Although the progress in our basement bathroom has been really slow, I finally have an…
Bathroom Updates {Painted Wood Trim}
It was snowing again here yesterday – boo! And today is the first day of Spring right? I hope it comes to these parts soon. How is the weather by you?I don’t 100% mind that it’s not all springy outside since it forces me to get things organized inside before I want to be gardening in the backyard all afternoon. And I’ve got tons of organizing to do like in the bathroom. My next idea in there was to have painted wood trim and hang up a shelf.
While I was tearing up the floor and painting the vanity in my mini surprise makeover, I also updated the window and hung up some things on the wall finally. When we moved in I put up a simple valance {80’s I know} and hung up some hooks on the wall for our towels. Since the room is so small, the back of the door didn’t work; the wall was a better idea.
It was never a permanent solution and I was never in love with it either. Just one of those things you do when you move into a place and want to get some function going on.
To update the hook situation, I had hubs make me a piece of wood to put them on and attach that to the wall. He made this piece with our router. Which, by the way, can make all kinds of things, I’ll have to show you soon. The hooks are from Pier 1.
During my mini makeover I took off that terrible valance {I love the fabric, just not the fluff} and took down the blinds. My update was to patch and paint the dated wood. It’s not original to the house, and it’s seen its day (a few decades ago), so I was A-OK with painting it.
A few coats of oil-based primer and latex paint later, I had white trim. Aside from the kitchen and basement, this is the only place in our house where we have white trim. The rest of it is original 113-year old beautiful wood. I actually would have used chalk paint on the window frame like I did on the vanity but I didn’t have any white at the time.
I think it goes well with the new hooks. I’ll be looking to make a roman shade and cover that window otherwise somehow. I’m thinking window film maybe?
I also added a chalkboard and shelf {from Target} on the wall where we previously had nothing. I’m contemplating hanging another shelf and getting a smaller piece of art, but this will do for now. It always takes me a while to decide.
That blue liquid is mouthwash. Looks pretty right? Next up will be a spray paint job on the mirror and sconces. Here is the latest:
Bathroom Mini Makeover Plan
Paint and seal the vanity More on that here
Spray paint the mirror and sconces
Prime and paint the window frame
Make a roman shade for the window
Get some kind of covering for the window glass
Put up a shelf and some art on the walls
Re-do the towel hooks
Get a new rug
Finish cleaning off the floor adhesive
Prime and paint the ceiling
Replace the vanity top
Select and get a new faucet for the vanity
What is the wall color? Where did you get the bottle for the mouthwash?
I just came across your blog and noticed you have the same kind of “roll-out” windows that I do. It looks like you repainted the hardware. If so, did you remove it to refinish it or do it while it was attached to the window? What did you use? I’ve been debating on whether or not to remove them, I was planning to use Rustoleum’s brushed nickel.
Hi Shelly,
I actually did not paint the hardware on the window, just the wood window trim. Although I believe people have had luck spray painting these and doorknobs and such. Use light thin coats even if you have to do 4-6.
You could also get a small can of oil based Rust-Oleum paint then you don’t have to remove the hardware. I say oil based because it will stick and is durable. Clean off the metal first, then paint.
Hope this helps.
That is very helpful! Thank you for your reply. I can’t believe how much the change of color on the window trim made your hardware appear so differently. Maybe I’ll reassess mine after I paint the window trim! 🙂
I can’t believe how similar your old bathroom is to the one I’m tackling tomorrow! Your posts on your mini makeover have been beyond helpful; thank you so much. One question re: the trim that you primed and painted white: did you sand it down before priming it? And if not, can you let me know why? My new husband is convinced it all needs extensive sanding first and I’m not so sure after seeing how easy it looked for you with the priming + painting combo.
Thank you so much!
Sarah
Hi Sarah,
Glad the posts have been helpful. I did lightly sand the trim before I painted it, only to get off any debris that may have been on it and roughen it up a bit. I also wiped it down with a liquid spray product called TSP which will de-gloss the surface and prep it for painting. Trim like that doesn’t particularly need extensive sanding since it won’t be “handled” much say like the top of a dresser would. There is also liquid sanding products available. I used an oil based primer, Zinsser, which sticks to almost anything, and semi gloss latex paint over that. I’ve heard people have success with exterior trim pain on indoor trim since it is made to hold up well.
Let me know how it goes!
I will definitely let you know and so appreciate your response. I picked up the TSP today and am excited to see its de-glossing effects when I get started early tomorrow morning. This is a maiden mini-makeover voyage for a very new homeowner of a not-so-new home so I’m lucky to have stumbled upon your blog yesterday when I googled Behr’s ‘Flint Smoke’. Thanks again Jessica!
Sarah
Really happy with how the room turned out. Thanks again. =)
Looking forward to future inspirations over at your place.
Sarah
The white trim helps brighten up the room! I live in an older house that was gutted and the previous owner had started to remodel before we bought it. The previous owner didn’t finish the house and we had a lot of work to do (still do) when my husband and I bought it three years ago.
My constant dilemma is that we have 3-4 different kinds of wood trim in the house. Some of it is beautiful dark wood, some of it is not so pretty wood, and some of it is pretty light wood trim. My husband and I like the dark wood trim that matches but it doesn’t go through the whole house. I also like the look of white trim and think about painting the not-so-pretty trim white. But I’m afraid it will look strange to have both white and dark wood trim in the same house? What are your thoughts?
Hi Jessica,
Thanks for asking! I think you can paint any of the trim you’d like, it’s your home and you should do what makes you happy. I think it would look perfectly fine to have different color trim in different rooms too. Our kitchen was remodeled before we moved in and has white trim, so do both of our bathrooms, but the rest is the original dark wood.
Especially if you have trim that’s in bad shape, is dirty or scuffed, a coat of white paint will make such a difference. My tip would be to make sure all the trim in the same room is the same color, then you will have a unified look. You can also connect the look of your rooms in other ways, with fabric, curtains, or accents of black or white for example. If you paint, make sure you prep it correctly, liquid sander will help. And friends have had luck with the semi-gloss paint for outdoors. I hope this helps, let me know what you do!
Thanks for your response! I don’t think I will be happy until I paint the trim in at least one room. I’ll just pick the room with the ugliest trim and give it a try!