Last updated on January 19th, 2018 at 02:27 pm
This makeover of a 1980s oak bathroom is stunning! Dark teal cabinets, modern lighting, and fun details make this bathroom makeover a showstopper.
Today I’m super excited to share the first of what I’m sure will be many room makeovers in our new house! We’ve done little bits in every room, but our new guest bath is the first room we’ve finished, top to bottom. I’d like to give a big thank you to Overstock.com for helping us out with the renovation. They have such an amazing selection so it’s easy to find great ideas for whatever room you’re re-doing — plus, their prices can’t be beat!
Our guest bathroom had been slightly updated since it was built in 1989, with a new light fixture, towel bars, faucets, and hardware. But it was so very, very beige and brown — really not my style.
It was ready for a makeover, and stat!
The bathroom is an odd layout. You walk through it to get to our guest bedroom / office, so it has a door on each side. Plus an extra door to get into the water closet where the toilet and shower are. That’s three doors in a small space! But because it had three bright white doors, I thought we’d paint the walls a deep gray (Mt. Rushmore by Kelly Moore). Such a dark color might be a little heavy in other rooms, but with three doors and bright new lighting, I absolutely love how it adds some drama and sophistication to the space.
Replacing the worn 1989 oak cabinets and solid-surface countertops wasn’t an option for us right now. Thankfully, although they looked a little worse for wear, the cabinets were in fairly good shape underneath. I decided to go bold and paint the cabinets a dark teal (Caribbean Dream by Kelly Moore). I learned a lot of lessons while painting the cabinets — I’ll share my mistakes soon so you don’t have to make them yourself! But despite some setbacks, I LOVE how they turned out. I also spray painted the brass hinges an antique bronze to match the door hardware.
I think a lot of people would think of painting the walls a bright color like this, but having it on the cabinets makes it more of an accent color instead of an overwhelming shade on the walls. We are planning on adding antique glass knobs to the doors, but haven’t found new knob screws that work with them just yet.
We removed the large 1989 mirror (I have something fun planned for it!) and replaced it with two gorgeous frameless mirrors with beveled edges.
I love how much more modern and updated the two mirrors look instead of the one big mirror. The delicate arch on top ads extra style, too. It takes the 1989 right out of the room.
Having two mirrors also gave me a little space to hang some floating art I made — there’s one that says “choose joy” between the mirrors, plus a similar one with feathers on the shelves above the toilet. If you have a Cricut Explore, making artwork like this is a snap — look for a tutorial soon!
We also replaced the bronze Tuscan-style light fixture. Originally, there was just one light, but I loved the idea of a light over each mirror, so Ryan, who is all sorts of handy, rewired the one light into two lights. Our friend Josh patched the wall for us — it really wasn’t hard to turn one light into two!
I chose some gorgeous modern chrome light fixtures to match the existing chrome faucets, which were in great shape. In addition to the two over the mirrors, we also replaced the flush-mount fixture in the water closet. So much better!
The rest of the fixtures, like the towel bars and toilet paper holder, are a nice chrome to go with the lighting and faucets.
Behind the door in the main part of the bathroom was sort of an awkward place for a towel bar, so instead we hung two hooks for towels or robes. I like that it brings in another little pop of teal and really matches the bath mats. There’s also a chrome towel bar behind the door in the water closet.
Speaking of bath mats, I found this extra-long runner in a lighter teal shade than the cabinets that is perfect in front of the sinks. A matching bath mat in front of the shower adds a nice touch of teal in the water closet.
For the shower curtain, I saw a ruffled shower curtain online a while back, but couldn’t actually figure out where it came from. So I decided to re-create it using a flat sheet and some trim. A super easy DIY if you can sew, so look for the tutorial soon.
Over the toilet, we installed some simple rustic shelves using this tutorial. SO simple and easy to do, and they look like we bought them at a high-end store. I am definitely installing these shelves elsewhere in the house — I love the look. And the aged bronze hardware goes well with the hardware on the doors and cabinets.
To bring in some of the teal into this room, I brought my favorite owl in from our unfinished office to hang out in here for now, as well as my chrome birds. I also added a tiny air plant to bring a little life to the space.
A little succulent on the sink echoes the plant in the water closet, and adds an organic element.
Also on the sink are small jars with cotton balls and Q-Tips for guests — I think they’ll really appreciate this detail.
I wanted to create a basket for my guests with towels and toiletries, so I got these two rustic modern metal baskets. Right now the small basket just holds extra washcloths, but I am working on filling it with everything a guest might need — I’ll share my completed basket soon!
The larger basket is perfect for extra toilet paper — you never want your guests to run out!
Hope you enjoyed our bathroom makeover — we sure did! Subscribe using the bar at the top of this page to get updates on the tutorials for some of the projects in this post, and make sure to visit Overstock.com for all of your remodeling needs!
Meg says
November 24, 2014 at 1:55 pmLove it! Those dark gray walls are totally my style, and I love the bold blue color on the cabinetry. I would probably be too timid to try that, but I really admire it! And the rustic shelves are super cute. We just got done sprucing up our guest bathroom in preparation for out-of-town family arriving this week and, though clean, there’s nothing pretty happening in there. Definitely need to get on that!
Mrs Major Hoff says
November 24, 2014 at 2:46 pmHow amazing is that shower curtain! I must have one! Can’t wait to see a tutorial. The lights are fabulous and I’m so impressed with the whole thing! You’ve inspired me to get to work on mine!
Wendy says
November 24, 2014 at 3:11 pmIt’s really pretty. I love the color on the cabinets! Did you guys have to retexture the wall after you removed the mirror?
Howie George says
November 24, 2014 at 3:22 pmI love it, Cori! You really did a fantastic job. Photos came out great, too!!
Kory says
November 24, 2014 at 6:07 pmWow! I usually don’t love when people paint cabinets, but I love this! It looks so good, especially with that really lovely wall color!
Abbie from Lovin' Our Chaos says
November 24, 2014 at 6:08 pmI love everything you did here! Love the color you chose for the cabinet, as well as the wall color!
lisa at Mabey She Made It says
November 24, 2014 at 8:11 pmLooks beautiful! Congrats on your first completed room!
[email protected] says
November 24, 2014 at 10:11 pmI love how it turned out. So many details here! The painted cabinets look fabulous. Love the baskets, the curtain, the choose JOY!
Heidi @ Happiness is Homemade says
November 25, 2014 at 1:11 pmThis is seriously SO awesome! I can’t believe how incredible it looks now! Ahem, I think you should come help me make mine over now! :)
Amy says
November 25, 2014 at 5:32 pmThis is beautiful Cori!! I love all the embellishments, especially the shelving and its contents,, the plants and the mirrors. Nicely done. Great vision!
laura londergan says
November 25, 2014 at 9:25 pmLOVING the teal cabinets – it’s my fave part of this! You did a great job! Love it!
Tracey @Let's Go Junking says
December 1, 2014 at 11:07 amAbsolutely love the colors! Want to make the shower curtain and want the shelves too! Great job Cori and Ryan.
Amanda @ Dwelling in Happiness says
February 22, 2015 at 9:14 pmThis looks fabulous! I love the color you chose to paint the vanity, and I love your simple shower curtain!We’re hopefully redoing our bathroom soon, and this is perfect inspiration! :)
kimberly says
February 23, 2015 at 10:54 pmWow! With a bathroom like that you are going to have a lot of guests!! And they just might never leave :P
Christine from So Domestically Challenged says
February 24, 2015 at 7:16 pmI love what you did to the bathroom! Those painted cabinets are gorgeous! I’m always afraid to paint furniture and cupboards, but that looks great and is inspiring! Love!
Deb says
February 26, 2015 at 6:38 amWow! Can I tell you we must have exactly the same taste. I did my kids bathroom last year the exact same way. A dark tealy-green for their outdated cabinets and a taupe wall color. I have yet to do the finishing touches in there so have still not posted, but I just love the combination of the two colors. Your entire bathroom looks fantastic, and I absolutely love the wooden shelves in there.
Deb
Mila says
February 26, 2015 at 5:12 pmI may be borrowing a few of your ideas! I am collecting inspiration for my daughter’s bathroom, pinning this! I think the mirrors make a huge difference. So elegant!
Amy | Club Narwhal says
February 27, 2015 at 6:06 amOoooh, I am just SWOONING over that gorgeous blue paint! One day I want to paint my kitchen cabinets that color. Reminds me of the ocean :) Thanks for sharing this lovely makeover on The Makers!
Kyla @HouseOfHipsters says
February 27, 2015 at 10:11 amThis is SO GOOD!
Jennifer says
February 27, 2015 at 7:30 pmBeautiful job! I love the mixed metals and the teal cabinets!! The light fixtures are my favorite, I’ve been looking for something sleek and modern like these.
Christina says
February 27, 2015 at 8:25 pmIt looks beautiful!
[email protected] says
February 28, 2015 at 9:38 amI simply LOVE what you did. It is so awesome. I love especially the mirrors & pick in between!
Dee says
March 1, 2015 at 6:12 pmAwesome makeover, Cori — love the color! Thanks for sharing at Snickerdoodle Sunday. :)
Corinne says
March 2, 2015 at 12:45 pmI really like the colors and I love all of the decorative touches! I think the bathroom turned out great. Thanks for sharing all your tips and for linking this up at This Is How We Roll Thursday.
Sarah Lemp says
March 4, 2015 at 10:00 amThis is gorgeous! I love the colors you chose and I am dying to do that same thing with my giant bathroom mirror. Thanks for linking up at All Things Thursday!
Amy @ Ms. Toody Goo Shoes says
March 5, 2015 at 9:54 amHi Cori, just letting you know I will be featuring your fantastic bathroom makeover tomorrow night on Best of the Weekend! Thanks for being a part of our party!
Michelle @ A Dish of Daily Life says
March 5, 2015 at 10:39 amLove the makeover…it looks fabulous! I’ve got a couple bathrooms that could use some updating…thanks for the inspiration!So glad you shared this with us at #FoodieFriDIY!
Ashley ~ 3 Little Greenwoods says
March 6, 2015 at 3:07 pmFabulous update! The blue cabinets are my favorite!
Thanks so much for the inspiration and for sharing on Show Me Saturday! I can’t wait to see what you share this weekend!
Susanne says
March 6, 2015 at 7:18 pmI would love to know the method you used to remove the dated mirror—I have several I would love to remove and update! The last house we did this at, it was a major effort to remove the mirror–love your total updates!
Cori George says
March 6, 2015 at 8:01 pmOur mirror wasn’t glued to the wall, so we just removed the brackets and it came right off. But I’ve seen people tape the entire mirror and break it apart in little pieces — hope it comes off easy for you!
Rhonda J. Donahue says
September 28, 2016 at 12:40 pmJust I found your site with a helpful content. It is really very nice.
Rachel says
November 7, 2016 at 8:35 amReally pretty!!! Would you mind sharing where you got your glass apothecary jars for q-tips and cotton balls? :) Thx!!!
Hal says
April 16, 2018 at 3:24 pmHi there! I just found your site and really enjoy it! We are moving into a new (to us) home in a couple of weeks and will be undertaking a lot of redecorating. I love your guest bathroom (esp the teal cabinets). I was trying to figure out what color your tub, toilet, and sink are? We’re kinda stuck with a bone/bisque/almond shade – the budget’s not there to replace the tub and tile. I was thinking of adding white board & batten around the lower portion of the walls and crown molding, geige upper walls and a teal cabinet with a bone countertop, maybe with a glass vessel sink. Do you think that would be too much? Thanks for your input!