bathroom Archives - Page 4 of 6

bathroom, Beach, Before and After, board and batten, chalk paint, Home Tour, install cabinet knobs, moulding, painting, Painting & Antiquing Techniques, ReNew, renovation

Boy’s Bathroom Refresh {#LowesCreator Project}

Seaside Theme Bathroom Refresh #LowesCreator | Pretty Handy Girl

You know those projects that you complete 80% of the room and think to yourself, “This is good for now. I’ll do the rest in a day or two.” Yup, the boy’s bathroom was one such 80 percenter. I finally took the time to finish the last 20 percent of this bathroom makeover by giving it a refresh with some paint and new knobs.

The bathroom used to look like this:

But, before that, it looked like this:

I find it comical that I took an underwater themed bathroom and gave it a seaside retreat feel. I guess you could say I pulled this big whopper from within the ocean and laid it out on the beach. LOL.

Let’s break it down now. Here’s how to paint a bathroom vanity so it will withstand the abuse of two young boys: Read more

June 2, 2014/45 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

bathroom, DIY, Fix It, Home & Auto Maintenance, Home Maintenance, pliers, Plumbing, repair, Tutorial

How to Easily Install a New Shower Head

Raise your hand if you have a sad excuse for a shower head! Is it drippy, rusty or clogged? If you answered yes to any of those questions, I’m about to show you why there is no excuse for you being able to install a new shower head yourself! It’s super easy.

Materials:

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

New shower head
Vise Grip Pliers (or other wide mouth pliers)
Plumber’s tape

Optional: Shower arm & flange, rag to protect new shower arm

Instructions:

1. Remove the old shower head by unscrewing it from the pipe arm. Use pliers to help get it started.

2. Unscrew the old shower arm if it is rusty or won’t match the new shower head. Remove that rusty flange (now is the time to do it! Don’t put it off any longer.)

3. Replace the old shower arm with new one by screwing it into the plumbing pipe in the wall. Then slide the new flange over the arm.

Wrap the end of the shower arm with plumber’s tape (wrap it clockwise to keep it from bunching up when you attach the new shower head.)

4. Screw the new shower head onto the end of the shower arm. Hand tighten the head. Then put the rag over the spot base of the shower head and use the pliers to tighten it 1/4 turn.

5. If your shower head has an extension hose, attach that at this time by screwing it onto the shower head and attaching the other end to the body sprayer.

Turn on the water and test the spray! Beautiful! No drips or clogs? If you have some leaks anywhere, give an extra 1/4 to 1/2 turn to tighten it the shower head or hose.

I installed the Delta In2ition shower head in the Topsail Beach Condo we renovated. I’ve been intrigued by this shower head and after trying it out, I love it!!!

Because who wouldn’t love a shower head that sprays from the top even when you want a body spray too?

The interior head is fully removable and nests back into the outer ring when done body spraying.

The only initial drawback I found was getting used to setting the body sprayer back into the ring. Once I realized you have to push it in and down firmly, there was no problem.

Wasn’t that easy? Go on and replace your shower head today if you’ve been putting it off!

Disclosure: No disclosure necessary. I wasn’t paid or provided with the Delta In2ition shower head. My stepmom paid for it to be installed in the beach condo. I chose this shower head because I wanted to try it out.

Pin for later!

March 21, 2014/7 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

art, arts and craft, bathroom, Crafts, decor, framing

How to Cut an Art Mat Like a Pro

Want to save some money and mat your own prints and artwork? It’s not hard, but having the right tools will really help you cut a straight, clean and beveled mat.

I’ve been giving the boys’ bathroom a little updating and one of the things that I wanted to do was add some artwork. Because the bathroom has predominantly blues and whites, I’ve been sticking with a coastal theme. I decided to create my own art using photos of the ocean.

I found two photos that I took of the boys from past vacations and emailed them to myself. Then I saved them to my phone and ran them through the Waterlogue app (only available for iPhone right now.) The app turns any photo into a beautiful watercolor painting. I’m seriously addicted to this app right now.

After running the photo through the app, I emailed myself the new photo. Then all I had to do was open it on my computer and print it onto Epson Velvet Fine Art Paper. The paper has a watercolor paper texture and produces beautiful images.

And viola! Instant meaningful art!

Luckily I already had frames on hand to use for this project.

Before cutting the mats, I painted the frames with Annie Sloan Paris Grey and finished them off with Miss Mustard Seed’s Linen. Then I distressed the edges of the frames.

Now, about matting that artwork…

How to Cut an Art Mat Like a Professional:

First, choose a firm and flat surface to work on. Hopefully you have a self-healing cutting mat to cut on top of. If not, you can use thick chipboard or scraps of linoleum, but be careful that you can’t cut through to your work surface.

Materials:

Colored Mat
Artwork
White Artist’s tape (you can use masking tape or scotch tape, but it might discolor your print over time.)
Logan Mat Cutting System
Extra Mat Cutting Blades
Self-healing cutting mat
X-acto knife
Ruler

A Note about Cutting Blades:

When cutting mats it is imperative that you have a fresh blade. I sometimes have to use 2 blades per mat. So, don’t be shy about swapping that blade out. If a tip breaks off, it’s going to drag on the mat and won’t give you a clean cut. (Discard old blades by wrapping them in tape to avoid personal injury.)

If you don’t own a mat cutter, you can cut your mat window with an x-acto knife, but you won’t achieve a good clean bevel. Typically, if you cut 2-3 of your own mats, your tools will pay for themselves! The Logan mat cutter I use runs about $50 for the guide and cutting handle.

Instructions:

How to Make a Mason Jar Foaming Soap Dispenser

My sweet little sister, Caitlin, sent me vintage blue Ball Mason jars for my birthday. I had resisted buying them because I might have a bit of a jar hoarding problem. (If you’re in my home, don’t open the cabinet in the laundry room. You might be horrified or shocked by all the jars I’ve rescued from the recycling.)

When I opened the package of six brand new blue jars, I knew I had to keep them and find some ways to display these beauties. Caitlin suggested I should turn one into a soap pump. I agreed, but decided to make it a foaming soap dispenser. Any one else addicted to bubbly foamy soap like I am? Raise your hand and be proud. We can start a foaming soap addicts group (right after the recycled jar addicts group meeting.)

Here’s my tutorial for turning a blue mason jar into a foaming soap dispenser.

Bread Crate Cubby Display Shelves

Hey y’all. I’ve been busy painting my hair gray. Well, I’m not trying to, but painting the bonus room with its angled ceilings has resulted in a lot of gray highlights. Even Buddy got in the action:

So, while I’m busy googling how to remove paint from dog hair, I hope you’ll enjoy this tutorial I created for building these cubby display shelves using a shipping pallet and a vintage bread crate. My cost was zero because I had all the materials and tools. But, even if you have to buy some of the materials, it should be a relatively inexpensive project. And the best part about this project is that I didn’t use any nails or screws to create it! Read more

September 14, 2012/10 Comments/by Brittany Bailey