Monday, November 7, 2011

How to Turn an Antique Cabinet into a Bathroom Vanity

Wow, I've been gone for a while, haven't I?

Today, I'm going to show you a project that I did this past Summer. I was working on a bathroom remodel.

When I first bought my house, a lot of the work I put into it was more of a temporary thing.
Most of my remodels didn't have much thought behind them.

Maybe because the previous owner had such horrible taste that I wanted to quickly cover it up out of embarrassment?
Or maybe because I was still a novice.....and broke.


I don't have any photos of the original bathroom. Here's some old photos I pulled off my blog of the first remodel I gave this bathroom.



I painted the walls yellow in an attempt at being "fun." I did put in that faux wainscoating, but now I realize it was too low.

There's that horrible fan/light (which fans out into my closet?) that's stuck on the wall.
This bathroom has no shower, so moisture really isn't a problem.
And quite honestly, I don't know why the previous owners would want whatever smell was going on in that bathroom to be emptied out into a closet with clothes in it.

In a later post, I will show you the basics of running wires through walls. I changed the light fixture, and put it on the ceiling where it belongs.

Also, that vanity literally takes up half the bathroom. I'm not entirely sure how we even got it out of there. The thing was monstrous, and the bathroom is tiny.

I knew we needed a new one.






I love the look of antique vanities.

I started pricing vanities for the look I wanted:

Zoomed: American Standard 21-1/4" Aged Chestnut Bordaux Bath Vanity with Top


I loved it, but YEESH! That'll put a dent in the ol' pocketbook!





Zoomed: allen + roth 36" Walnut Avon Park Bath Vanity with Top

Still out of my price range.



Zoomed: ESTATE by RSI 29" Spiced Cognac Furniture with Top



Unfortunately, $400 was still over my budget. Heck, I wanted to pay way less than that for the entire remodel!



So I searched Craigslist, and wouldn't you know it, I found the perfect antique cabinet! It used to be a radio cabinet.

So I took the old vanity out.
I placed the two vanities back-to-back.


My wonderful husband helped move the cabinets for me.
He's wonderful!

Anyways, putting the cabinets back-to-back will give you a perfect template of where to cut a hole for your plumbing. That way you don't need to take measurements.

Just open up the old vanity, and trace inside the old hole.




Next, lay your new sink on top of your vanity, making sure it is centered, and trace around it.
Make sure the sink is far enough from the back so that you are still able to turn the faucets. The sink shouldn't be flush against the back of the vanity.

Then, trace another circle inside of that, about 1/2 inch inside. This will give the sink a lip to sit on. You will make your cuts on the inside line!



Drill your pilot hole and start cutting with a jigsaw.


Next, squeeze a large bead of silicone all around the lip of the hole. This will keep the sink in place and prevent moisture from getting inside the cabinet.

Then just drop in your sink and "shimmy" it into place!



And you have a new, DIY bathroom vanity.

Total cost without the faucet: $70.

Knowing that your piece is a real antique and that you made it yourself: priceless!





Oh, and a little tip before you try this project:

Measure the height of your old vanity. Try to find one around the same size. While plumbing can be adjusted (I had a slight variation), you don't want a vanity that is uncomfortably high or low.

Friday, August 19, 2011

DON'T Remove Your Shoes

I love looking at everyone's creative ideas out in the world.
That's why I love Blogger so much.
Tons of ideas.

I ran across a blog post at Tip Junkie today about funny/quaint ways to ask guests to remove their shoes at the door.

There are a lot of neat ideas!
all crafts Remove The Shoes! {10 Creative Signs For Guests}


all crafts Remove The Shoes! {10 Creative Signs For Guests}

I do understand the reason people don't want shoes in their house. Shoes track in tons of dirt.

I get it.
I do.


But I want my house to be different.
I've ripped up every scrap of carpet in my house for ease of cleaning.
I choose easy-wash fabrics on my furniture.

My house is washable.
My house is livable.



I want guests to feel comfortable.
Don't want to release your smelly dogs?
Good, I don't really want to smell them either.



I guess what I'm trying to get at, is worry less about the mess, and more about the good times you should be having.



If you're ever at my house, feel free to keep your shoes on.
I don't own any coasters for a reason.
My coffee table can double as an ottoman. Kick your feet up!
Curl up on my couch.
Go ahead and sit on my countertops. I do all the time.



Make. yourself. comfortable!



Monday, August 15, 2011

Pinterest

Hey everyone, I just wanted to stop in and let you know that I now have a Pinterest page!

Click the link above to go to the page!



Previously, I had always saved inspirational stuff from the web onto my favorites bar.
What a neat way to keep all my thoughts organized!



Follow my Pinterest page to see where I get all the inspiration on all the projects and remodels that I do to my own little corner of the world!


And a HUGE thanks to Jenn from Motocross Momma for cluing me into Pinterest!





On another note, I've done quite a few projects around the house lately, including converting a closet into an armoire by adding flipper hinges (Google it, you'll understand), and I'm currently remodeling the upstairs bathroom (to which Fedex just dropped off my faucet whilst writing this!).
I haven't written on the closet-turned-armoire yet because the doors need to be sanded and painted on the inside (and to tell you the truth...I got lazy doing because who really cares about the inside, right?)  I want to show you the finished product, not my lack of being able to finish projects, haha!

The bathroom will be done as soon as I can convince my step-dad to come over and re-route some electrical for me. He's going to be super-annoyed, but as my step-brother so kindly put it, "He loves being needed and he knows it." Haha, I love my family!


Monday, August 1, 2011

How to Buy the Correct Sized Picture

I wanted to buy a huge print of my new family photo to put above our entertainment center.

I measured and re-measured the space, debating sizes with my husband.
We went back and forth for hours on what size to order.

Finally, I came up with a solution:

Take a picture of the area.

Upload both the picture you want to hang (A) and the picture of the room (B) into a software like Photoshop.

Place photo A onto photo B, and play with the size of photo A until you like the look of it.

Remeber to think about the thickness of the frame you will be using!!

Once you get it looking right, measure the actual space using cue points. I used the glass hurricanes on the entertainment center, measuring just between them.

This should give you an idea of what size to order!


Hope this helps you for the next time you need to order some prints! Happy Monday everyone!

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Family

Most of you know my personality by now.
You know what makes my heart sing.


Antiques

Auctions

Daisies

Nature

Beautiful artwork

Calmness

Sunshine (then again, thunderstorms rock, too!)

Family



Could it be summed up any better than in this amazing family portrait?




My kids are 11, 6, and 3, and this is our first family portrait.

I know, shame on me!
You know how it goes, life goes by so fast!


This photo is courtesy of Brittany Menor of b. menor photography & design.

She is one of my favorite co-workers as well!
She is studying Graphic Design at UW-Stout, so if you're not in my area for a great photography session, she can make amazing headers for your blog instead!

Thanks a ton, Britt!
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