In 2008-2009 the average cost of a mid-range bathroom remodel was $15,899 — with 25% of that *investment* immediately lost. Yes, according to the annual Hanley-Wood Remodeling survey, the “return” on a bathroom remodel is about 75%. But realize, homeowners, that means — the paint has dried — and you just LOST $4,000. Of course, you get to enjoy any updates… but don’t kid yourself, this likely is not a particularly wise *investment* in the sense we generally expect/discuss when we use that term. Moreover, I have read elsewhere that the 75% “return” indicated occurs if/when sell your house immediately… if you sell your home many years later, that bathroom reno likely will be “worth” even less, because by then, the next homeowners will think it is tired and yes, dated. I don’t mean to be a debbie downer, instead, a practical pam. And practical pam suggests: *Invest* your renovation dollars wisely, which I think starts with trying first to love the bathroom you’re in. If it has basically good bones, work with them … keep those mid-century tiles… shop surplus and vintage for new/old fixtures… save a bundle … and *invest* your money in… well, that’s a different blog altogether. Today: Karen kept her her pink speckled tiled shower but turned the rest of her kinda blah 1968 bathroom into a vintage delight for $708. She got a lot of bang for her buck — a bathroom dated to suit her home — and what fun. Karen, I apologize hi-jacking your lovely bathroom story with the money talk, but Ms. Retro Renovator, you show how it can be done. Karen writes:
Hi Pam. My husband and I have recently purchased our first home: a 1968 split level in a beautiful town. I just finished my first of maaaaany projects that need to be done to this house. Unfortunately it has not been taken care of that well. The first project I tackled was our tiny master bathroom. As you can see it was horrible. I knew I wanted to add pink fixtures to match the speckled pink shower. The first ones I purchased, which I drove 100 miles to buy, ended up being worthless because I later found a crack in the pink toilet. Ugh! But the decorating Gods were smiling on me (or felt sorry for me) and I found a peachy pink toilet, which ended up matching the tile better than the previous purchase.
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Then, later that day I went to a nearby architectural salvage. At the very end of the long, winding maze through the bathroom graveyard I found this gorgeous console sink in the exact shade as the toilet. I couldn’t believe it!!!
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When I started, the walls had this terrible orange peel finish, so I re-textured it in sort of a crosshatch pattern. There was carpet on the floor, YUCK! The subfloor had been “repaired” terribly, so that had to be fixed.
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The paint I used was Behr paint and primer in one (love the instant results) in a satin finish. The color on the walls is Martha Stewart Colors in Smoke Bush Rose. I have not found another color like it. The best way to describe it is to take neopolitan ice cream and mix it together until the colors are blended. I know this because that’s how I love to eat neopolitan: mixed up, which I did when I took a break from painting this bathroom…. weird. The ceiling color is the same as the fixtures. The flooring is a floating, resilient, faux cork by Traffic Master Allure. Super easy to install with no glue and I special ordered it from Home Depot. It was $1.99 a square foot. They have a lighter shade I may use in my kitchen later.
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The curtains are from vintage dress fabric purchased at the local thrift store, as well as the tray on the back of the toilet, the light fixture, the two bottles, the shelf over the toilet, and the towel bars, all for $15! The pink scottie dog ash tray that I’m using as a soap dish was purchased at a local antique store for $6. The vanity mirror, door mirror, and recessed paper holder were already in the house.
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So total I spent $175 on fixtures, $75 on flooring, $15 on plaster for the walls, $20 for the “make your own stencil kit” and paint for the starburst design. Of course I recaulked around the window, toilet and baseboard, and I also recaulked the shower. This cost about $20. I also bought a grout paint pen (my new best friend) for $7.50. I spent about $25 on baseboards. Paint stripper and tape, etc. I probably spent about $75 on to refinish the door. For the paint I spent about $100, althought I will use the pink and brown in other rooms, too. The curtain rod and toilet paper holder were about $20.
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I had a wonderful plumber that installed the fixtures for about $175. This was money well spent. I did not want my husband to install them because at our last house he overtightened the bolts for our yellow toilet and it cracked! If he cracked this set it would have been grounds for divorce, so I saved us the headaches and legal fees and hired a plumber. By the way, these sinks need special brackets and a sturdy wall to install them on, which our plumber hunted down for me.
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I am so thankful for this site because it has given me so many wonderful ideas and resources! I am happy with the results and I did all the work myself, except set the fixtures and replace the subfloor (girl power). By the way, the toilet is an American Standard and the sink is a Kohler and it is the most awesome sink I have ever seen in person! Thanks so much Pam and I hope you like the bathroom! Sincerely, Karen
Karen — I LOVE the bathroom, great job, girl power! I especially think your stenciling is a great idea that many folks will jump right on. The sink is fabulous… the floor is terrific… and all the little details: well, you put them together perfectly. I can’t wait to see more of your home renovation story unfold. Many thanks for taking the time to share this with us all.
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Great job! I love the starbursts! At first, I thought it was wallpaper! You’ve inspired me to get to work on our little master bath =)
Wonderful job! I really love it. Please give me a few more details on how you made those starbursts! I want to put some in my house! I am planning on repainting my basement and those would look really cool!
Also, I love the sliding doors on your medicine chest (before & after) the checkered glass looks great! I have similar doors in my bathroom but they are mirror (and worn out mirror.)
If I ever find ones like that I am definitely buying!
Best of luck! It’s a fantastic bathroom!
What a great job!
Love the whole story! From the thrill of the hunt to the charming little details, it turned out wonderful! The room looks bigger without the clunky vanity, too. Overall, I give it 5 stars!
Yes, yes! More details on how you did the starbursts, please!
Wow! This is my idea of a bathroom makeover — understated, stylish, and fitting in with the era of the home. And Karen made good decisions on what she could do and what she should hire someone to do.
that wallpaper RULES!
it’s not wallpaper, Joe — it’s stencilling!
This is fantastic ! I LOVE the wallpaper! Beautiful job!
How do you get a crisp edge on stenciling? Since I’ll be doing that in MY bath now! I did stenciling in the past and seemed to get a rough edge from the paint bledding under the stencil. Even tho’ I wiped it off.
Shane,
Getting a crisp edge definitely is about not over loading your tool and not working with a heavy hand.
These are tools often used for painting a stencil:
First you want to spray the back of your stencil with stencil adhesive, I use a spray glue but be careful if you do as it can be too sticky and leave a glue residue.
Stencil brush — dab into a little paint or glaze, swirl a lot of it off onto toweling, apply by swirling onto stencil with a medium hand, working from the stencil edge into the cut space.
Cosmetic sponge — dab into paint, dab off on toweling, dab onto cut out area working your way to the edges.
Roller Sponge — roll into paint, roll off on toweling, roll without much pressure over cut space of stencil, rolling in different directions. Do not press hard, it will squeeze out of roller and go under stencil.
I also like to use a worn out smallish brush especially if you have a tight or narrow stencil. Apply some paint, swirl off onto toweling a bit and then brush from the stencil edge into the cut open space, this gives a little bit of a cross hatch when looked at up close rather than a mottled look that the swirling in the stencil cut will give you.
You can also stipple into the cut out space with a flat bottom stencil brush but this is more time consuming.
Hope this helps!!
ooops, meant to add — the point is to not drag your tool from the open space over the edge, if the edge is lifted even the slightest bit it will catch the paint, lay back down, and create a rough edge.
Practice on a painted board to get the feel of the right amount of paint on your tool and how light or heavy handed you should go.
Thank you! That does help….I still need to get drywall up in the BR first! LOL but I will definitely be doing starbursts.
At first I thought, “I love that wallpaper and it looks like the stencil I designed for my bedroom a few months back.”….and it is a stencil! Just goes to show how many people can think/design in the same fashion.
The sink IS awesome! and I love how the frugality of it all and how wonderful it looks. Just goes to show that if you’re willing to research, hunt, and be patient, oh yeah, and do the work yourself, scads of money can be saved.
Good Job!!
Oh my gosh, this is just so wonderful! From the overall look, to the individual elements (scottie dog soap dish, wire basket, fixtures, etc. etc.) this is just layer after layer of delightful surprises. My favorite is the pink Genie bottle–very appropriate too as this bathroom looks like a Genie performed magic on it!
AMAZING!!!!!!!! I love this! Thrifty & Fabulous are my two favorite things !Please more details on the stenciling!!!
I love the atomic stars! That is my favorite 50s “pattern”.
Wow, what an amazing makeover! I love the stenciling, and I love your sink! Well done!
…at my vintage clothing shop 2 years ago, I stenciled black stars like these on turquoise background in the little area under the front windows, another color idea for folks! Denise, great 50s lover’s minds think alike. lol
ooops, I meant Karen. well, Karen and Denise…:D
…I used those sponge stencil brushes in different sizes. and she is correct. NOT to much paint!
I am still throwing around ideas on how to repaint my bathroom after spending a day stripping off the horrid 80′s bunny wallpaper that was on there previously. LOVE the starburst stencil, and you have given me more ideas on what to do to “fill” the space on the wall without resorting to wallpaper. Thanks for sharing your pictures!
Wow! Beautiful job, especially for the budget!!!
By the way, I love the floor! That’s true to the time. An older friend of a friend invited me over for dinner a few years back. She had a late 50′s era home with all original cork flooring. It was in amazing condition. I love cork, and the faux cork looks great!
Wow, this has to be one of my FAVORITE makeovers ever! Karen, this really a great look, and it is heartening to know that the Retro Gods look out for us when we need it. Congrats, and the starburst wall is the perfect finishing touch!
Oh, I love the stencils, too! The atomic starbursts are my all-time favorite motif, but I never thought of making my own (duh).
That wall makes all the difference–great job, Karen!
Now, there’s a room to make you smile in the morning! I love all the details you selected for the room, especially the genie bottle over the toilet! Your sink is fabulous – I’m still looking for mine. Great inspiration, Karen!
great job. love the attention to detail.
Hey, I like that towel holder! Where did they get that? I have a Retro bath with nowhere to store the towels.
It’s actually a phone book and princess telephone holder. It was my husband’s granmother’s. You could also use a vintage magazine rack. They are perfect for small spaces. These are pretty easy to find at thrift stores as I see them nearly every time I go:) Thanks, Karen
Also, if you don’t have a decent thrift store nearby, I see these all the time on ebay and they don’t seem to be a “hot” item. You should be able to still get one for a reasonable price. -Karen
It’s beautiful. I love the mirror/medicine cabinet. The whole bathroom makes me want to mix up a martini and then apply some iridescent lipstick!
Beautiful….the starburst stencils couldn’t be more perfect. I can’t wait to see what you do with the kitchen and other rooms in your new home. Enjoy!!
I just want to thank everyone for all of the great support! Thanks to Pam for bringing us all together to share such wonderful ideas:) XOXOXOXO, Karen
P.S. These starburst designs are pretty easy to make. I just did 3 on a page and rotated the page upside down on every other one I would do. Hope that makes sense.
Great starbursts! ANd that’s the same medicine cabinet/mirror we used in our bathroom renovation! Great minds think alike
Great job, Karen – your bathroom looks great!!
I love the starburst design, I’m trying to figure out how I could embroider something like that across the bottom of my shower curtain…. I can cross stitch and use a sewing machine but that’s about it….. any ideas anyone?
Thanks!
SD Amy, just off the top of my head: How about something iron-on for the starbursts, then cross stitch the edges? Or, find a fabric you like… iron it onto the shower curtain with doublesided sticky facing stuff they make… then cross stitch or stitch the edges? I’m thinking, go to Joann’s or Michaels and prowl the aisles to come up with a solution. Also, you can make designs on your computer that you then print onto iron-on paper. Not sure if you could get metallic. Or… there’s fabric paint… you could stencil onto your shower curtain….
Hi Pam,
Thank you for the ideas!! I found this site and ordered some of these transfers…
http://www.sublimestitching.com/patterns/all
Thank you,
SD Amy
Yep. That is really a great job! LOVE the stencilling. Also so exciting to notice that I have the EXACT same mirror/vanity in my pink bathroom!
I’m totally digging the medicine cabinet. I’ve been renting over the last few years until I can buy a house and to be as frugal as possible I’ve rented a couple of older apartments, no frills, and they both have had the same sliding medicine cabinets over the vanities as your bathroom. It gives me my retro fix while I’m waiting to buy. I have six more months to go and let the house shopping begin! But Karen, the redo is the best I’ve seen in a very long time..my kinda project..low cost but with a huge bang of satisfaction! Rock on!
LOVE IT !!
This is a great rennovation, just beautiful. I just love the stencil design. Where did you purchase the “make your own Stencil” or did you really just make your own stencil. =-)
Great job and thanks for sharing!
I purchased them at Hobby Lobby. If you sign up for their email you can get a 40% off coupon:) -Karen
The “make your own stenicl kit” is pretty much just a type of vellum plastic sheet. You have to cut your own designs. I give instructions a few posts down. -Karen
What an awesome re-do! The new sink and sparkly stars make all the difference in the world
Karen, those starbursts bring tears to my eyes. I must have them! Would it be possible to maybe scan the stencil you used and post the picture? That way, I could print it out and trace it since I have ZERO artistic ability. How many sizes did you use? It looks like three to me, but my eye’s not very good.
WONDERFUL job. I’m totally jealous!
veg
To make the starbursts all you have to have is an exacto knife, a stencil sheet, and a preferably metal ruler. Make a cross the size you want the height and width of the finished star. The vertical line should be somewhat longer (about 1″-2″)than the horizontal line. Then take your ruler touching the top point, move it out about a 1/2 inch or so (I just eyeballed it as to how thick to make the stars) on the intersecting line. Do the same on all the points using the same mearsurement. Then make an X between the cross. Make these lines the same length all the way around. Then repeat this step except move your ruler out a little less: Take your ruler touching the top point, move it out about a 1/4 inch or so. Do the same on all the points. The vertical/horizontal cross should be the same thickness and the X should be the same thickness. Then just use the exacto to cut the lines. That’s about it. It’s really super easy. If you are unsure just practice on a plain piece of paper until you get it right. This design is so simple because it is all straight lines, no curves, which are more difficult. I hope this is easy to visualize. -Karen
By the way, Karen — what kind of paint did you use for the starbursts? I love how shiny and gold it is.
It is paint specifically made for stenciling. I found it right next to the stencils at the Hobby Lobby. I was impressed at how shiny it was too. They also have silver, which I think I may use in my blue bathroom, just with a different design. -Karen
Karen, thank you for the stencil directions and tips on the paint!! You are a serious DIY master! I am inspired.
I love it! The attention to detail coupled with the thrifty execution (that doesn’t look thrifty at all) is inspiring – and those starbursts on the wall…I’ll join in singing their praises. I love the sink and I really must check out that Martha Stewart color. It looks beautiful. Excellent job, Karen!
What a creative and well-thought out makeover! Nicely done and thanks so much for sharing the inspiration!
that starburst wallpaper is just spectacular. gorgeous renovation!
just *read* the rest of the post & see that it is stencil – even cooler. (i just had to comment before i even read the whole post!)
Hi – I made a starburst template, following Karen’s great instructions! Feel free to use it. One image is a higher resolution that the other. Go to my photobucket and scroll down:
http://s44.photobucket.com/albums/f13/starletstyle3/
Hey, when are you going to come and do my bathroom???
Suddenly, I’m picturing stenciled starbursts in every room of my 50′s ranch…
THANK YOU GlamourLux Nancy for that Stencil!! Can’t wait to play and making everything starry in the new 50′s mid-century we are to close on tomorrow!!! Can’t thank everyone enough for ideas, inspiration, and sharing of techniques. SO COOL
I love this bathroom! The wall decor is exactly what I want to do. Did you use stencils for the gold stars? Where did you get them? I’m so jealous of your poodle soap dish — cute!
Karen: I am very excited about your bathroom! It turned out wonderful, congrats! I would love to know more about those starburst patterns you did, can you buy them, or would you lend me just one
tks!
Opps, new to the website and I will read up further! Thks!!!