Installing Knobs and Pulls for Cabinets

Our bathroom cabinets are D-O-N-E, and I cannot stress enough what a little bit of paint and some knobs and pulls can do for cabinets. They went from looking dirty, old, and dated to new and modern. For under $45, this is how we updated our guest bathroom:

In case you forgot, this is what they looked like before:

After two coats of Behr's "Espresso Beans," this is what they looked like:

Just what I wanted? Yes! However, I wanted them to look really new and custom, so I purchased some knobs and a pull at Home Depot. This is how I installed them:

First, I used a template to mark off where the middle of my drawer was.

Then, I colored the screws with a sharpie and pressed them firmly against my template.

This will give you an exact mark on where you need to drill. I used a similar technique for the cabinet doors.

With the knobs, there wasn't as much measuring. I knew where I wanted the knobs to be, so I marked it on a template. You can use the same template for each door, just flip the paper over for the correct corner.

Alas, the cabinets are done and look brand new:

Our guest bathroom the day we moved in:

And now:

Walls: Glidden "Smooth Stone"

Cabinets: Behr "Espresso Beans

Cabinet Cost:

Gallon of Behr paint: $33

Knobs and Pull (Home Depot): $5

New Hinges: $3.50

My darkest color yet...

Once again, Behr has made my heart skip a beat! I am in love. Really.

I told you in this post about wanting to give my guest bath cabinets a fresh coat of white.

Well, that was the plan, but then I started looking online for pictures of bathroom cabinets. It took one picture from a dark colored cabinet to change all of my plans for this bathroom. I tell you, I ran to Home Depot and bought a gallon of this beautiful dark color. I didn't even bother with the samples. Daring, I know!

I removed the cabinet doors and the springs inside of the hinges crumbled in my hands. No joke. I'm guessing they were as old as the house, so back to Home Depot I went to purchase new hinges.

I lightly sanded the cabinets and doors and cleaned them with TSP. Since I bought Behr's paint and primer in one, I only had to do two coats to achieve my desired color. The paint is semi-gloss (recommended for bathrooms and kitchens).

Behold, Behr's "Espresso Beans"

Please excuse my dirty mirror. I was so excited to show you, that I didn't even think of cleaning it.

Isn't the color absolutely gorgeous? It's such a deep, rich, brown.

It looks black and I love that. It's not as harsh as black, but against my gray walls, you would never guess it's a brown.

I added tags to our baskets under the sink for my 9 year old because this is the bathroom she uses.

I am hoping this teaches her to put things away in the correct basket. We'll see if that works out.

Also, I found white towels on sale at Target for when guests visit. In a house with two kids, the darker the towels the better. Not only that, but the white towels match the white shower curtain. So, I'm keeping the towels hidden, but close at hand for when company comes over.

Today, the hubby and I are going to attach some new hardware to the cabinets. It will be just a little more "POP" to make our cabinets look new.

Before:

After:

Next for the bathroom:

hardware on the doors

frame the mirror

new countertop and faucet

white door and trim

tile

wall art

I am linking this to:

Thrifty Decor Chick

Keeping It Simple

The DIY Showoff

Guest Bath Reveal!

I am finally ready to post my bathroom redo pics!

(listening for cheers and applause...)

This particular project was such a pain in the booty. I couldn't make up my mind on a color! After throwing 4 different samples on our wall, I was about ready to give up and paint it all white. Nothing wrong with white, but I grew up in an all white-walled home and now that I have my own family, I want color on the walls. (throwing fists in the air) COLOR!

Here is what our guest bath looked like when we moved in:

Nice sized guest bath but in need of a paint job. I found the shower curtain at Target and loved it, although I knew with the grey designs I would have to go with a grey bathroom. When I think of grey in the home, I think of "modern" and I am faaaaaar from modern. So, with the shower curtain, came the grey mats, and inevitably, grey paint samples from Home Depot. Here is what I sampled...

Left - Right:
Glidden "Pearl Grey," Behr "Subtle Touch," Glidden "Smooth Stone," and Behr "Gentle Rain"

In my opinion, the "Pearl Grey" and "Subtle Touch" were too blue-ish. I left these samples on the wall for a week and sometimes during the day, the far left one looked like an icy blue. Neither one matched my curtain and I really, really, really didn't want a blue and grey bathroom (too close to the Dallas Cowboys colors.. BLAH!). haha, sorry Cowboy fans.

The "Smooth Stone" matched my curtain perfectly but I was worried it would be too dark. "Gentle Rain" was way too dark so that was another "no." Plus, it also had hints of blue during certain times of the day. It was only after a friend commented on the color "Smooth Stone" and how it cordinated with what we were doing that I decided to take a risk and "go dark."

HARDLY A RISK AT ALL!

Note: When you order the paint samples, they come in a "flat" or "eggshell" finish. Well, when you are painting a bathroom, you order the paint in a "semi-gloss." This change in sheen completely lightened up the color about two shades. I love it! It's not too dark at all. It's subtle. Soft. It doesn't completely take over the room. Even my Grandma, after walking in, thought the walls were white. haha. Love Grandma. It's not that light.

Am I right? It's not white. Shower curtain = white. Walls = subtle grey.

And remember that lovely patch next to the sink?

These pictures are taken with the light on, and even then, it looks darker on camera.

Here is with the light off and the light coming in from the skylight:

We still have work to do in here and we updated the towel rack:

Since our laminate tiles have asbestos, we get to tile right over them instead of remove them first. YAY FOR ASBESTOS!

So, there is our halfway redo. I still would like to:

frame the mirror in white trim

update the light fixture

put a fresh white coat on the ceiling and cabinets

replace the cabinet top and faucet

tile the floor

paint the trim white

replace the door with a white one

and of course...

add some decor to make it homey.

Sneak Peak

Aaaaaah, bathrooms ... probably one of the best rooms to start with when updating a home you have moved into. They are (usually) small and so you're able to test your skills in painting, tiling, and upgrading hardware. Even if you butcher it, the room is still small enough that nobody will ever notice it. And if they do, you can give them the 'ol stink eye and kick them out.

This is what our guest bath looked like the day we moved in.

Please excuse the sweet baby. She was mesmerized by the skylight...

Spacious, but in need of a paint job.

We finally found the shower curtain I wanted after hunting at 6 different stores and now that the fabric has been purchased, we will be painting for the next couple of days. If all goes well, we will have our "before and after" posting by this weekend! But... here is a little sneak peak at what we're doing.

Black, metal basket turned toilet paper roll holder. $1.99 at Savers.

Sorry for the bad lighting but I really didn't want to use the flash and drown out the details. This is my purty curtain from Target. We are using some of those colors for our walls...  :)

eeee! I cannot wait to be "done" with a room. My 9 year old has been begging me to finish hers since we moved in 33 days ago. Off to paint!