Monday, September 24, 2012

Pink Bathroom Chronicles: DONE

Catch up!

Part ONE: Medicine Cabinet
Part TWO: Cabinet Demolition
Part THREE: Patching and Shelves
Part FOUR: Vanity Light

It's DONE! My mini bathroom makeover is done! Before I get to the before/afters, here are a few odds and ends that needed to be wrapped up.

Remember those pocket holes? I used wooden Kreg plugs to plug up the holes, then smeared some wood filler over them. Once that dried, I sanded the area down flush.


Why plugs instead of all wood-filler? My thinking was that if someone ever wanted to take down these shelves in the future (which would ONLY be acceptable if they were planning a complete bathroom gut, because these shelves are awesome), it would be easier to take out a plug than have to burrow into wood filler to get to the screws. And to make it even easier, I only put plugs on the first two shelves, since only an abnormally tall person would be able to see the pocket holes in the top two.

You're probably wondering what's up with the green painter's tape. Since the walls were a little wavy and generally not straight, there were some gaps between the shelves and the wall. To make it all look seamless, I used a caulking method I learned on Young House Love.


Basically you tape the corners leaving between 1/8"-1/4" on each surface.


Then you apply an even bead of caulk, making sure you get into all the gaps. Then you run your finger along the corner to remove the excess and smooth everything out.


Now the crucial part: IMMEDIATELY remove the tape while the caulk is still wet. If you wait too long, you will end up pulling up some caulk leaving a jaggy edge. And yes, I learned this the hard way.

Also, there's absolutely no good way to say "caulk" without sounding like you're trying really hard not to say "cock". Just the facts of life.


 If all goes well, you will have a lovely clean edge. If not, there's always paint and a razor blade.

And now for the moment you've all been waiting for, the BIG REVEAL OMGOMGOMG. But first, a before:


AFTERRRRRR!!


Another angle for funsies.



And a few more before/afters to bask in. Remember that old ceramic toilet paper holder?


Replaced by a more streamlined model from IKEA.


Painted over the rusty bronze vanity light.




And the medicine cabinet that started it all.



Here's a budget breakdown. Note that this does not include tool purchases, because those maaaay have put me over the $100 budget I was given.

Medicine cabinet: $20
Poplar wood: $38
Kreg screws: $4
Kreg plugs: $7
Toilet paper holder: $9
Drywall mud: $6
Spray paint: $6
Caulk: $6
Spackle: Already had
Wood filler: Already had
Paint: Already had
Frog Tape: Already had
TOTAL: $96

I hope you found this not-so-pink-anymore bathroom series enjoyable/helpful/not-too-boring. Really, I'll take any of those three. Oh and in case you were curious, I presented it to my landlady today and she LOVED it! Success! 

Phew, I think this calls for lots and lots of wine. Excuse me.

6 comments:

  1. Great cause for celebration! Must say, I love what you did with those lights. The satin paint and turning them upside-down has transformed them from something icky to a gorgeous art-deco statement!

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    1. Thank you! It was the best I could do on a shoestring budget :)

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  2. Terrific makeover. I would've panicked and thrown the lights out. They look brand-new. Btw, love the tissue box! Is it just a regular cardboard one you bought in the supermarket, or a refillable one?

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  3. Thanks! Unfortunately the landlady did not give me the budget for new lights, so I had to make do.
    The tissue box is actually from Trader Joes! I love it, but it's a little more expensive than a regular box.

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  4. Nevermind the caulking, how did you pull off those floating shelves? I have the same setup, an alcove over a toilet, and I want shelves with no visible fixings above. Trouble is, all the, ahem, off the shelf shelves I see in shops are the wrong width for my nook. Oh and the rear wall is plasterboard. I don't know how to achieve it.

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  5. Robert, obviously you didn't read the article or look at he photo, did you?

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