Friday, March 8, 2013

What's behind Door #2

The Powder Bath Transformation!!!


So I told you all I had plans to stencil our powder bath with this stencil.  What I didn't tell you is that I have actually had the stencil for months and haven't been able to bring myself to get out the paint and start this project.  I'm a little tired right now of projects (yes I am human).


Then I saw this idea from Vintage Revivals and it got my wheels spinning.

What if I just traced the stencil using a paint marker?  It sounded a little easier than painting it and it got me excited enough to attempt the project so it was already a win.

Here is the BEFORE: (Lots of room for improvement!)


And the After:

I used Sharpie Paint Pens (water-based) in the color "silver."  They cost $4.00 each (you can get them on sale for cheaper) from Michaels or other craft stores.  I used a total of 4 pens to do the whole bathroom.



Overall this did not end up being easier or harder than stenciling with paint and probably took the same amount of time.  However there were some aspects that did end up being easier -
No mess of paint, cleaning up of brushes, or getting out a lot of supplies every time I worked on it.  No taping baseboards or the edges along the ceiling, and I didn't have to remove any outlet covers or anything else for that matter!  The corners were also much easier this way than working with paint (again still not easy just easier).  In the future if painting a stencil, for the corners I think I would use this method of just tracing it out in pencil in the corner, then take the stencil down and paint in the lines.


The tile on the floor is a fake marble tile from Daltile - "Carrera star." I had the 12x12 square tiles cut in half so that they became 6x12's and could be laid in a brick pattern.  


Tracing (as opposed to painting) the stencil definitely achieves a different look 
and I am very happy with that!


 It just took time - no skill - just time.  There are probably easier stencils out there to trace, I just happened to already have this stencil so that is the one I traced!  Mistakes are still evident but thankfully not too noticeable when you look at the big picture.  I did find that a wet wipe was once again my best tool for fixing mistakes and cleaning up lines as soon as the stencil was removed and the paint was still wet.  I took my time on this project and only spent 1 or 2 hours on it a day (somedays more, somedays less) and I completed it in one week.  I would guess around 14 hours total.  The really nice thing was that it was VERY easy to work on a little bit at a time.  It was pretty mindless work so I enjoyed listening to a book while I worked - it's my favorite way to "read" lately and I highly recommend it when you're working on projects!


Part of this rooms transformation was also having an electrician install these sconces that I scored at a garage sale (thanks Kori!).  So no more ugly bar light as seen in the "Before" photo.
Click here for more information on the mirror above and here for information on the artwork below.


Once I was finished and stood back to look at this small room with all its pattern and design going on (and knowing that I had traced the whole thing by hand) I had a bit of a moment where I suddenly thought "oh no - I'm like the guy on "A Beautiful Mind" - I'm even a math teacher like him (yes that is true)!  If you haven't seen the movie basically I am just admitting that this room proves how crazy I am.  Everyone that now uses my powder bath in the future will exclaim "you traced this all by HAND!" and then they'll think "Man she is crazy"!  And now that I have posted this on the internet I can hear all of you thinking the same thing!  It's ok, I already knew I was crazy, this room just proves it :)



And if you don't follow my blog and are curious about the numbered door (?) - check out this post.

20 comments:

  1. WOW! I've seen Mandi's but yours is just WOW! I LOVE IT! Can't wait to try it on my bathroom!!!

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  2. You are Crazy, Crazy Awesome!!!
    I Love it and can't wait to copy it!!

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  3. love how this turned out awesome job

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  4. Oh my goodness. This looks so amazing. I LOVE how it turned out!

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  5. I LOVE THIS. I HAVE AN IDENTICAL BATHROOM TO YOURS. WHERE DID YOU GET THE ART WORK?

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    1. See this post.
      http://www.amyscasablanca.com/2013/03/easy-artwork.html

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  6. I went to Michael's to get a sharpie paint pen. Did you use a silver oilbased paint pen or water-based paint pen? Did you use a silver metalic or just plain silver?

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    1. Sorry about that! It was water-based and plain silver (not metallic). Follow the directions on the pen, one pen lasted me two whole walls but another pen pooped out on me real quick. They are not perfect and can be frustrating but just keep at it and it will turn out beautifully! Good luck!

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  7. This looks amazing Amy!! I might have to try this in my foyer. Thanks for the tutorial and tips!

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  8. love! can you share what kind of paint you used the sharpie on?

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    1. The white paint is Kwal "Apple Peel" in an egg shell finish.

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  9. thanks for the reply! i'd like your option, i would really like to do this in my bathroom but it has a shower and i think i need to use a glossy finish due to the steam. how do you think would be best to transfer this pattern to the wall? sharpie still? should i go different color glossy paint? would love your feedback! thanks!

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    1. The sharpie will still work just fine on white glossy paint.

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  10. Hi! Do you mind explaining how exactly you did the corners? I love this idea and am thinking about using it for my 1/2 bath.

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    1. Sure- I didn't continue the pattern from one wall to the next (because that is VERY difficult to do). I decided I didn't care if the corners matched up-and I'm glad because they ended up looking fine (some corners look almost matched up but a couple do not, as you can see above). Basically I started on one side of the wall with the stencil flat in the corner and worked to the other side of the wall where the stencil usually had to be smashed into the corner to finish the pattern. The next wall I would start fresh again with it flat and then end up with it smashed on the other end in the corner. Hope that makes sense, but basically it is pretty time consuming to do corners with a stencil smashed in the corner so I avoided it as much as possible and only did it once per wall instead of on both corners of the wall. The pattern really shines in a small room so I think you'll like it in your 1/2 bath! Good luck!

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  11. Amy, this is fantastic! I love the look of outlining the shape instead of filling it -- much more subtle and graphic -- and the stencil you chose looks great. I will be doing this to my powder room too! Thank you thank you thank you for the idea!

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  12. Crazy like a fox, more like! Looks incredible!

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  13. Really nice project and I am sure you must be very proud what you end up with.
    I love stencil, but have no experiences with it, so just dreaming that one day I will do something like you.
    Really admire your craziness.
    Wishing the best.

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