Big Difference : Little Cash
As you all know, I still live at home. This means I don’t have all the interior design freedom that I wish I did, sadly I’m stuck to a bedroom and a bathroom. I love interior design, so any chance I get to redo a room, or even make some small changes, I am going to do take it. My family and I recently moved from my childhood home to a new home that was a little outdated. My bedroom was pretty easy and just took some paint and decor, but my bathroom took a little love. I am also a college student and don’t have all the money in the world to devote to a bathroom redo so I wanted to keep it to a minimum for that reason, and to also show you don’t need to spend a lot of money to make a big difference.
To start, you can clearly see that the bathroom was outdated. Everything is the same color, very muted and boring. The first big step you can take to change the whole feel of a room, is obviously give it a fresh coat of paint. At this point I knew I was going to go for a vintage rustic type of feel, so I picked a neutral grey tone (BEHR MARQUEE Grey Mist at Home Depot) for the walls. Painting always makes a big difference especially in a space like this where everything was the same, the new color really stands out.
Another huge part of the bathroom in this case was the vanity, in an ideal world I would’ve replaced the countertop for sure. I didn’t have the funds to do so, so I started with the small things. I added a wood frame around the mirror to give it that rustic feel, and carried that through the decor I have on top of the counter. For the frame, all I did was stain (Dark Walnut from Home Depot) some wood from Home Depot (Any thickness you like) and used some black brackets to hold it together, and glued it to the mirror using wood glue. In my opinion, this made a huge difference! Above the mirror were some old fashioned light bulbs, I sort of liked the look of them but wanted a little more updated feel so I bought similar vintage bulbs but they were clear instead of white, and I spray painted the light bulb stand black to take that old gold paint away. A small detail that made a bigger difference than I thought, were the new knobs (I got them in silver, but they are sadly sold out, so here’s ones that are pretty similar) for the cabinet and drawers! I picked them out from Anthropologie just as an extra decor aspect, but they really made the vintage vibe come together and I am very happy I changed those old white plastic ones!
All that was left was the decor! I got all of my towels from Target, because they had some nice color options as well as some affordable prices. Another store that has amazing affordable decor is Kirklands, and this is where I got the shelf, the mason jars with the holder on the counter, and the little sign on the shelf that says “Clean hands, Clean faces, Clean hearts” which I thought was too cute to pass up. All of my wire baskets and organizers are from Home Goods, sadly I cannot link these because they don’t have an online section to shop from, but Michaels also had some great options. The picture of the plant is also from Home Goods, but here is a similar option! My bath mat is actually from Home Depot, and I thought it was a perfect fit because it was nice and simple! I also replaced the curtain rod with a matte black one from Amazon because the small black touches really emphasize the rustic feel without being too overpowering. Lastly, of course my candles are from Volupsa (Capri Blue & Mokara) and once you buy one of these guys, there is no turning back I light them every time I shower and I just love every scent they make.
So as you can see, I really did no hard work to achieve this new bathroom look! The only “labor intensive” part was staining the wood and painting the walls which really took no time at all. I completed this bathroom in one weekend and I am so happy with the way it looks now. I didn’t think it was necessary to spend the extra money (or time) on replacing the countertops, or the cabinets, or anything like that. In total, I probably spent a little over $200 instead of $2,000 and it really works! I love showing people that you don’t always have to break the bank to change the look of a room. It may not be mine or your dream bathroom, but for now it’s perfect! Thank you guys again for reading, and I hope this inspires you to do some DIY’s or take on the challenge of designing a room on a budget!
With love, Taylor
XOXO