Of all the spaces in a house, the bathroom is the one that intimidates me the most. The furnishings and finishes just seem so permanent, it can be hard to know how to incorporate your personal style – especially in a rental. That’s why I was so impressed by this Brooklyn rental makeover by Megan Pflug Designs. The before featured blue vintage tiles that many of us are familiar with, along with 80’s floor tiles and an outdated vanity. Keep reading to see how Megan made over the space with some pretty inventive solutions.
Now Pflug did make some changes that required the permission of the landlord. Many landlords see updates as increasing the value of their property, so it never hurts to ask when you want to make an upgrade!
Floor cloth — I have never seen a floor cloth used to cover tile before, but Pflug recommended simply cutting a heavyweight piece of canvas to fit the room (a little bit oversized), priming it, and then stenciling a pattern onto it to paint. Until I read her process, I didn’t realize the flooring wasn’t tile. I am curious to learn how that this solution holds up in a bathroom, but it sounds like it can easily pulled up from the original tile.
Vintage vanity — Pflug replaced the outdated vanity with a midcentury piece that was originally used for vinyl storage. The narrow size and sliding doors are ideal for the small space, and mounting it to the wall helps create more space visually as well. I love the trend of using dressers as the bathroom vanity, like this and this, but this goes to show that it can work with smaller pieces of furniture as well. “Most of the time when you see bathrooms with this treatment the vintage base is a dresser or something more complicated in shape,” Pflug said on her blog, “because the wall tile gives the room a lot of personality, we opted for the clean lines of a mid-century piece.”
Statement door paint — One touch that I loved was the painted door, which matched up with the blue tiles. It’s a fun accent and a project that would take a quick afternoon to do and could easily be painted again if need be.
Mirror replacement — This is an update I’ve made in my own bathroom, and while it was super simple to do, it has made a huge impact on the space. I went with a larger mirror that makes the room brighter and makes getting ready easier. If you make one change in your bathroom, I’d suggest it be this one.
Inspiration photo Megan Pflug Designs, Mirror West Elm, bathing lady dish Coming Soon, wall storage onefortythree, faucet Home Depot, sink Amazon, painting Claire Oswalt, laundry hamper West Elm, door Elle Deco
