Paint: To Antique the Vanity?

I was at home.  The location listing on Craigslist showed Belton- our sister city (and arch-rival!).  I knew I might need some more paint to complete this bathroom project.  The picture also showed a can of white spray paint- and I have a very specific need for some of that!  So I loaded the kids in the van, drove a whopping 3 miles and received a load of used paint from a guy who was cleaning out his garage.

Of course, it was a hot day, and as he kept himself busy cleaning out his garage, his young kids were playing in the sprinkler in the yard.  That inspired my two kids, and before I could get the paint out of the back of the van, our sprinkler was dispensing water to the giggly delight of Olivia and Easton.

Seriously, though, I found in the pile of paint a nice surprise: a couple of cans of antique paint.  You know, the kind you use to make new stuff look like old stuff.  Erica has been consdering painting my beautiful vanity black to add some pop to the bathroom.  At first I was cool to the idea, but the more I think about it, the better it sounds.  How about a black vanity, antiqued and distressed?

Below is a sample picture of a new, made-for-retail vanity, with a distressed-black color.  The color scheme would then be:  black vanity, white sink, toilet shower base and wall tiles, and earth-tone tile on the floor.  Any thoughts?

Source:  www.homeportfolio.com

Remodeling Is Expensive, Part 2 - The Bathroom Remodel

 We really love almost everything about our house.  Before we moved in we painted several rooms, and then of course, decorated and painted others within the first year.  But most rooms needed little more than a fresh coat of paint in a contemporary color.  The upstairs bathroom, however, needed more.  The floors featured a brown linoleum that was intended to look like parquet.  Unfortunately, vinyl just never looks like real wood.  The walls were a cloudy light blue, with a terrible boarder touching the ceiling.  Behind the door was what looked like a sad attempt at a linen closet, but with no doors, just really narrow open shelves.

Ugly Vinyl!

So, we decided to dive in!  A friend told me that installing tile was not hard.  I practiced with simple 12" X 12" square pattern in our master bathroom (the one guests never see).  And my friend was right- it was not too bad!  So for the main bathroom, I decided to try a pattern with multiple sizes of tiles. For a couple hundred dollars, we could have a new bathroom!

For this project, I really tried hard to budget correctly.  We kept the bathtub, planned for only a fresh application of stain and polyurethane on the existing vanity/sink, and used a white toilet that we had in our basement.  I made a full list of materials and priced them before we dove in.  We figured out how to pay for the project within our budget.  I estimated that it would cost at least $350 in materials.  So we gave ourselves $400.  Then we dove in!

The project went well.  I wasn't exactly sure how I would enclose the wannabe linen closet, but luckily I was able to enclose the bottom half and then install permanent open shelves in the top half- using mostly leftover materials from other projects.  (You see, we really will use that extra piece someday!)  The tile-setting went well, and I didn't break or mis-cut too many pieces, creating unnecessary waste.  However, as I began to mix the grout, I realized I had picked the wrong color.  Too late to return it, I had to buy another bag of grout.  Oops.  Setting the toilet turned out to be a challenge and required a few extra pieces.  Oops.  In the end, we were spent $535 on the materials.  $135 over budget.

Then came the decorating part.  Before starting the project, we purchased a large print of a couple of wooden boats on a beach.  We really liked it and decided to use it as the focal point for our decorating.  A great shower curtain, wood blinds a modest rug, and sink accessories added a little more to the cost.  And then there were the baskets.  The final pieces to complete linen closet 2.0.  Constrained by size, we found nice brown baskets, and just had to pay the price.  Total cost for the decorating items, not including the picture:  $175.

In the end, a little over $700 gave us a new bathroom.  I love the new bathroom!  The tile pattern looks good.  The colors look good.  Sure, there are a few things I could have done better, but most people would have to look closely to find them.  But in the end, it was pricey- at least for this cheapskate!  It was definitely not a couple hundred dollars!  No Way!  But hey- remodeling is expensive!

The final version includes a door on the bottom and baskets

 on the shelves.

I scored a better vanity and sink!

This vanity needed some work!

It has been a crazy 3 weeks since I last posted an update.  I have had family in town, and things have been busy, but mostly there have been very few great items given away on Craigslist.  I have a couple of recent scores to share, though.


I previously wrote about the free vanity I scored.  It needed a ton of work, however, including fabrication of a door.  Then I bought the sink, just in case I couldn't find a free one manufactured in one of the last three decades.

I never really liked this sink.

I guess I underestimated the possibility of a great find, though.  One Wednesday morning I saw a listing on the Craigslist free page for a vanity and sink.  The owners were updating the bathroom in their ten year old house.  To my surprise, the sink was still available, even after sitting on the free page for a few hours.  Later that night I packed the kids in the van, drove a short 6 miles to Peculiar, and loaded the sink and vanity in my van.

This sink and vanity are in great shape!  No scratches on either.  No blemishes, really.  This is a great find and will look great in the new bathroom.  Check it out!

I also have a new theory about making the most of Craigslist.  Remember the 3 most important rules in real estate?  Location, location, and location.  It turns out the same might be true about Craigslist.  If an item is listed in a town on the edge of the metro area, or maybe a small and rather unknown city, people will be less likely to travel and retrieve the item.  In my case, I have found great items in the city of Peculiar.  And while Peculiar is only 6 miles from Raymore, it is rather unknown, or at least it is perceived as "far away" from the KC metro area.  As a result, people are more likely to ignore items there.  So now I know- the farther out, the more likely an item will remain available.

The Motherlode of Freebies!

The vanity needs a little work

Last week, while checking in with my friends on the Craigslist free page, I became interested in a listing- lumber, tubing, a bathroom vanity base, and some sheetrock pieces.  I can use all of that stuff!  They listed their address along with my least-favorite phrase:  first-come-first-served.  The listing was posted 2 hours earlier and I had just put Easton down for a nap.  "Everything is gone already," I thought to myself.  I sent an email,  nonetheless, describing my project, asking that they hold whatever might be left.  "Slim chance, but worth a try."  But I really wanted that vanity!

Tile!!!  Some full pieces & cut pieces

A Texture sprayer - sell it?

Five hours later my phone rings and the guy tells me the vanity is still there, and he has some tile I can have, too!  The back of his truck was full of tile- some full pieces and some partial pieces.  A wall/ceiling texure sprayer?  Sure, I can use that!  A partial box of grout?  I need grout for the tile!  Tile backerboard?  Need that, too.  The small sheetrock pieces and the wood will help, also.  I came home with a van full!

The Accessory Set!

Oh, and one more bonus!  They brought out an unopened package of chrome bathroom accessories- the towel rack, the toilet paper holder, the hand-towel ring, and the robe hook!  And I was wondering how I was going to find those items for free!








So I might be able to pull off this project after all!