We are finally in the home stretch of our bathroom remodel and I must say, we’re ready to be done with it!
Final steps include tearing down the old wallpaper border, mudding and taping the new drywall in the areas surrounding the shower where we had to take it down due to the old tile coming past the normal tub line, priming and painting the room, and doing something about the awesome(ly awful) vanity.
Since my other half needed a break from the bathroom, I took some time to take off the wallpaper border. In some spots, this task consisted of peeling it off of the wall. In other places I had to get the fancy wallpaper removal spray and a straight edge and go to work on it.
When I emerged fully aggravated, all of my nails chipped and broken, the hubster tagged me out and spent a couple of hours mudding and taping.
It wasn’t until the following weekend that we had time to prime the walls and paint them. Took us all weekend to wrap that up. It may not sound like a lot of progress but between dry time between coats, not working during nap or night sleep times, and also having to put up and take down painter’s tape, it was all we could handle.
Next came an experiment. (I know, ME experimenting on a house project?! So weird!) I had been researching replacement vanities and due to the length of the one in this bathroom, it wasn’t going to be cheap to replace. Since the little one doesn’t need a fancy vanity, and I didn’t want to spent a few hundred on a new one I would ultimately be unhappy with because it looked cheap, I started to look at alternatives to a full replacement. If you’ve been reading this blog, you know I always try some sort of DIY thing I read about. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Read on…
I had read about this stuff called Tub & Tile. Essentially you paint over existing bathroom materials like tubs, tile, and vanities. I found some people you had used it with good results and decided to give it a shot. For $30 a box, I didn’t really think I could go wrong. If it worked to give me a smooth, white finish over the current pink and cream swirl pattern of the existing vanity – great! And if didn’t, well, I was out $30.
Fair warning: this stuff is potent. Like mind-numbingly potent. Shut the doors, get some ventilation going, don’t expect anyone to be in the area within a few hours of wrapping up, and have mercy on your own soul and body and wear an appropriate mask! I thought I got one that would work but even it wasn’t strong enough. I ended up with a massive headache within 30 minutes. Consider yourself warned.
A few people have asked what I used. Here is my product line-up over the beautiful backdrop of the original vanity.
I cleaned the vanity first with an also strongly fumed CLR. I then sanded the surface, and wiped it off carefully with a microfiber cloth. The next step was to tape off all edges – once this stuff gets on a wall or other surface and dries, it is not coming off. (I know because it happened to me.)
After you have a smooth clean surface mix the paint and begin the laborious process of painting the Tub & Tile on. I say that because the consistency is water-y and I had trouble with the application. BUT, some people rave about this stuff so perhaps it was me.
The first coat:
Follow the instructions on the box. I did two coats in one day but couldn’t take the fumes for a third even though I felt it needed another coat.
A day later I bought yet another box of Tub & Tile and tried another coat. The third coat made the white color less translucent but it also wasn’t as smooth.
This is the vanity after the final coat.
If you just walk past the bathroom you wouldn’t think anything of the countertop. If you’re in there brushing your teeth as an adult, you might notice some irregularities in the vanity surface and take a closer look. But, for a toddler, it’ll do for a year or two until I have done with it and am ready to put money toward a real countertop. I keep thinking one day I’ll sync up all countertops in this house so it actually looks cohesive.
After putting the rugs back in, it was ready to use. Much better, right?
On to the next project.
Not Tomorrow 