Meg vs. the Vanity: TileDOC Makeover

The vanity top in our bathroom has been the bane of my existence for some time. It was stained and yellowish and unattractive, but in a size that is no longer standard (aka expensive to replace). I finally found an affordable one, and it arrived all smashed to pieces (just like my dreams of an easy bathroom makeover).

Enter TileDOC. I actually found out about this product from the Giani Granite Paint website. I had considered using their products to re-do the vanity, but it can't be used in the sink, and I was short on time, so it didn't help me much. They recommended using TileDOC for the sink, so I thought, "Why not use it to spray the whole stinkin' thing?" And that is what I did. I sprayed and sprayed, coat after coat, two whole cans' worth of TileDOC.

Behold!

Here is the sink before; beige and stained.

After, in my makeshift spray booth.

Ta-da!

It is a little grainier than I would like, surely because I didn't do it right (I am too impatient for following instructions to the letter, though I tried), but it is much, much better than it was before. It doesn't clash with the tile anymore! And I am a happy camper.

Meg vs. The Bathroom: A new coat of paint.

I spent my last couple of days in Vallejo doing this, among other things. I wish I would have done this so much earlier! I think we bough the paint for it a year ago... I am so in love with this bathroom now; it makes me want to move back =).

Before: '80's peach. It almost came back in style, but not quite.

After: Cool grey. We used the same Behr Silver Drop that we used in the bedroom, but asked them to make it 50% darker than the original, so it is just a little bit more noticeably grey.

What a difference some paint makes! The only really annoying part of this job was that a little bit of the silicone caulking I did last year stayed on the wall around the shower (way to go, Meg), so of course the paint wouldn't stick and kept beading up. Finally I got desperate, and stood there and smeared the paint back and forth with my finger until it started getting tacky and dry, and what do you know? It mostly covered up the silicone. It was a small miracle, because I didn't have time to go hunt down some other product to remove or cover up the silicone.

Meg vs. The Bathroom: Vanity Tragedy

I have been waiting for nearly a month for this package so I don't have to look at my stained vanity top anymore. It arrived like this.

I wanted to laugh, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. Then I wanted to cry, but couldn't do that either. Now I just want to go to sleep! Just 3 kids to get down and a room full of holes to patch between me and my pillow... I'll deal with this fellow tomorrow.

Meg vs. The Bathroom: Mini Moulding!

Our friend came over yesterday and helped John start putting molding around the ceiling. I love it! John also spent hours scrubbing all the grout and construction mess off of the tub and floor, and I installed peel and stick vinyl tiles in the inside of the vanity. Once the molding is done (this week, most likely), we just have to wait for our countertop and cabinet doors to get here (both in the mail), and then we will be DONE! Hooray! And none too soon; we already had a potential renter come look at the place yesterday, and two more students are coming Thursday to check it out; fingers crossed we get all the rooms rented out so I can stop obsessing over that and get these projects done.

Meg vs. The Bathroom: Holdups

I was really excited because I put the light fixture back up and hung the new mirror and everything was looking fabulous. Then I had John help me put the new vanity on...and it didn't fit. The original was 49" x 19", but the box stores only carried 49" by 22". I thought it wouldn't be a big deal to have a top that hung over the front slightly, but in the end it didn't sit right, we had to move the vanity away from the wall, and it just looked silly. So back to Lowe's it went, and I ordered one online that should be here in a couple of weeks. Sigh. Our friend is hopefully going to come this week to help John put up the molding, but other than that I am kind of at an impasse in the bathroom. I guess I can work on cleaning the tub and floor (they need it after all the construction!).

Meg vs. The Bathroom: Progress

I am dragging this bathroom project out WAY too long. I am not a very focused DIYer... But I have made some progress, and I am determined to finish as much as I can (everything but the molding and the cabinet doors) this week!

Meg vs. The Bathroom: First coat of gel stain, done!

I finally bit the bullet and slapped a coat of gel stain on that stinkin' vanity. I put the baby in his doorway bouncer, and asked Big Brother to entertain him. Baby screamed for the last five minutes. I guess it was worth it... I am excited about how it will look with two more coats!

Here is a before picture of the side of the vanity. Either the finish bubbled, or the rats in the garage had their way with it... either way, boo! I was afraid we would have to fork out for a replacement.

Here it is after the first coat. It looks worse in the picture than in real life because of the flash, but I think after the rest of the coats it won't be so noticeable.

And this natural light picture gives a better idea of the color it should be when it is all done.

Here's the color palette for the bathroom. Yay! We really are so close to being done, if I could just get my act together!

I am planning on a second coat tomorrow, a third on Monday, and then topcoat at the end of next week, and that should do the trick! More pictures to come. I am generally following this tutorial on staining cabinets with General Finishes Gel Stain.

Meg vs. The Bathroom: Paint Sneak Peek

I managed to throw two coats of paint on the bathroom walls before our Christmas trip began. I may or may not have gone to bed at 2am a couple of nights in a row. But I am really excited about the results!

We'll be back in action on the bathroom after the new year.

John vs. The Bathroom: The tile goes on...

Over John's fall break he got right back to work on the tile, and it is almost all up! Here's the bath surround:

The toilet area:

On Tuesday our awesome friend came over again to help John wire up a new light/heater/fan to replace the ancient one that had been there previously.

They also moved the boxes down so that it would be easier to tile around them.

So there's just this one little spot left, then grout, then the tiling is done! I am so pleased with how it looks, and I think John is pleased with how much he has learned and how well his first big project is turning out. Color me impressed.

John vs. The Bathroom: Continuing around the bath

John has been working tirelessly at the tiling. A lot of the time involved is spent figuring out how to do all the things he's never done before--mitering, specialty cuts, balancing shelves, etc. etc. Here again is the progress:

I spent last night taping and plastering around the ceiling joint (until I ran out of plaster, that is) so John can finish the last line around the tub and do the last tub wall. More pictures to come! I am still really happy with how it is turning out. So much better than the old walls! Remember these?

A shudder just went down my spine.

John vs. The Bathroom: First tiles!

John has been hard at work, and he first wall of tiles is done! I love how it is turning out.

 The very first row.

 The first wall! That end cap on the molding tiles was a beast, but I'm really pleased with how it turned out. 

My honey sawing away.

John vs. The Bathroom: Progress

Here is the pictoral account of John's progress over the last two weeks. I was gone one week at my mom's place, and now I am mostly doing damage control trying to keep up with the boys, keep the mess under control, and help out where I can. There have been A LOT of trips to the hardware store!

Ripping out the old green board and the lathe and plaster behind it.

Had to clip the old wire mesh and separate the wall from the ceiling.

The tile border wouldn't come off, and John found mold on the bottom of the wall, so out came the bottom foot of lathe and plaster around the bathroom perimeter.

Vapor barrier went up over the bathtub surround.

Then cement board went up all around.

The tiling has finally begun, so pictures will be forthcoming. John also painted the baby room while we were gone, and little guy is enjoying a much nicer view now. I have the best hubby ever, and he is learning a lot. Thank goodness for a good friend that has been mentoring him through the whole process.

Meg and John vs. The Bathroom: Demo Day 1

After dinner tonight we got down to business. We cleaned out the mess,

Took out the fixtures (gross!),

Ripped down cheap vinyl lining,

 

 and removed old, improperly-installed green board to find the disaster hidden underneath.

The wall with the plumbing is still untouched because we have to find the local shutoff valve. We think it is under the house, but it isn't accessible from the crawl space in our room, so tomorrow John is going through the much smaller crawl space that lets in from the toy room. My hero.

This is quickly (but I suppose not surprisingly) turning from our re-tile the bath project to our re-model the bathroom project. Let's hope it looks okay when we are through!

Meg vs. The Bathroom: New goals

A friend that is going to help us re-tile our tub surround came over today to give us some guidance on the demolition we need to do to prepare. It is looking like a lot. Then he put some more ambitious ideas on our heads for this bathroom remodel. So... all of our current goals are being thrown out the window, and our goal for the next week before I take off for my mom's house is to get the bathroom all stripped down and patched and ready to tile. If I can find the chargers for either of our cameras, I will post pictures. I seriously cannot hold on to those things for some reason!

Buh-bye poorly-installed vinyl shower liner!