Afternoon Bathroom DIY

When I woke up this morning did I think… “huh, maybe I’ll paint the tub today.”? YOU BET I DID!

All week I’ve been planning on tackling this very easy, hour long project and just haven’t gotten around to it. But with Husband working SO hard on refinishing our main staircase and family coming in for Thanksgiving, I decided to go ahead and knock it out.

Literally all this project involved was 2 coats of Rust-oleum Painter’s Touch ultra cover Black Gloss on the tub itself and then Rust-oleum Hammered Copper on the claw feet. I hung a few pictures and decorated with a few items I had lying around the house. With ALL the colors going on in the bathroom, I really felt like black would help tie things together with the floor. I switched out the mirror for a 1930s black framed mirror and added darker artwork to bring it all together.

I felt like perhaps the art-deco mirror would be fitting seeing as this wasn’t originally a bathroom. See, when the Brick and Maple was built in 1887, they didn’t have indoor plumbing! This room was originally used as a second hallway connecting the dining room with the kitchen. When the bathroom was added sometime in the 30s-40s, the tub was placed and the walls were built around it. It’s a good thing I love it so much because that tub literally CAN’T go anywhere as it won’t fit through the door!

Ultimately I hope to add curtains and reglaze the inside of the tub so that it is bright and shiny glossy white, but for piddling around for an hour or two, I’d say this works out just fine. Enjoy our simple $100 before and after!

Rust-oleum, $9 for each can: $18 total.
Antique mirror: $15 at a vintage pop-up
White cabinet: $40, Amazon
Painting: $25 at St. Clair Antique Mall

Et voila!

Before:

As you can see, it was just… a lot. Between the floral wallpaper, the decal on the tub, the black and white floor, and (unseen) the gold pressed tin ceiling, I felt like it just needed to be streamlined. I’m really happy with the final product!

After:

Doesn’t the black in the tub just tie it all together?

I absolutely ADORE the clawfeet… they may be my favorite little detail in the entire bathroom. Rust-oleum is a FABULOUS product to work with. This is only a single coat and I have 99.99% of the quart still remaining. Now to find other things to paint…