When Melissa and Ian moved into their new home in Canada they inherited a red bathroom that was, frankly, hard on the eyes. It wasn’t quite a scene out of The Shining, but it needed a complete overhaul. They took on the project themselves and shared the results with us. Here’s their story:
Hi John and Sherry! We bought our second home up north in Canada in April 2011 and immediately started tackling DIY projects. So far we’ve renovated two bathrooms, an office, a guest room and our bedroom, and there’s still plenty left to do. We’re thrilled with how the master bathroom turned out. Here’s what we started with:
The pink floors, the tiny vanity—everything about it was dated. I could barely wash my face without sitting on the floor.
The room felt like a rainbow had exploded. That wasn’t the look we wanted.
We decided to change the entire bathroom. We wanted a spa-like space with light, bright colors and clean lines, and we also wanted to add some architectural interest. After researching different paneling styles, we chose picture-frame wainscoting. The process turned out to be simpler than it sounds.
And here it is—our pride and joy!
To stay within our budget we did much of the work ourselves: we installed the wainscoting, tiled the shower in a custom pattern, made our own curtains and hunted for the best-priced materials and fixtures. The tub came from Costco and the vanity mirrors were found at HomeSense.
Thanks for the inspiration—your work has motivated a young couple like us. All the best, Melissa and Ian (and Clover, our 85-pound goldendoodle who thinks she’s an eight-pound chihuahua).
The finished bathroom is spacious and elegant—nicely done, Melissa and Ian (and Burger gives two paws up to Clover). For more photos, step-by-step details and a full source list, they’ve posted additional information on their blog, including tutorials on the paneling and curtains.
Have a before-and-after of your own? Send your best photos, links and a brief description to [email protected]. And for a bit of family fun, check out the latest Clara conversations over on Young House Life—she’s definitely the comedian of the family.