See a DIY Powder Room Transformation for $1,100

Chrissy Torres is determined when it comes to tackling home projects. Once while stripping a fireplace wall in her Saint Paul, Minnesota, house she fell off a chair and broke her arm so badly, it had to be put back together with a plate. But before her scheduled surgery, she was up on a ladder finishing stripping the wall with her good arm. “Yes, I’m very determined,” she says. “It’s probably not my best suit.”

BEFORE: Her most recent project involved bringing her dark and gloomy powder room into line with the modern approach she was taking with the rest of home. Determined once again to save money and take on the project herself, she and her husband, Sovalon, did all the work themselves, creating a Houzz ideabook for inspiration and watching YouTube videos to learn how to redirect plumbing pipes and electrical wires and put up drywall. She also installed textured 3D tiles to create a statement wall that’s so eye catching, the bathroom door stays open whenever possible.

The dark chocolate color seen here made the powder room feel small. Meanwhile, the sink had come loose and would move around on its pedestal. The mirror was off center, and Chrissy hated the lighting.


AFTER: They took everything out, cut open the wall and moved the pipes up for a wall-mounted faucet. Plumbing pipe connectors from SharkBite made the job of connecting pipes easy. “They just push together like a Lego,” Chrissy says. Then they put up new drywall, removed the old light fixture and added the pendant lights and recessed light in the ceiling.

They took the 6- by 12-inch Desert Quartz stone tile from Lowe’s all the way to the ceiling and painted the ceiling and walls a toasted white, drawing the eye upward. “I walk in, and it feels huge,” Chrissy says. The interlocking tiles didn’t require any grout. Chrissy, who blogs about her home projects at Mommy’s Tool Belt, had considered small square glass tiles in various colors but worried it would be too trendy. “Natural stone feels a lot more timeless,” she says.



She bought a nightstand online and drilled a hole through it to create the vanity. She coated the wood piece with an indoor-outdoor polyurethane to protect it from water.



Two pendants replaced the old fixture for a more modern look. Chrissy put a recessed light over the toilet, set just far enough back to downlight the upper portion of the tile wall and show off its texture.

Here’s the budget breakdown for this project:

Tile: $330, including a bag of thinset
Vanity: $187 on sale at Hayneedle
Sink: $139, from Signature Hardware
Faucet: $169, from Signature Hardware
Mirror: $107, from Overstock.com
Lights: $57 each, from ATG Stores
Plumbing pipes: $50

Total: $1,096

More:
Key Measurements to Help You Design a Powder Room
7 Tile Tips for Baths on a Budget

URL: See a DIY Powder Room Transformation for $1,100 http://www.decor-ideas.org/cases-view-id-25608.html