Farmhouse Bathroom

It's been a long time since I've given our master bathroom a facelift and since I was so happy with the Simply White paint I chose for the kitchen, I wanted to extend that color to our master bathroom, as well.  A cool find from hubby also played a part in giving this room a redo. 

I know there are lots of folks that don't like radiators or that want to cover them up but not me.  I love the cast iron and view them as a piece of art.  There weren't any old radiators in our 100 year old home when we moved in and I never really cared that much until I started seeing really cool versions of them. 

And as luck would have it, hubby was given several radiators a few weeks ago.  A couple of them were huge and so heavy that they maybe would have put a hole through our floor so I chose this small one. 

I cleaned it up, primed it and then painted it Simply White as well.  I really love it and actually wish it was a working radiator.  That inspired a redo, so I pulled things from around the house, picked up a few things and repainted Benjamin Moore's Simply White to give it a new look.

As you can see, our master bath is small.  But that's okay, I love it anyway. 

For the counter top, I wanted to add a few things to give it a masculine touch as well since my hubby also shares this bathroom.  So, I picked up a vintage shaving mug and brush, as well as a vintage wood leather straight edge sharpener.  It reminded me of a bread board so of course I had to use it.  :)  For fun, I found an old photo of a barber shop price list online, printed it off and framed it.

I love the patina on the wood handle of the old shaving brush.

For the other side of the vanity, I attached an old photo I came across in a flea market to the inside of an old apothecary jar that I filled with soaps. 

I was drawn to the old photo because, if you look closely, and I did with a magnifying glass, it is a woman working in her garden, tending to her tomato plants.  And this was written on the back.....it makes me smile.

I pulled this very fragile vintage fruit basket from the dining room and filled it with white fluffy towels for beside the tub. 

I mentioned before in our previous master bath redo that we don't have a shower in here.  Our only shower is upstairs. 

We use this bathroom for taking long soaks in the tub so I try to make it as peaceful and comfy in there as I can so that whoever takes a soak in there, will feel relaxed and special.

I also moved our Gray Farms sign from the kitchen to right above the tub.  I like it in here much better.

The three storage baskets on the wall came from Pier 1 many years ago and were made for a book shelf but I simply turned them on the side and screwed them into the wall for towels or whatever else I feel like putting in there.

I have pretty much decided to paint our entire upstairs hallway area in Simply White because it is just such a peaceful color.  Our floors up there are dark wood and I think the two will contrast nicely.

I was hoping to give the bathroom a farmhouse feel.  Hopefully I accomplished that.  Or it could be that the word "Farms" on the wall is what makes it feel that way.  ;-)

If you'd like to see how we did our bathroom countertops in reclaimed barn wood, click here.

Do any of your have radiators in your home?  Do you cover them up?  Do they work?

That's it for now!   Enjoy your week!

Diana

Master Bath Redo Featuring Reclaimed Barn Wood

I love to add warm, rustic wood to rooms with a mostly white color scheme, as you saw in our kitchen makeover.  The two colors, as well as the texture of the wood, pair together beautifully.  White rooms have a tendency to feel cold and sterile but if you throw some wood into the mix, it instantly warms it up and creates a cozy feel.  

Our master bath was boring, a sea of white.  The countertop, which consisted of white/cream ceramic floor tiles, had no personality and drove us crazy.  So, with an abundance of reclaimed barn wood, the idea of incorporating it into a countertop, and a couple of other special things, was born.  Here's a before pic.

First thing we did was remove the large generic mirror that seems to come with all bathrooms.  This is where the project went from fun to a stressful nightmare not so much fun.  Behind the mirror was a patch of mold.  After quite a bit of wailing calm investigation, we were relieved to find out it was from condensation getting trapped behind the mirror (no exhaust fan installed in there), not a leak.  What a relief that was.  So, after cleaning up the mess, we continued on.  

Next we pulled out the sink and removed the tile back splash and tile countertop, but left the existing plywood that the tiles were attached to, in order for us to have a base to attach our boards to.

I had already sanded and prepped the reclaimed boards with my palm sander and some 150 and 220 grit sandpaper.  So, the next step was to fit them to the plywood on top of the countertop and cut out a space for the sink.  

To do this, I simply laid them on the top, crawled under the countertop and traced the already existing circle for the sink onto the boards.  Then cut out the circle with a jig saw.

It's starting to look like a countertop!  So exciting!

To attach the boards to the plywood top, we used Liquid Nails and the nail gun for extra stability.

We used three planks of barn wood for the top.  For the trim in the front and on the side, I took another piece of barn wood and ripped it on the table saw to be 2 1/2 inches wide, turned it on its side and then attached with the nail gun.  It creates a nice finished edge. 

And that's it, as far as building the countertop goes.  To seal the wood, I used Tung Oil, which prevents water from penetrating the wood, but also brings out the beauty of each piece.  I applied it with a dry rag.  This stuff has a strong odor, so, I opened the windows and used gloves.

Next, we put the sink back into place, reconnected the pipes and turned the water supply back on.  And that's it.  Isn't that wood gorgeous?  So much character.....

I didn't want to put that giant mirror back on the wall so I bought a smaller plain beveled mirror at Wal-Mart for 10 bucks and attached it to the wall with the hardware provided.  I used some extra barn wood to trim out the mirror and to hide the hardware.  

Then I extended the bead board that was already surrounding the claw foot tub, around the countertop as a backsplash.  I installed that just like I did in my kitchen makeover.

I love our claw foot tub but it needed a rack across the top.  I didn't want to pay a lot of money for one, so, I just made my own by preparing another piece of the reclaimed wood, attaching two blocks of wood underneath to prevent it from sliding or falling and coating it in tung oil.  

I used a saw drill bit to create two holes halfway through the wood in each side to hold candles.  This tub used to have a shower but since we have a shower in another bathroom, we decided to remove all the shower parts and let the beauty of the original vintage tub be the focal part of the room.

I got these cute little robins egg soaps from a local shop called The French Hen.  I think they add a special little touch and I just love 'em.  So fun.....this picture doesn't really do them justice.  They are the perfect shade of blue and the little specks are so charming.

My hubby found this soap rack in an old home that is in the process of being renovated.  He knows the owner and got permission to take this little treat home.  Another fun detail.  I have no idea if it is vintage or not, but I sure love the lines and patina.

And here is the other side of our master bath which includes the faux vintage ladder I built just for this room.

We couldn't be happier with the results in here.  And the best thing, the only amount of money I spent was 10 bucks for the mirror, since we had all the other materials.

I've had lots of questions regarding my paint colors, so, if anyone is interested, the paint color in this room is called Cloudy Morning and it's from the Color Place selection at Wal-Mart.  Hope you like the result as much as we do!  Thank you for visiting..... :)  And have a great day!! Linking up at The Lettered Cottage!