Today, I am going to share a little of the beginnings of my formal half bath remodel.  The previous owner of my home picked Victorian decor for the interior.  Which means lots of cherry woodwork.  We redid/repainted the kitchen & keeping room woodwork, but opted to keep the cherry woodwork (for now) throughout the rest of the house.  

(I have to apologize for the grainy cell phone photos.  I am rather new to this blogging adventure and didn't realize iphone pictures turn out so terrible in blog land)  I'm sorry, I will do better next time!

I purchased the mirror back in college from Bombay Company (do they still exist?)... I love the creamy finish with gold guilding. 

The cabinet is just plain worn out. I have been searching for an antique cabinet with a marble top for years (still searching), but have yet to find something that suits this spot. Our family really doesn't use this half bath, so the priority level has been pretty low. It is a mishmash of leftover decor from my "shabby chic" days. 

Recently, while home bound with contractors all over the house, I decided to paint the cabinet and see where it took me. I purchased Annie Sloan pure white and old ochre. (French Linen is a color i used for another project... As seen on my Instagram account @ElevenGables)  I also purchased the clear and dark waxes. I had some gilding wax leftover from the same IG project.  I thought I'd use the gilding wax to try to match the finish of the mirror. 

This is a sample I painted to see if I could get a similar look. It matches perfectly!  Oh the joy!  This paint really is magical!

First, I painted three coats of Annie Sloan pure white to the cabinet. I should have sanded more at first and in between coats because the stain was super flakey. Annie Sloan Paint is pretty thick going on. I knew I wanted a piece that looked like it had been around a hundred years or more with lots of thick paint. 

Next, I painted a watered down coat of Old Ochre. 

It is getting there, but not quite as covered as I would like.  I sanded this coat a tiny bit, then painted one last coat of Old Ochre. 

I couldn't believe how well the color matched the mirror!!  Almost done..

I put a coat of wax on the piece, polished it then applied another coat of wax. 

I tried using the dark wax with a tiny paintbrush, but quickly realized this wasn't the look I was wanting. A little more clear wax and the dark wax came right off!  That garbage bag of my husband's old t-shirts sure was coming in handy. 

Next, I used the gilding wax with a tiny paintbrush to apply highlights to the piece. I used my finger to rub it in, then I used another t-shirt with a tiny bit of clear wax to remove a little bit of the gold wax. It gave it a perfectly worn look.   Zooming in here so you can see the detail of the gold, but it's pretty blurry.

Put on your sunglasses... this red is blinding!

It turned out better than I ever expected. I am now on the hunt for some gorgeous wallpaper. I can't wait to show you the finished bathroom!!

Welcome back to the Kitchen Remodel!!  If you missed the beginning of the story, you can find it here, here, and here!  Exciting stuff, but THIS post is the MOST exciting!!  We are absolutely loving our new kitchen!

Our sink is flanked by dishwashers.  A dream...  They are always full and running.  Kind of like my boys.  Except they are never full.  They are always hungry and running.  

The window opens out to a brick patio for ease in serving lunch to the hungry swimmers outside.

My sink is Blanco Magnum large single bowl with apron and towel bar, windows are all by Marvin, countertop and backsplash are Caesarstone in London Grey.  It was important for me to carry the countertop up the backsplash for a clean, timeless look.  The faucet is WaterStone Annapolis Traditional Pulldown faucet.

I love having a clean and empty island. I can cook while the boys do their homework or just sit and have a snack.  

Six burner Kitchen-Aid range top, Ice Maker to the left, Sub-Zero fridge and freezer.

The island hides my KitchenAid mixer lift on the left and a huge trashcan on the right.

This is my hidden coffee bar, microwave, and cluttery desk area...  some day I will show you inside all the cabinets and drawers.  Each space was very carefully thought out.

New Windows and Paint in the family room completely lighten the "keeping room."

please look past all of the florals... Slips will come soon enough, but my husband says, "Wait!" :)

Thanks for staying with me through my Remodel!  I would love to answer any questions or hear your comments!  Leave me a comment in the area below and I will get back to you as soon as possible!

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I am also available to help you design the room of your dreams!  

All of my best,

Emily

We laid each cabinet out PIECE by PIECE.... This was a full time job for me as I was involved in every tiny aspect... down to how wide I wanted each "style."

So... here is a rookie mistake.  I thought I wanted a good 20" from the countertop to the hanging cabinets so I could put cute lamps or trays on my counters...  What I didn't plan on was the extra height from putting all of my electrical boxes in the bottoms of the cabinets so as not to disrupt the backsplash.  This made the "reach factor" VERY high... like 24-25" high.  I hated it.  To reach even the lowest cabinet shelf, I was going to need a step-stool.  My carpenter laughed when he came back the next day.  I explained my dilemma and we decided to just lower the cabinets and add extra moulding at the top, which actually worked out marvelously.  I LOVE the thickness of the extra moulding.

Before Lowering the Uppers:

Family Room After!!