Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

We worked a little switcheroo in our bathroom over the weekend in the form of vanity mirrors.  Originally we had a boring, small medicine cabinet type mirror hanging out on our wall - nothing necessarily bad about it, we just wanted to change it out for something with a little more style.  We realized at some point that we already had a mirror that just might work so we thought we would give it a try and see how it looks - nothing wrong with a free upgrade, especially when you are remodeling on a tight budget (plus we are cheap, but you know that already).  So Justin went to work removing the old mirror and replacing it.  Here's our before mirror:

First thing, removing our old mirror -

Oh, don't forget to close up the sink drain (this should actually be the first thing you do).

And our removed mirror and new hole in the wall...

We wanted to cover the hole with Sheetrock so we have a nice smooth and finished wall underneath our new mirror so Justin had to carefully remove the uneven edges with a utility knife.

Another great reason for a closed drain (ignore the razor I'm not sure why that was still sitting there).  Also note the screwdriver in the new hole in the wall.

Just a little close up so you can see the removal process.

So after Justin was satisfied with the evenness factor we had planned on going to the store and picking up a piece of Sheetrock to finish up the project...problem was, we never found time to go.  So, we just decided to throw up the new mirror and have it just be for a while.  We do however have several issues though.  For one, this mirror is larger and you can see from the other pictures we have this awesome electrical outlet right next to where the mirror hangs, so we are having some over-hang issues.  We also didn't have any real support to hang the new mirror on so we had to be a little creative.  Here's what the new mirror looks like (and, it's actually not new - we've had it since we got married in our first apartment so it's just about 10 years old now).  I actually think it goes pretty well with all of the other bathroom items and decor that's going on in there now - you can check that out here and here.

So to create more support to hang this mirror on (it's really quite heavy) Justin used a scrap piece of wood nailed into the wall.  Here's what lies beneath our mirror - shhhh, don't tell anyone and if you come over, just act like that's not there.  I guess this mirror is covering a multitude of sins right now.  And, my favorite part - the screwdriver and yes it's still living behind the mirror.  So, you might have to remind us where we left it for out next project.

We are still having some evenness issues and issues with fit but I like the look of the mirror and that it now has a new place to live in our house.  It might not last forever but for now it's all good.  Oh, and our new hole will hopefully soon be closed and nice and even and flat and will no longer be a storage place for forgotten tools.

So we are wondering, anyone else have a mirror or artwork that is covering up something unsightly on your wall?  We can't be the only ones.  Comment and share!

Progress Makes Perfect

Some of our bathroom booty

Yesterday we shared with you a few items we purchased over the weekend for our main bathroom in our new house.  Today, we wanted to share with you the actual progress we are making in there.   We had big dreams of getting everything accomplished over the weekend but we just didn't quite have enough time in the day night to get there.  King Silas had his own agenda in mind and we were happy to oblige (you only get a small amount of time with them this age you know?) It was all we could do to get the bathroom back in a working order so we could take showers for church Sunday morning so we didn't walk into Easter service stinky and covered in paint - although I think a lot of people would have found that amusing.  So pretty much in standard with the rest of our house we will eventually be replacing everything in this room for the bathroom remodel.  We are starting with some easy less expensive things first and plan on working our way up as we go. It's amazing what a few changes will do to a room, just some paint will work wonders and then add some textile goodness and you are starting to really see progress.

I loved shopping for new things for our bathroom, starting with a new shower curtain rod, new shower curtain rings and a new shower curtain.

I was on a mission to find things that were priced right and also something that I loved.  Many times in my life I have purchased something just because it was on sale, when I really didn't love it.  So I made sure I did not impulse buy but waited until I found something that I truly loved -plus was a great price - it takes more time and patience but totally worth it in the end.  Here's a  round up on the cost with this upgrade:  

Curtain Rod - Target $12.99

White Fabric Shower Curtain - Homegoods $9 (on sale, originally $22) 

Patterned Fabric Shower Liner - Homegoods $12.99

Shower Curtain Hooks - Homegoods $5.99

I was very adamant about finding a fabric shower liner for our home after reading so many warnings and reports about the old tried and true vinyl polyvinyl chloride (PVC plastic) shower curtains.  There is a lot of info about how harmful to the air those bad boys can be, off gassing voc's and such.  If you are interested you can read the report from CHEJ.  You will be happy to know that many retail stores have caught wind of this as well and are offering a lot more fabric shower liner varieties as well as zero PVC ones.  The one I found was not only affordable but cute and all I have to do is wash it when it starts getting yucky and it will be good to go - just makes sense.

Quick Before

And After, looking all Misty Lake green and bright

We found this awesome curtain for our window and just had to have it.  This window is actually pretty small - we did buy a curtain rod for it and realized when we got home that it was too small, so the towel stays for now until we find something that fits.  I just like showing how we roll around here, very far from perfection.