We’ve all been there. You want to make a big change in your home, but now is not the time to be spending. Whatever your situation, you still want to improve your room’s form and function NOW.
Here’s a case study of an ugly master bathroom that needed some interim love.
Dark green-ish walls, tan trim, yellow-ish ceiling, floral border, grimy shower door and dark rose shade made this master bathroom feel like it was from another era. And did you notice there are no knobs on the cabinets? A functional no-no!
The Plan: hit the low-lying fruit with a budget of just $300. Here’s what we did.
First (after removing the border) we painted the ceiling white, the walls a pale blue/green/gray (BM “In Your Eyes” – same color we used in the guest room), and the trim white ($60).
We then replaced the towel bar with hooks and added hardware to the cabinets. Cabinet hardware – Martha Stewart collection from Home Depot ($36) and hooks (actually a coat rack) from Stacks and Stacks ($30).
We tore down the shower door, and replaced it with a stall shower curtain. Much cleaner (I’ll spare you the details) and easier to KEEP clean ($50). Note: had to order the stall-size shower curtain online (Amazon) – not many in stock in local stores).
We finally, we replaced the foreboding rose shade with doily accent with simple café panels ($100). Rod from Crate & Barrel and panels from Pottery Barn (yes, same curtains we used in the guest room – we found they were perfect for letting light in while giving full privacy).
We also added a functional shelf with hooks from HomeGoods ($25). Great for drying bathing suits!
If you were counting along with me, that’s a total of $301. Ok, so I went $1 over. 😉
Phase II of this bathroom will include a new counter top, sinks and faucets. Plus new lighting fixtures (two to replace the one shown) and two mirrors. But for now, this room seems to work fine for us. And for around $300! Here are few more pictures:
What quick fixes have you done for your rooms? And any suggestions for counter tops? I’m hoping to get to phase II early next year.
10 comments
Hi! I’m looking for a cafe rod like the one you have by your tub because it looks like you only have two brackets holding it. The one I have is too thin so it needs a middle bracket and, like your window, there’s no on place to mount a center bracket. Any help would be appreciated!
Thanks! Your bathroom is beautiful!
Changing colors can quickly enhance the mood that a room can give you…Adding some light can also do a good job
It seems like you managed to bring a whole new light into that bathroom…nice
Just curious if the shower curtain still works! I hate our stand up shower door and want to take it out- but concerned about water getting on the floor!
Really neat and wonderful and I love the “SPA” above the bath tub..so inviting!:)
Wow! What a turnaround. Nice choices.
So far, no problem! Just be sure to align the bar just inside the lip on the floor (does that make sense?). I’ve enjoyed showering much more w/o all the grim in the door!
We really want to replace our stand up shower door with a curtain, or at least put one over it. Without the door, is there any issue with water getting on the floor outside the shower??