Upstairs Bathroom Upgrade

I am excited to share with you all about the upstairs bathroom transformation! Our home was built about 22 years ago so when we purchased it, we knew there would be some updating we needed to do in many places, but the changes (for now) were going to be mostly cosmetic. We decided we were going to do new floors (which I am so excited about) and the floors in the upstairs bathroom are an old linoleum. Therefore we figured now would be the time to change out the vanity's before the new floor comes in.

I researched for weeks on how to upgrade an old vanity and watched many videos. I then proceeded to post on Instagram what people recommended. SO many people responded and said not to pay someone and to do it ourselves because it's easier than you think. I have to say, they were right! We ran into more complications in the bathroom downstairs (that will be another blog) but this bathroom went smoother!

Bathroom when we moved in

The picture to the right is what the original bathroom looked like when we moved in. We had decided to paint the walls with an "Owl Gray" by Benjamin Moore in an eggshell finish and paint the cabinets and the medicine cabinet with a "Bone White" by Benjamin Moore. I also added a glaze to make them look more "worn" (shown below). It was pretty at first because it completely matched the old vanity top and the linoleum floor. Then we decided on the new floors which meant nothing was going to match anymore.

Bone White and Glazed cabinets

As you all probably know I love black and white so therefore my decision on the vanity was simple. In the bathroom downstairs we changed out the entire vanity. In this bathroom, the cabinets were in much better shape, so we decided on changing only the vanity top which ended up being much easier.

When looking for the vanity top, I searched at local hardware stores, Home Depot, and Lowes.

** ATTN! ** Here are some tips when picking out a vanity or the vanity top -

1. Make sure you read the reviews! I had a few I really liked but then I read what customer's wrote for reviews on the product and it instantly changed my mind on many options.

2. If you are going to Home Depot or Lowes to purchase the item, open it in the store and make sure it is put together the way it is supposed to be and there is no damage to the piece. The vanity top I decided on is linked here. Also look to see that the item is the right color and looks the way you want it to. Items can look totally different online than in person!

3. Make sure you measure the dimensions of the vanity top and the faucet. For the top, make sure you measure the thickness of the backsplash, the length & width of the backsplash and then the length and width of the top. If you decide to do the sink separate from the top, then you will have to measure that as well.

I decided to paint the cabinets & medicine cabinet with a "Simply White" by Benjamin Moore in Advance Paint with a Satin finish and added new black hardware. This instantly brightened up the bathroom and started to give the look I was going for. The hardware I purchased is from Hobby Lobby linked here. I also purchased a different knob for the medicine cabinet linked here. Once we decided to do the vanity top, the first thing we had to do was turn off the water and disconnect the pipes under the sink. When we went to do this, we realized the sink was so old it was connected by copper pipes which were melted together. So I did some research on how to get these apart and it literally said to give them a hard tug and that worked (thanks to Zach - FYI Zach did a lot of this work but I did help!). From there we used a razor to go through the glue underneath the top that was holding it on and then did the same for the glue holding up the backsplash. We then used a hammer to give it a little boost underneath to make it come off of the cabinets and used a hammer and a screw driver for the backsplash. For that portion, you had to hit the screw driver very lightly with the hammer to get the backsplash off the wall. We only ended up with a few minor holes to patch and sand down.

Once the top was off, we sanded down the walls to get all of the glue off because the backsplash I purchased was half an inch short and I did not get the side backsplash. We filled all the holes and we then proceeded to add the new vanity top. First step was putting a bathroom adhesive around the top of the cabinets and pressing down with a good amount of pressure. When putting the vanity top on, make sure you line up the sink hole with the piping below. We had to move our vanity top a little bit forward to make sure it lined up perfectly.

The top was now on! From there we added the adhesive to the back of the backsplash and placed that onto the wall. We noticed the backsplash and the top were not completely flush so I purchased a clear silicone caulk for bathrooms and kitchens and filled the crack. To do that, I put painters tape on top of the crack and below, applied the caulk, let it dry and then removed the tape.

We then attached the faucet - Figured linking the video we watched on how to do this would probably be more beneficial for you! We then turned on the water, checked for any leaks, and we were then good to go!

Also attaching this video that we watched prior to doing the vanity top and the vanity downstairs. This helped show us exactly what we needed to do and provided some helpful tips!

One other change I made was the light fixture. I had painted it that bone white color so I decided to paint it with Black Advance Paint and added vintage light bulbs for a whole new look. In time I will probably replace the whole fixture but for now it gives off the look I was going for.

From there, the vanity was finished, the cabinets were painted, lighting fixture was complete and all that was left was to decorate! Most of the decorations in this bathroom came from Target, Home Sense, Home Goods, Hobby Lobby, Tj Maxx, & Marshalls. I went and bought items at different times and slowly decorated on a budget. Some of the items in the images are linked on my blog under the Shop tab!

Thanks for reading and I hope this blog inspires you to make the changes you may be thinking about in your bathroom whether it's décor, a vanity upgrade, a cabinet color change or whatever it may be!