Our downstairs powder room is the only room so far that has undergone a complete renovation. I wish that I had pictures to show you from before, but let's just say that my husband and I were going to put a deadbolt on the door and call it a 2 bath house, forget the 1/2. That was until we went to Home Depot the night we moved in and found a toilet and sink for half-price. Despite the fact that we were only shopping for a new mop, floor cleaner, and lightbulbs, we came out of there with a whole new bath. We took off the deadbolt, tore down the walls, tore up the floor and got rid of every last bit of evidence. (It was that bad!) So three sheets of rock and two sheets of beadboard later, we had a nice new powder room. We painted it the same blue as the wall from the living room and !voila! - a happy bathroom! But this morning it needed heavy-duty cleaning attention:
So then I cleared the decks and aired out the bathroom and burned a candle. (Do germs in the air burn out with the candle? Don't tell me. I want to live in this naive world.)
Next, how to decorate. I decided to go shopping around my house. Although it would have been fun to go to Homegoods, we're saving to renovate the other bathroom. (I promise to take before pictures.) So I've taken to shopping in my attic and basement. You'd be surprised at the cool stuff I have. Somebody must have good taste... ;) Here's what I found:
My daughter's Vera Bradley calendar. (Who can enjoy it if it's on her closet door?) It is odd to have a calendar in the bathroom, but since I sometimes feel like I have early Alzheimer's, it really comes in handy! I'm like, Oh, yeah, it's February. February what? Let's see, it must be the 10th because I know it's Friday. Now let's see if that makes sense. Yes, because, I went to work yesterday and it was definitely Thursday and so now it's Friday. And last week I had a meeting on the 3rd and it hasn't been Valentine's Day yet, so yes, February 10th. See?
It sits nicely on the small ledge we put it above the beadboard, which I highly recommend doing.
The candle stick is from my Outdoor Collection, i.e. summer junk, that I usually use on the patio. The tray is also Vera Bradley which I just found at Hallmark for 70% off and I splurged, but for under $8, who can blame me. Okay, I shouldn't say "I just found," because I kind of stalk the place every week when I take my son to hockey practice. Now my husband is going to know why I'm so enthusiastic about volunteering for that job, when he probably thought I was doing him a favor. Shucks!
Then there's the sink accoutrements. I have really dry skin and love having matching soap and cream, but I'm such a freak that I don't even use the nice cream because I'm saving it. For what? I don't know. I use the old stuff in the closet so I can keep my bathroom looking cute. And again I always refill the fun jars with the store brand stuff...
Over the sink is a sign that says "Happy Everything", a birthday present from an old friend. The painting was a housewarming gift from another friend. It fits perfectly there! And the towel is a print from Target. (Always hang with the bird flying up!)
Here's the last wall. Now I also have to say that as soon as my mother visited she not-so-subtley moved the toilet paper to a more discreet location behind the toilet. But in my house I would hear, "Mom, where's the toilet paper?" "Mom, there's no toilet paper." "No, it's not." "Honey, is there any more toilet paper?" So.
Lastly, if you know me, you know I love books and the bathroom is no reason not to have good reading. Keeping with the theme, I looked on the bookshelf for little books that are blue and found Runaway Bunny and The Going to Bed Book. I know some in my house will laugh, but some will pick these up and hopefully be reminded of the slow, gentle days when this was what we read. And maybe they'll remember me that way too, cause sometimes these days I'm not slow or gentle.
Finally, for full disclosure, all that junk that was lying around is carefully hidden in the closet.
You know how it goes, things get piled up and the room starts to lose its personality. So I wanted to freshen things a bit. It started with cleaning the toilet, but this is the fun part! The new seat comes off for easy cleaning. I know this is disgusting and my grandmother would turn over in her grave, but the seat snaps off! You can clean ALL that gook! What a great invention, especially with 4 boys in the house! (Sorry guys!)
Then you just slide it right back in place and ....
SNAP! I have a theory that if more women were engineers, we would have a lot more fun/function in our households. That STEM education is really important, more than you know! Hear that girls, go for engineering and make cool stuff! Your mothers will thank you!
Next, how to decorate. I decided to go shopping around my house. Although it would have been fun to go to Homegoods, we're saving to renovate the other bathroom. (I promise to take before pictures.) So I've taken to shopping in my attic and basement. You'd be surprised at the cool stuff I have. Somebody must have good taste... ;) Here's what I found:
It sits nicely on the small ledge we put it above the beadboard, which I highly recommend doing.
The candle stick is from my Outdoor Collection, i.e. summer junk, that I usually use on the patio. The tray is also Vera Bradley which I just found at Hallmark for 70% off and I splurged, but for under $8, who can blame me. Okay, I shouldn't say "I just found," because I kind of stalk the place every week when I take my son to hockey practice. Now my husband is going to know why I'm so enthusiastic about volunteering for that job, when he probably thought I was doing him a favor. Shucks!
Over the sink is a sign that says "Happy Everything", a birthday present from an old friend. The painting was a housewarming gift from another friend. It fits perfectly there! And the towel is a print from Target. (Always hang with the bird flying up!)
Lastly, if you know me, you know I love books and the bathroom is no reason not to have good reading. Keeping with the theme, I looked on the bookshelf for little books that are blue and found Runaway Bunny and The Going to Bed Book. I know some in my house will laugh, but some will pick these up and hopefully be reminded of the slow, gentle days when this was what we read. And maybe they'll remember me that way too, cause sometimes these days I'm not slow or gentle.
Finally, for full disclosure, all that junk that was lying around is carefully hidden in the closet.
It's in a cute little basket on the floor of the pantry until our company leaves this weekend!
Have a great one! Slow and gentle if you can...
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