bathroom started in Benjamin Moore’s Wolf Gray,” she describes. “It’s a new construction home … with high ceilings, marble floors, white subway tiles in the shower, and solid storage. I didn’t hate the layout, but I disliked how uninspired it felt — no color, no charm, and definitely not reflective of me.”
Michaela says she wants her home to reflect joy and personality — even in a utilitarian space like the bathroom. “I treat my bathroom as a mini retreat and felt like it deserved to be just as special as any other room in the house,” she says.
The bathroom makeover started with fresh paint.
Michaela picked her wallpaper and then color-matched that to a Behr paint selection at The Home Depot. “I painted the ceiling, doors, and trim first,” she says. She chose a high-gloss paint to reflect more light, and she spray-painted the ceiling vent to match. Prep work was important; Michaela sanded her doors for better paint adhesion.
Michaela says choosing the same color paint as the wallpaper “helps stretch the space visually.” It added “the illusion of height and drama, making a big impact in a small footprint.”
Next came wallpaper.
She used a pasted-on heron-patterned wallpaper for her bathroom makeover, and she found it easier to apply paste directly to the wall rather than apply it to the back of the wallpaper.
Michaela says the large-scale pattern also helps the bathroom to feel bigger, but it was a bit of a challenge to get everything to line up correctly. She also learned that it’s easiest to trim the wallpaper when it’s still wet. “I ended up using a steamer to rehydrate the paste and recut everything with an X-ACTO knife.”
Michaela’s best wallpapering advice? “I wasn’t afraid to peel it back and try again, and I’m glad I ordered extra wallpaper panels because I had to scrap a few,” she says. In a few spots, the wallpaper still doesn’t line up exactly, “but luckily, they’re hidden behind the mirror,” she adds.
Installing lighting was a first-time DIY.
The mirror is from Amazon, and the new light fixture is from Wayfair. It was Michaela’s first time installing lighting — and wallpaper, for that matter — and she says it was mostly easier than expected, except for one memorable hiccup.
There were hiccups along the way.
“I accidentally hit my new light fixture with a metal roller while wallpapering, and sparks flew,” she says. “It shorted out the light — but thankfully I wasn’t hurt! I’ve been extra cautious around electricity since.”
As with any DIY project, there were some mistakes that needed to be fixed along the way. For example, Michaela accidentally drilled too-long screws through the bathroom door, but she patched that up and found the correct length screws. She says she was also careful to plan out where her art, mirror, and light fixture would go in advance so she wouldn’t have to make multiple punctures in the wallpaper.
“DIY projects will always come with mistakes and learning curves, but that’s part of the fun,” she says. “Take your time.”
New accessories make the bathroom feel fancy.
In terms of decorating advice, Michaela says not everything needs to be matchy-matchy. “My toothbrush cup? Technically a wine cup, but the pattern was perfect,” she says. Her antique towel rack is from eBay, her decorative black tray is from Etsy, and her glass shelf is from Amazon. The new ceiling-height shower curtain and rod are from IKEA.
“Sometimes I just sit there and take it all in,” she says. “Now, it feels like a private boutique hotel … It feels like you’re escaping from the world for a few private moments.”
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