Reveal Time: The Powder Room!

The foyer just gave you a warm, welcome hug. I’m so glad you’re here! You must need to freshen up after your journey to our home. Please, right this way to the powder room! No, it’s not a closet anymore, Nobody puts my guests in a closet! What used to be a closet is now our beautiful and convenient, centrally located powder room.

BEFORE:

Completing this room was beneficial to my soul, for so many reasons, but mainly because the previous location of the powder room is what prompted such a large scale renovation. Having it work so well in its new location and looking so good while doing it makes me even more happy with my layout and design decisions.

AFTER:

Let’s start from the bottom. My original plan was to do a hex tile floor in here, but when I saw this marble mosaic in Lowe’s I nearly unintentionally ran over the Gorilla Glue display at the end of the aisle. I still got my hex tile fix…you’ll just have to stay tuned for that reveal.  Marble seemed daunting to work with, but after a little research on how to cut it, I knew I could handle it with my own wet saw.  I think I was 6 months pregnant when I did the floor and thankfully, the mosaic had the mesh backing.  I used a few marble rectangular tiles to frame the floor and after I laid everything out I was all too pleased with the way the crisp geometric shapes fell perfectly into place and gave it a 4-star hotel feel. When I set in the last piece in it was like putting that last puzzle piece in on a 5000 piece puzzle.  I could just hear Jon Stewart saying, “and here is your moment of Zen…”

Another reason my soul sings when I walk by it is because I hung that wallpaper all by myself! There’s a first time for everything and you learn something new everyday; two birds with one stone on that day. I wanted something bold that would compliment the color scheme of the rest of the house. When I saw the dark green, almost de Gournay-ish looking paper, I knew I had to have it. Then when I found out it was only $25 a roll, it was in my cart and bought before I could say, “Now how do I install this?” Wallpaper installation is much easier than I thought, but definitely a measure-twice-cut-once job and never a cut-corners-because-no-one-will-notice kind of job. Aaannndd it only took three chapters long from my Audible book. 

After my fairy-forrest-like paper was hung came the gleaming white porcelain. I picked both the sink and the toilet up from Habitat for Humanity for $50. Yes, $50 for both! I thoroughly cleaned them, bought new parts and a seat lid for the toilet and had Hubs and my Mom tag team the installation. A 7 month pregnant belly does not mix well with sink installation. They work perfectly! The beautiful Delta faucet came from the Amazon Warehouse at an amazing price, like less than half off. I feel it matched the pedestal sink’s personality perfectly.

There was still one glaring problem with the room: the molding. White didn’t seem to go. It could have I suppose, but I knew this little powder room deserved better! So I sent a DM to one of my favorite home bloggers, House of Brinson, and asked the lovely Susan Brinson for her opinion on the matter. She and her husband, Will, had recently finished their powder room for the Fall 2018, One Room Challenge and oh my, it is so wonderful!

Their whole home is full of beautiful moody, rooms that make you swoon over the details and relish in the history that she and her husband so fantastically document. If you aren’t following them yet, you should – treat yo’ self! Susan and I discussed options via Instagram and I loved her suggestion of a high gloss light grey. I found Pussywillow by Sherwin Williams to be a great match to the floors and the subtle grey undertones of the wallpaper. I’d say it was the best DM I ever sent, thanks Susan!

To keep the same enchanting feel from the foyer, I selected this gorgeous Minka Lavery light fixture from the same Harbour Point collection as the foyer fixture. I love how bright, yet dramatic it makes the room. Plenty of light to powder your nose with – or wig, if you happen to wear one… The mirror I had picked up at Lowe’s nearly ten years ago. It’s a little small for the space, but felt it worked for now until I find something better.

Now for some decor! I’ll admit, I over thought this way too much. I wanted the decisions to be right because I knew a hole in the paper would be difficult to fix, but then I saw them…there! In the clearance bin! They were perfect! Hobby Lobby has some very fun little treasures, but I didn’t know they had toilet paper holders! Far too beautiful for a markdown sticker, but my wallet wasn’t complaining. When the needed fixtures are this pretty they act as decor, but I still needed some art or a place for some eye candy and tissue box. One early morning while half awake and nursing, an idea popped into my head that made me far too wakeful for the hour. Creativity can be a nuisance at times. I had a piece of marble left over from a project in the kitchen and found some neat brackets at the same Hobby Lobby clearance bin – boom! Shelf made! Self made? No, that comes later with the overwhelming success of this blog. My little turtle print came from the Eastern Market in D.C. and my Eiffel Tower print I have had for years – not sure I like it entirely in this room, but it will do for now.

The slugs and snails and puppy-dog tails that make up my sweet little boys have me wiping down the porcelain and sweeping the floors often, but that’s okay, I love them far more than my beautiful powder room. When I see both little blondies at the sink washing up for dinner and making silly faces in the mirror of this little gem of a room, my heart melts!

Cheers!

-A.A

Where to find all of the fun details:

Light Fixture: Amazon, Minka Lavery.

Flooring: Lowe’s, Marble Mosiac

Wallpaper: Decorators Best, Inspired by Color, Vertical Blossoms.

Bathroom Accessories: Hobby Lobby (Sold Out, but similar here.)

Trim Paint Color: Pussywillow, by Sherwin Williams.

Soap and Lotion Dispenser: Target, Threshold.

Hand towels: Amazon.