The Dappled Willow

So the ORC kicked off last week and I did not make nearly as much progress as I had hoped. But I knew there would be ups and downs and I did manage to take a couple of baby steps! Those count as small wins in my book. Ya can’t take those away from me!

Decluttering

I start every Budget Room Refresh by going through everything in the room and deciding what stays and what goes. Boy did this feel good! The whole process took me one evening and a couple of podcasts.

I rediscovered things I forgot I had like artisanal soaps, scrubs, bath salts, face masks, etc; it felt like I went shopping! I got rid of a bunch of garbage, discarded old expired products, and reorganized all of our toiletries into the vanity. Every drawer is filled but this temporary inconvenience will be worth it in the end.

Editing

I remember dreaming of installing floating shelves in the toilet nook when we were first shown this house.

Once I convinced my husband Dan to let me update the bathroom I knew it would be tough to sell him on losing both the medicine cabinet and the mirror unit. I agree with him that storage is needed in this primary bathroom for our family of 5. I just think cute baskets next to plants and art on stained wood floating shelves will store our bathroom necessities more beautifully!

I took the white cabinet down myself right after a morning coffee while the kiddos watched Saturday morning cartoons. It was awesome to see it come down. I put it up on Facebook Marketplace immediately and it was picked-up early the next day! Now that’s $50 to offset the costs of this refresh already!

I needed Dan’s help to take the mirror unit down carefully. It didn’t come down in one piece as I had expected though and now I’m not sure how to sell it as I think professionals must’ve done the original installation. We may find a place for it elsewhere in our house or donate it once that becomes possible again.

Secondhand Items

Since I’m trying to do this on a budget I figured I would try to find a used light fixture to replace the one that was built into the mirror unit we took down. I found one I liked that was being sold as a part of a bundle of bathroom items. I think the seller wanted them gone because after asking one question about the condition of the light he dropped his price for the whole lot to $35 (CDN)! Dan installed the light and it does indeed work! Hooray!

We may have to move it up a bit though to accommodate the mirror I want to use from an old dresser set I was given by a friend.

Demo

I expected to do much more demolition in the bathroom but that didn’t seem necessary in the end. We didn’t remove the tile baseboards because Dan informed me that tile baseboards are better for bathrooms due to the constant moisture so we’ve agreed I’ll try painting them and see how they look before we knock any of ‘em out.

We also uncovered a hole in the wall that must’ve been for a medicine cabinet in the past. I was contemplating making a similar hole further down the wall to potentially make a hidden medicine cabinet with a framed piece of art. Seeing this hole had me reconsider the design I had in mind and I think I may have found an even better option than having a hinged door. I’m still mulling that one over though. Stay tuned!

So here’s where the project list stands right now.   

THE PROJECT LIST:

• Declutter
• Remove medicine cabinet and mirror
• Remove tile baseboards (?)
• Patch drywall holes
• Spray paint the window (?)
• Paint the walls and ceiling
• Paint tile floors with DIY Stencil
• Install and paint new baseboards
• Mount round mirror (with shelf?)
• Install new light fixture
• Paint countertop
• Install spray painted faucet 
• Paint vanity (update cabinet faces?)
• Spray paint and rehang shower curtain rod
• Build and install floating shelves
• New shower curtain
• New towels
• Add art and accessories

If you’re thinking, “Wow Lydia, you decluttered and took down two cabinets. That’s it? Why didn’t you do more?”

Well, the main reason is the delay in getting my materials. I thought I had given myself enough time for my order from the hardware store to be processed and ready for curbside pick-up. I am trying to use tools and materials I have on hand as much as possible, but there are of course some things for a bathroom refresh that I am missing, having never done anything like this before. Perhaps I was too optimistic; I’ve had so many great curbside pick-up experiences with local small businesses I thought it would be the same at the big hardware store. Alas, I am writing this a week after making my online purchase and still no “Your order is ready for pick-up” notice in my email inbox. It’s just the reality of the world we’re in right now. 

A second reason is an exhausting daily schedule with three little ones. My husband is still working full time and even though I’d love to work on this room all the time, my children are my priority. Some may say I shouldn’t have started this challenge if it would be a distraction from the kids but it truly brings me joy to be creative in this way.

I welcome this distraction from what’s going on in the world today. It’s needed for my mental health. It’s great to work with my hands and to see the impact I can have on my space. Having control over something like this refresh project is truly giving me life during a time when I feel I have very little control over anything. Even though I am tired every night when the kids finally go to sleep, I get a second wind when it comes to planning what is to come in this room.

Unfortunately I didn’t get started on most of the prep I still need to do (so much sanding and taping in my future) because I didn’t want the bathroom to be unusable until things really start happening. I’m grateful I had this week to envision my design more and adjust the plan and timeline as needed. Can’t install shelves until I paint, can’t paint until I patch the drywall, can’t patch until I have the compound from my delayed order. Same goes for most of the tasks I have planned. 

Since it’s a long weekend coming up, I’m hopeful I’ll have much more exciting news to share with you next week. If you can’t wait until then you can follow along on Instagram and Facebook stories and watch the fun unfold as it happens! 

Cheers,

Lydia

Visit each week of the One Room Challenge™ Here:

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 |

Thanks for being here! See what everyone else in this challenge is up to at One Room Challenge™.

Please visit ONEROOMCHALLENGE.COM to view all participating Featured Designers and Guest Participants.