Hall Bathroom Refresh: New Mirror, Fresh Paint, and a Brighter Vanity

When we last updated you on our hall bathroom progress, we had removed the old wallpaper and were left with a room that clearly needed some attention. The yellowed walls and outdated fixtures made it feel closed-in and tired, so we decided to do a quick, practical refresh to improve functionality and brighten the space.

The mirror was one of the first problems: it was far too small and cut off most of a face above the nose. That meant basic checks weren’t reliable and it simply didn’t serve the bathroom well. The light fixture above the mirror also posed a challenge because it drooped several inches from the wall, making it difficult to install a larger mirror without interfering with the fixture’s arms.

Our simple solution was to rotate the light fixture 180 degrees so the arms pointed upward temporarily. It’s not a permanent design choice, but it freed up enough space to hang a larger mirror we found at HomeGoods. The new mirror has a distressed silver-ish frame and a flattering shape; we aren’t sure yet whether we’ll paint the frame later, but it’s already a major improvement just to be able to see full faces in the reflection.

Aside from the mirror, we removed an oversized wooden toilet paper holder and plan to replace it with a simple oil-rubbed bronze version to coordinate with other accents. Small swaps like that make the bathroom feel more intentional even before any major renovation.

Next on the list was the blue trim that ran around the base of the room and around the door frame. To protect the slate tile, we carefully taped off the edges before painting. The trim required multiple coats—two coats of primer followed by two coats of paint—to fully cover the blue and get a smooth finish. This photo shows the progress after the primer coats.

We also addressed the vanity, which was made of lower-quality wood with a reddish tint and some surface damage. It even had a faint odor we couldn’t remove by scrubbing. To fix both appearance and smell, we applied an odor-blocking primer and then painted the vanity a bright, cheerful color to bring personality into the room. Painting the vanity felt like a good way to add color without committing to colored walls—art and an accent vanity can be more flexible than painted plaster.

For the walls and trim we used Benjamin Moore’s Simply White (OC-117). The trim received a semi-gloss finish while the walls and ceiling were painted in a coordinating eggshell to create a subtle contrast and a clean, cohesive look. I cut in the edges and my partner rolled the larger surfaces. Two coats later, the room felt instantly fresher and more open.

After both coats and a day of drying, the bathroom looked noticeably brighter and more inviting. Choosing white for the walls gives us a timeless backdrop and the flexibility to experiment with colorful art, textiles, and a painted vanity that can be changed or repainted more easily than full-wall treatments.

We still want to upgrade a few things down the line—like replacing the light fixture, changing the sink, and possibly adding a feature wall such as grasscloth wallpaper, a tiled accent, or a pedestal sink. For now, consider this Phase 1: affordable, high-impact changes that make the hall bathroom comfortable and functional while we save for a deeper renovation.

This update is already a big step from where we started a few weeks ago. We’ve also begun stripping wallpaper and repainting trim in the foyer, which is taking longer than expected because we found a second layer of wallpaper and the trim needs multiple coats. It’s slow work, but seeing progress in one room motivates us to keep going.

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P.S. I snapped a quick phone photo on an evening walk that captured the green undertone of our teal door more accurately than our DSLR did. Sometimes the phone camera tells the truest story—no filter needed.