The ‘Faux Marble’ Bathroom makeover for $550!
I’ve done a ton of cheap makeovers on our house since we moved in, but the bathrooms might be my favourite!
So this bathroom (we have two -you’ll see the other one soon) was obviously part of a nineties extension in our beautiful 1920s Tudor house. Problem.. it was not beautiful. It especially bugged me because this is the bathroom that visitors use, and it didn’t have anything stylish about it.
Something had to be done!
The plan was never for this to be anything fancy. I really wanted to just paint the tiles and do the floor. Then it occurred to me that I could easily change the handles and the mirror, and once I found the black arch mirror it all came together nicely!
I made it all happen for $550, including TWO lots of paint, because I didn’t like the first colour I chose.
I started with the flooring and went for the Winton vinyl floor tiles from Bunnings. I watched some YouTube videos to make sure I knew what I was doing, then scrubbed and washed the original tiles with a mould protector before I got started.
And you know what? It was pretty easy! The hardest part is cutting tiles around the toilet and in a few tricky spots. You have to make sure you buy extra tiles in case you make mistakes (I definitely did!)
TIP: Then I noticed that the tiles were a bit slippery for the kids, so I gave them a super light sand with some sandpaper, and that was all they needed.
Next up, I painted all the navy wall tiles. I won’t lie, I was nervous about this. But again, it was SO easy. I used the Dulux Renovation Tiles and Benchtops Paint in ‘Snow Season’ – because you don’t need to use a primer. Awesome!
I did two coats, and honestly, the hardest part was just waiting for them to dry. I did paint the inside of the shower (and sidenote: two years later, it’s held up well but has some chips on the floor of the shower recess.)
To finish, I added some new handles to the old bathroom drawers and couldn’t believe the difference that made. I also swapped out the towel racks, toilet roll holder and door handle and then had our lovely handyman hang the Kmart mirror and wall shelves.
My favourite buy was the Kmart mirror. It totally and completely changed the look of the bathroom.
I am so shocked by how happy this little space makes me now! I don’t think I realised how much I really didn’t like the space until it had its little refresh. I might be crafty, but I’ve never done any actual Reno work, so I am proud that I managed to pull this off so cheaply.
Update:
It’s been two years, and everything is holding up absolutely fine, just a few chips in the paint on the bottom of the shower. Thats it!
Happy days indeed.
Links to products:
Winton Ideal Series White Marble Self Stick Vinyl Tile – 16 Pack, $111.36 from Bunnings
