The bragging, it is shameless

Last week I was impatient - I couldn't wait for the drapes I'd originally planned for, and bought a pair of olive-y valances with a cream quattrefoil design - and then I realized my $15 kitchen makeover fabric would no longer work.

But it would coordinate nicely with my freshly painted bathroom!

Aside from Mr Lemon sealing in some cracks between the wall and the ceiling, I did every bit of this bathroom myself.   I even reinstalled all the hardware (towel rods, etc) and the shelving unit by myself.  About 75% of the cutting in was done with one kid in the high chair and the other one sporadically hanging on my back and asking me, "Mommy! Are you pinking [painting]?" Then he'd run downstairs to play with his birthday presents, and come back to me.  "Mommy! Are you STILL pinking?"  The third time he did that I decided I'd neglected him enough for one night and spent the rest of the waking hours playing with them.

Mr Lemon did not know I was so handy.  Actually, he knew I was a quick learner, but I think he underestimated my motivation to start and complete a project ;)

I have to say, I am mighty proud of myself with this.  I don't pretend to be a fabulous decorator, and this bathroom would be a challenge for anyone.  It's small, because the actual master bathroom is right behind it (in Splenda's room).  So not a lot of wall space, but it actually feels like there is this huge expanse of boring wall when one is {ahem} indisposed for any length of time.  Or, as I once said, if you are disposable.

For this project, I only purchased the following:

$12 quart Behr Premium Plus Satin Paint, in Village Square

$25 Waffle Weave shower curtain

approx $25 in new bath rugs

$7 for 3M Command Hooks

$5 quattrefoil washcloth

$2 3/4" red grosgrain ribbon

$2.50 white hand towel

$3 or 4 brown bath towel

$18 for a set of 3 baskets; only one is shown here, but the other two are being put to excellent use as hair accessory catch-all baskets for Splenda's many, MANY headbands.

Those first two were absolute necessities, though.  I wash my rugs every week, and they've lasted four years.  Same with the shower curtain I had, I've had it for four years, and I'm just tired of looking at stripes.  So I am not counting those purchases in with the cost of decorating the bathroom, because they desperately needed to be replaced.

{And I will be happy to hire out my purchase-justification skills, if someone is looking for a great excuse to buy something.  It's my spiritual gift, that keeps on giving.}

I like how the curtain on the rod, suspended on 3M Command Hooks, gives the appearance that there's a window under there. I also like how that curtain protects the wall from the one towel bar that I am allowing for actual functional use.

Because the other two are strictly for pretties.  I cut down and top stitched the raw edge of the square table cover thingy that I made at the same time as the curtain.  This gave me the option to use part of it for the long towel rod that is NOT TO BE TOUCHED, and the smaller part paired with the quattrefoil washcloth and some cheeky ribbon for the hand towel ring that is NOT TO BE TOUCHED.




I already had the mirror (that was my spray paint screw up, actually) and the wreath. I simply twisted it into a figure eight shape and secured the center with a ponytail holder and ribbon.  I do plan to spray paint the basket in that dark brown color.  I'm also going to keep my eyes peeled for some oversized red shank buttons to slide over the shower rings, as opposed to overpaying for large, round, red shower rings.













Whatcha think? Country and homemade meets Better Homes and Gardens and WalMart? Trash to treasure? Too much? not enough?