Spruce Job: The Tale of the Blue Bath

So one of the 989 things that scared me on the first day I walked into this house was our main bathroom upstairs. So blue...so, so blue. It was finished in 1969...and I don't think it was ever touched again. Except maybe a failed attempt by the sellers to make the blue tub, toilet and sinks blend in by painting the walls blue? Oh man...I remember mentally listing the positives, the things I felt like I could work with, and yeah, that list was SHORT. But, still I was ready for the challenge to make this work a bit...because I knew this house was "the one".

Well, fast forward two years and a complete kitchen reno, a gut job on the 1/2 bath, 101 other projects and a baby later...I am ashamed to admit, that bathroom was still blue. I think I walked in there every day for 2 years and told myself I was going to work on it "this coming weekend". Well, about a month ago, after coming to the realization that a gut job on two bathrooms was just not happening in the near future, and knowing the master is a must gut...I decided to suck it up and deal with the blue madness.

It's looking much improved with a checklist of 8 items and a budget of $300:

1. New white toilet $150 (this was done around week 2 of ownership...for obvious reasons)
2. Remove the doors from the shower and hang curtain(I have never been a fan of doors and not practical for bathing the little guy. $0(we had the curtain and rod from our last house)
3. Paint the blue walls a light grey/remove old chair rail molding - $0(had the paint and filler already)
4. Scrub the tile/grout with a deep cleaner to try and restore it (I tried but it's still in rough shape) - $10 
5. Paint the vanity, add contact paper and new hardware - $25
6. Update electrical - $15
7. Update window treatment with fresh white blinds - $25
8. Add artwork, rug and decor items(these are the things that I think draw attention away from the fact that the room is still pretty outdated) - $75

Things I would like to try down the road:

1. Paint the counters and sinks - this is a job we will do after the master is finished
2. Paint the blue tub - this is a job we will do when we can start showering in the master to let it set
3. Add two shelves to the empty space in the middle of the cabinets for towel storage

But - for now I will enjoy the minor low budget improvements. I think it looks much improved!