[Transformation Thursday: Master Bathroom]

A couple months before I entered the wonderful world of blogging, my husband and I made some major changes to our master bathroom. We wanted it to be a place of tranquility that matched our decorating style.

Here is what it looked like before the transformation:

[this photo was taken the day we signed on the house]

And here is what is looks like now:

Pretty big difference, huh? We made a ton of changes along with some nice finishing touches. First off, we took off that ginormous mirror and replaced it with 2 separate mirrors (much easier to clean!). We also painted the walls "Antique White" by Valspar to make everything look even since we took down the mirror. I know you probably can't tell a difference here, but you can in person. What you probably did notice was that we painted the cabinets. It much such a difference! We also had to paint the trim of the mirrors since they were white. (side note: we bought those mirrors at Lowe's on clearance for $25 each!) We used "Italian Leather" by Valspar. After the paint dried, we screwed on some brushed nickel cabinet knobs and voila!

Another thing you may have noticed was that we changed out the faucets. The existing ones were super cheap, so we added some simple brushed nickel faucets to fancy it up a bit. Tip: Replacing faucets is an easy affordable way to update any bathroom, kitchen, etc.

Above each mirror are these light fixtures. For a long time I debated on if I wanted to replace them with new, nicer fixtures. My husband convinced me otherwise. He did, however, paint the backing with brushed metal spray paint and changed out the bulbs from clear to cloudy light bulbs. I kinda liked how it turned out. Plus it was cheap!

Another thing my husband convinced me of...(shocker shocker): a Samsung flat screen. But I have to admit, it is kinda nice to be able to watch movies/TV while getting ready or taking a bath. Plus, my husband also installed a speaker in the ceiling to get the ultimate surround sound.

Ahh..."his and hers" sinks. Each to their own domain. I am still on the lookout for "his" and "hers" rugs to go next to our designating cabinets. I think that might be cute. :0) Oh and p.s., if you look in the bottom photo, you can see the curtain to our closet that I mentioned in a previous post.

Anyways, that's just one of many transformations that have happened in the 3 years we have lived in our home. Stay tuned for more! Oh, and if you have any suggestions on how to spruce things up in my master bathroom, let's here 'em! I am open to anything that would improve the decor and overall feel of this room. Thanks a bunch!

[How-to Tuesday: Chalkboard Tags]

Are you as big of fan of chalkboard paint as I am? I know I've said this before, but I just love how versatile it is! You can fancy up any picture frame like I did in my previous post here.

I have been seeing TONS of chalkboard tags lately. So I found these unfinished wooden tags at Michael's for $1 each (such a deal!). I thought they had some character, so I stocked up on a few of them.

Then I painted them with white acrylic paint. By the way, such a challenge in painting those little crevices on the sides with a sponge brush. Yeah I know what you're thinking...I need to invest in some small paintbrushes.

Then I taped off the sides with some blue painter's tape so that I could get that "square" chalkboard look.

Then slap on the chalkboard paint. Let it dry. Now the instructions say to not use the chalkboard until after 24 hours of painting it. Well, I'm impatient. I let it dry for about 4 hours. :0)

Carefully peel off the tape. It may look a little rugged, but I kinda like it. Adds character and charm. [giggle]

"Season" the chalkboard by rubbing on some chalk. This will prevent whatever you first write on the chalkboard from being on there forever.

Using a felt eraser, wipe off the chalk. Now you are ready to have fun writing on your cute little chalkboard tag.

Originally, my plan was to hang them on wicker baskets and label whatever was inside. Well, I haven't bought the baskets yet (it's on my "to-buy" list), but I figured this was more than appropriate in the meantime. And I really do mean it! I love knowing that there are actually people out there who really care what I have to say. You have no idea how much that means to me! Thank you all so much! :0)

Happy 4th of July!!!

[All-American Frame]

Just wanted to wish everyone a happy and safe Independence Day! Happy Birthday USA! :0)

[Frame Friday: All-American Frame]

In honor of our upcoming Independence Day, I decided to make a patriotic frame. I am planning on giving it to my mom when we go visit her on the 4th to add to her American themed guest bedroom.

I bought this unfinished wooden frame at Michael's for $1. I love to stock up on these inexpensive frames because they are full of crafty possibilities! And I really liked the square shape to this frame.

First I painted the entire frame with Apple Barrel white acrylic paint. I chose to use the Apple Barrel brand honestly because it's cheap. And I like using acrylic because it dries super fast.

Next I printed off an image of a star I found online, cut it out, and used it as a template to trace my stars on with a pencil. Then comes the tricky part: painting around the stars. Now I am sure the smart thing to do would be to use a small paint brush to be as precise as possible. But there was no small paintbrush to be found in my house. Only a giant bag of sponge brushes in various sizes. I chose to use the smallest one. The paint I used is called "English Navy" by Apple Barrel.

Okay, so the stars aren't "picture perfect", but don't you think a little imperfection gives any project more character? Anyways, after the paint fully dried, I whipped out my blue painters tape and marked out where I wanted to paint the red stripes.

Ahh...the easy part. I had to paint on a couple coats of the red paint in order to fully cover up the white. If I didn't, then it would be PINK, white, and blue flag. :0) I used "Barn Red" paint by Apple Barrel. (is this a commercial for Apple Barrel or what?!)

After the paint dried completely, I ripped off the tape (my favorite part!) to finally see the finished product. What do you think? Patriotic, huh? All in all, this entire project took me my child's nap time (which lucky for me was 2 whole hours!). And I think the total cost ended up being about 3 bucks! Isn't that just frametastic?!!

Happy Friday! God Bless America!

Frugal Friday