A Tale of Two Rooms

Bathroom Decor

In the beginning there was a house.  It was a good house.  It had lovely tile, a large kitchen, and a open concept style that made it feel spacious.  All the rooms had good paint colors and it had an updated look even thought it was over 10 years old.

Every room that is, except the guest bathroom and the laundry room.  These two sad little rooms had not been updated.  They had their plain, off white walls and builders grade cabinets.  The bathroom had the original faucet fixture, even though the other two bathrooms had been updated and modernized.  The laundry room was small and dark, with an 80's fluorescent light box and a plain shelf for storage.  And while both rooms had the lovely tile, that was the only thing that been upgraded.

Then there was a family.  A fairly large family by today's standards.  They liked the house and the size was an improvement from where they had been living, and they quickly moved in.  They loved many of the features in the house.  They did not, however, love the guest bath or the laundry room.  And being a fairly large family, they knew both rooms would get used frequently.  So the bathroom upstairs sprang a leak, causing the ceiling in the laundry room to need a repair, they decided to do a "minor" update with a little paint too.  And maybe a new faucet.  And maybe a new light fixture.

Of course, it wasn't that simple...

What we budgeted for:

Paint - $34

Light Fixture for the Laundry Rm - $50

Bathroom Faucet - $30

Ceiling tape to repair the Laundry Rm. ceiling - $6

1 sheet of drywall to patch the broken ceiling - $10

Total = $131

What we also spent:

Mud to redo the bathroom wall - free (we already had it)

lumber for the mirror and frames - $18

new mirror to replace the mirror that was cut to the wrong size - $25

mis. hardware to put frames together - $12

Unfinished Laundry Room!

new soap dispenser - $9

toilet paper holder - $6

new counter top for laundry room - $40

frame work for laundry room $20

built in shelving for laundry room - $20

art work for bathroom - $8

bathroom sconces - $18

decorative items - $ 20

Sub Total - $196

Grand Total = $327

So now these sad little rooms will have an update.  And for $163.50 a room, even though it was more than we originally budgeted for, I still think we did a good job!