Before and After: This $500 Bathroom Makeover Is All About the New Floor
With just six weeks of work and $500, this bathroom was transformed from ’80s wonderland—complete with peach tiles, wallpapered outlet cover, tiny triangle sink, stained glass medicine cupboard, and robot curtains—into a bright, modern sanctuary.
Thanks to The Handyman’s Daughter, this is like an entirely new bathroom, but in a fun twist, the blue from the old bathroom made it into the new. It’s a gorgeous shade, but it works better as a painted vanity and tile floor than it does as 30-year-old wallpaper. The white really pops against the rich blue, for the bright, clean look that’s so appealing in bathrooms. This half-bath manages to fit in a good amount of pattern and visual interest without overwhelming the small space, and that’s mostly due to the amazing floor. The pattern is fabulous yet minimal.
Incredibly, that floor is painted and stenciled; there’s a tutorial over on The Handyman’s Daughter and the stencil is from DizzyDuckDesignsUK on Etsy if you’d like to try it on your own tile floor. The BEHR Porch and Patio Floor Paint from Home Depot was tinted to match the Home Decorators Collection vanity, also from Home Depot. (Note: The Handyman’s Daughter received free product for this project from Spectrum Brands, including the toilet paper holder.)
The skinny, vertically-oriented tiles create a feeling of height, a wise move in a petite room. The tiles’ proportions and orientation set them apart from the usual subway tiles. Meanwhile, the pale gray paint—Big Chill from Sherwin-Williams—adds a bit of softness to the high-contrast room.
That mirror could use a little love, but the real issue here is the teeny-tiny triangle sink. The Handyman’s Daughter revealed that it was too small to even properly wash hands in, which is really a shame considering the generous size of the vanity. It was an inefficient use of space, at an awkward angle.
Now, with a smaller vanity, there’s a larger sink. This one has more than enough room for hand-washing, with enough horizontal space to hold a phone, lipstick, or clutch. The sink itself is interesting yet understated.
Thank you, The Handyman’s Daughter!