When I first moved in, I thought least exciting part of my cottage was the bathroom. It didn't really have any charm or character, which was fine because it had all the necessities and got the job done, which I am very grateful for. I knew that it was going to be a room I'd spend time on in more of a DIY fashion, rather than just a decorating and furnishing fashion like the rest of the cottage.
Before and after comparison, a lot brighter and more inviting! Less "ick" when you catch a glimpse from another room.
The Wallpapered Vanity
The first project I took on was inspired by a panel of wallpaper that I found for $2 at a thrift store. It wasn't enough to cover a wall, but I knew I still wanted to use it in the cottage. I had wanted to cover up the fake wood vinyl grey vanity, but needed to do so in a renter friendly way. I looked online and found a few ways to apply traditional wallpaper (that wasn't peel and stick) in a renter friendly way to walls, so I thought I would give it a go on the vanity. It didn't work out perfectly, but it did kinda work! If you decide to wallpaper a piece of furniture I do recommend getting peel and stick for a more seamless look, but if you want to use a pattern that's only available in a traditional wallpaper, here's what I did:
Materials
Wide painters tape
Double sided tape (thinner than the painters tape in width)
Wallpaper of choice
Scissors
Box cutter, knife or some sort of sharp blade
Steps
First play around with how you want to lay out your wallpaper. Mine had a vertical design, so I had to lay it vertical, but if your paper is a solid color it may make more sense to go horizontal depending on the shape of whatever you're covering
Remove any hardware (knobs, handles, etc)
Apply the painters tape all over the piece of furniture, get as close to the edges as you can.
Apply the double sided tape over the painters tape, but don't yet peel off the second side of the tape
Once everything is lined up how you want it, cut the piece of wallpaper. It doesnt have to be perfect, you can tuck in edges and beautify later. Just as good as you can get it. Having a little extra is always better than cutting off too much.
Carefully remove second side of the double sided tape (only on the first piece or first few pieces, don't do all strips all at once) and apply the wallpaper to the tape, and then work your way through the rest of the piece by repeating this step.
As you go, keep removing the second sides of the tape little by little, if you do it all at once, the tape will lose it's stick and the wallpaper could get bunched up and ruined if it accidentally sticks to a different section.
What would I do differently?
More tape! More painters tape and more double sided tape. I think this would keep the look a bit more seamless.
I would also be more meticulous about taping extremely close to the edge to give the seal a bit more of a seamless look to it
New hardware, mirror, etc
Such simple updates really changed the whole vibe of this room! I do love a classic silver chrome hardware moment, however this bathroom has so many cool tones to it already (slate flooring/etc) that I felt like I needed some brass in here to warm it up, so that's what I went with and I like how it turned out. You can find links to the hardware and mirror that I updated to here. Things like the tissue box cover, wicker basket, and decor were all thrifted, but I've linked a few other similar options that you could opt for.
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