a sunny disposition

This is the "before" version of the living room bathroom... neutral colors, some peeling wallpaper, and a huge mirror. Definitely not bad, but the wallpaper...



It HAD To Go.

Upon pulling it all off, we discovered 1) that the actual "wall" was 1970's vinyl tile panels with gold and silver striations, and 2) that the panels were not even completely intact-- some places had been patched. There was no way we would be able to just paint over this to give it a nice clean appearance. So, after steaming the wallpaper off, scrubbing/scraping the glue off with a fabric softener solution (note: please don't even try the fabric softener if you run into this problem, it was a huge waste of time!), and ultimately sanding the glue off the walls to make them smooth, we finally started actually finishing the bathroom. The second thing that needed to be done after the wallpaper removal was to patch the joints. Since the "walls" were tile panels that were held together by tracks, we decided to spackle over them to give them a smoother appearance. This took the longest!

Initially, we did about 3 rounds of spackling and sanding. It worked great, until we realized that we were working in a bathroom and that moisture makes things expand and contract! It was devastating for me... having spent all the time really building up the layers and smoothing them down like you're supposed to. I eventually broke down and bought a few rolls of spackle tape, re-spackled over all the joints and cracks and re-sanded for a smooth surface. We took a risk and gambled that it would just stay that way, hit the walls with a few coats of primer and then faced with the problem of the rough wall patches that were previously covered by the wallpaper.

The solution? BEAD BOARD (or wainscoting)! Averitt spent roughly a whole day measuring and cutting bead board and moulding, then using the nail-gun to make sure it would never come away from the wall. In retrospect, using liquid nails may have been better but nevertheless the work got done. Caulking and priming completed the job.

The finishing touches? Leftover yellow paint, a frosted window (thanks Averitt), a woodland picture, and a chunky mirror and striped bath rug (thanks mom!). The "after"...



This is the first post to go up because it's the project that took the longest. Altogether, we think this transformation took at least 2 full weeks.

Thanks for reading! -JB