From Eighties Drab to 2021 Vintage Fab: How to Freshen up an Outdated Bathroom on a Tight Budget
When we first took a look at our new home one thing was clear, it was a big fixer upper project. We needed to do a lot of work on was the place. But the bathroom situation, in all three of the main usage bathrooms (main floor half bath, second floor bath and master bath) needed a serious upgrade.
The half bath was the first bathroom we tackled. It is located on the main floor and the one guests would be using. We wanted our half bathroom to be a nice clean space, where guests would feel comfortable doing their business.
Half bath renos and updates can be a lot of fun. There is a lot of room, in such a small room, for some nice finishings and decor touches.
We started by emptying out the whole bathroom. We demo-ed the medicine cabinet and vanity. The vanity lights and fixtures were removed, as well. The pocket door was not functioning so we took it out and replaced it with a pocket door that worked elsewhere in the house.
One of the things we wanted to change about the house was the paint. When we purchased it the whole house was a ghastly shade of blue. Blue is not a bad colour to paint your whole house but this shade and hue was too saturated and very... blue. It was too blue to stomach. We had to tackle this large amount of blue and get a more neutral colour pallet going. Wee hired a great crew of local painters to paint the entire main floor. It required a ton of primer and a few coats of paint to cover the blue. The results were well worth the costs to get a lighter, parchment paper white on the walls.
We used Beauti-tone Signature Series, Eggshell Finish in love letters. It has been my go to white for a few house updates. The results are always gorgeous and, so far, consistent.
Once we had a blank canvas, to work with on the main floor, including the half bath, we were ready to start on the floors. The floors in the half bath were an outdated yellowing linoleum (see image below) that carried over from the laundry room. We peeled it all up and prepped the floor for a loose lay luxury vinyl plank flooring in a slate look.
The loose lay luxury vinyl we choose was a glue down vinyl, not a click and lock, which takes a bit of finesse to install. The process was well worth the results. It looks high-end. It's also warmer on the feet than slate or ceramic and it's very durable. It's also a fraction of the cost of slate or ceramic tiles. You just need floor glue, the flooring and some patience.
Home Hardware is our neighbourhood hardware store were we get a majority of the products we work with. They no longer carry this exact brand of vinyl flooring we used but you can find a very similar kind here.
Plumbing and Toilets
Once the flooring was laid, dried and ready to be walked on, we tackled the toilets.
The toilet in the half bath wasn't working. Getting an upgraded and efficient toilet was a priority. It was an old 10 litre toilet. It was not only outdated aesthetically, but also inefficient. They use up so much water, your water bill will be astronomical. We purchased a classic looking, reasonably priced, energy efficient American Standard 4.8 L reliant round toilet in white for the half bath. It upgraded the room in an instant.
I never thought I would be one to gush over a toilet, but after the toilet was installed, I honestly said to my partner, "have you every seen such beautiful toilet in your life?".
Vanities
The next big project in the half bath reno was the vanity. We decided to use this beautiful dresser I had kicking around for years as a vanity. It was originally a very dark cream colour with gold accents. I had painted a silver a few years back. We painted it again this time a more denim blue using Rust-oleum chalked ultra matte spray paint in coastal blue. It took a few coats and a rub down with some antiquing wax to really bring out those flourishes and details, but once completed it was a beautiful piece, ready to be turned into a vanity.
The process of turning a dresser into a vanity, involves taking out the back or the bottom, depending on the dresser. The drawers need to be reworked to allow for plumbing. In some cases you need to remove the drawers. You should keep the doors thought and glue them down to make it look as thought the drawers are still on the dresser. The last step is, installing a sink and tap and connecting it to the water lines and thus the plumbing of your house. Vessel sinks work great for this. They can sit on top of the dresser and do not require you to cut a hole in the top of the piece. We purchased a reasonably priced square tapered vessel sink from Glacier Bay and faucet also from Glacier Bay, which went well with the dresser. The sink was purchased from Home Depot.
It is important to note, that with the plumbing parts of this project need to be done by a professional, knowledgable plumber. Please do not attempt to install a toilet or hook up a sink to the water lines if you do not have experience. These need to be done properly to prevent leaking and to ensure proper seals are put in place, etc. There can be big consequences down the line if these steps are not done properly.
Finishing Touches
With the major areas and projects all completed the last part of the bathroom reno was the finishing touches.
We added in some vintage looking vanity lights purchased from Amazon.ca, hung a vintage mirror I purchased second hand a few yeas back, built some custom shelves above the toilet using old fence board, and added in the decor touches such as diffusers, candles, some fake plants, soap dishes and dispensers and artwork.
The results are an updated, clean and welcoming, half bath for family and guests to use.
Shop the Bathroom
Mirror | Vintage/Second Hand
Crystal soap dishes | Second Hand
Have you reno'ed or updated your half bath. How did it go? What were some of the pain points of your bathroom before you did the reno/update. If you haven't gotten to it yet what needs to changed? Share your stories in the comments below.
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