We bought our house a couple of years ago and were thrilled that it was already in really nice shape which meant we weren’t going to have to tackle a lot of new projects immediately upon move-in. We just didn’t have the energy at the time.
And while the kitchen had been upgraded with lovely silestone countertops, tile floors and ~stainless steel appliances~, the rest of the house had only had the basics done – fresh, but plain jane neutral paint everywhere and neutral new carpeting upstairs. The rest of the decorative touches in the house are all “builder grade” boring. From the mid-1990’s. Which means a lot of BRASS door knobs and HONEY OAK cabinets. Loverly!NOT! But, we knew we could live with it all until we could find the time, energy and money to make some changes.
And… we lived with it… and lived with it.. and lived with it. For like 20 years until I finally asked my toddler to poke my eyes out with a fork.
OK, that isn’t true… it’s only been 2 years, not 20. But it feels like it’s been forever!
When I finally decided to make some changes, I figured the most logical place to start was the master bathroom. After all, it is where I start and end every day – shouldn’t it be a pleasant experience? It already had a nice double sink vanity but… it was HONEY OAK, with a HUGE, plain, unframed mirror above. And the whole thing was topped off with*~*HOLLYWOOD LIGHTS*~*.
Don’t you wish your bathroom was HOT like mine? Don’t you? Don’t you?
This doesn’t show all of the wonderful features we were presented with when we moved in, but here is a photo from the original real estate listing (funny how they didn’t want to show off the oak cabinets or the hollywood lights either!).
The first thing I did was get rid of the pink curtains. I searched everywhere for the right length but couldn’t find ANYTHING that was 52″ (unless I wanted to pay for custom – which I didn’t!). Eventually, I found some “make-your-own length” panels at Ikea and was able to create some nice light and airy curtains in the perfect length I wanted.
Next was to get rid of the HONEY OAK cabinets. Replacing them wasn’t an option, so I painted them instead – a nice satin black – and added brushed nickel knobs to the doors. ILURVE the end result! More details to be provided on this project later.
The next thing i knew I wanted to renovate was the huge builder-grade mirror. Since the bathroom has cathedral ceilings, we can’t paint the room ourselves and we just don’t have the budget to hire professionals right now. So removing the mirror was not an option since we’d be left with no choice but to paint the area behind it. So…. Enter… a mirror frame!
Now I know there are plenty of DIY-ers out there who have built their own frame and I applaud them. But, I opted for the custom-cut-kit route instead and am THRILLEDwith what an amazing difference it makes. More details on this project can be found HERE.
We finished off the look by replacing the Hollywood Lights with modern brushed nickel lovelies.
I still need to replace the faucets and we need to patch the holes in the wall left from the old light fixtures, and I want to replace the towel racks… but still… what a difference!
Here is the before (again, when we moved in) and after for you admiration:
BEFORE
What do you think? I never enjoyed brushing my teeth so much! 🙂
Cassity Kmetzsch started Remodelaholic after graduating from Utah State University with a degree in Interior Design. Remodelaholic is the place to share her love for knocking out walls, and building everything back up again to not only add function but beauty to her home. Together with her husband Justin, they have remodeled 6 homes and are working on a seventh. She is a mother of four amazing girls. Making a house a home is her favorite hobby.
>I did the same thing by putting a frame over the mirror. It made such a difference I wish I had done it months ago. I like black so the cabinets definitley appeal to me.
>I have the same 90s builder's grade stuff in our home…love the transformation! We are slowly getting our stuff changed, little by little. I loled at the fork in the eye joke!
>I have the exact same problem in my bathroom! Full size mirror, hollywook lights, and honey oak cabinets. This is the solution to my problem. Thanks!
>I did the same thing by putting a frame over the mirror. It made such a difference I wish I had done it months ago. I like black so the cabinets definitley appeal to me.
>Love it! The black looks great..
>Nice job! What a difference getting rid of the honey oak can make!
>That is a fabulous transformation!!! Great job!
>I have the same 90s builder's grade stuff in our home…love the transformation! We are slowly getting our stuff changed, little by little. I loled at the fork in the eye joke!
>Love it!!! 🙂
>Looks great!
>Ialso painted mine black but distressed. I took te mirror down and put up two black oval mirrors. Love the transformation!