I discovered my passion for home design and decor when I bought my first home (a bit of a fixer upper), where I discovered the joy of transforming spaces to reflect my personality and style. But really, I think it started a lot earlier in my life. I remember even back in elementary school I would get Architectural Digest magazines and just pour over each page. I used to look at floor plans…for fun. That interest has only grown over the years, evolving through now three homes and countless projects. Each new space has deepened my love for interior design, fueling my desire to help others create their dream environments. I believe that a well-designed home can truly enhance one’s quality of life, and I’m excited to share that passion with you!

Virtual Interior Design Services

Transform your space with my virtual interior design services. Through an easy online consultation process, I’ll collaborate with you to develop a tailored design plan, complete with mood boards, color palettes, and furniture & finishes selections. Whether you’re looking to refresh a single room or revamp your entire home, I’m here to help you bring your vision to life. Let’s create a space you’ll love!

Virtual Interior Design Services | What You’ll Get:

• mood board
• furniture sourcing & selection
• finishes (light fixtures, tile, flooring, knobs, pulls, decor, etc.) sourcing & selection
• paint color selection
• furniture layout recommendations
• shoppable item list of final concept, for you to purchase & install on your timeline
• 1 included revision to item list
• 1-1 contact with me via text or email

Virtual Interior Design Services | The Pricing:

• Per room (less than 500 sq ft): $400
• Per room (greater than 500 sq ft): $525
• Powder Bathroom: $250
• Full Home- Renovation Selections or New Construction Selections: $2/square foot
• If you would like guidance on specific choices (picking out a new rug, couch, or light fixture, for example) without the need for a complete room design, I offer personalized consultations at my hourly rate: $65/hour.  If you’re interested in this service, please fill out This Intake Form.

Virtual Interior Design Services – How to Get Started

Choose which service item best describes what you are wanting. Then just Send me an email! From there I will send over an intake questionnaire. An intake questionnaire will give me the preliminary details I will need to begin our project. Once I get the questionnaire from you, I will send you the payment request to your email. Once the questionnaire and payment are both received, we will get started!

Have another idea or question about something I might be able to help you with? Send me an email and we can chat!

Looking forward to working with you!

xo,

Bess

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Hey friends! Craig and I recently completed the DIY Wall Moulding in the Nursery and I got some questions about how we did it…so this post is going to outline that.  I knew I really wanted an accent wall of some kind, but wasn’t sure initially which direction I wanted to go in. I was *this close* to getting a wallpaper, but since we just spent SO MUCH TIME (ok and some money too) getting the previous owner’s wallpaper taken down, it was just not something we were mentally prepared to do on our fresh walls.

So, instead we added our own DIY wall moulding and it was overall a pretty easy and relatively inexpensive project! We did the moulding itself in a day.  Paint came later, so we didn’t include that here other than priming the moulding pieces.  That was our very first step, in fact!  We primed them first, let them dry (which was pretty quick) and then got to work.

Here was my vision…I sketched it out on paper and did some math to figure out how far apart we wanted everything to be, etc. so we had a game plan going in.

Basically, I took the overall height and width of the wall.  I decided to have the moulding pieces 6 inches apart on the perimeter as well as in between, so I kind of just worked my way in from there to make everything even. Mostly just some basic addition, subtraction, multiplication and division will get you what you need for your space. As with most projects, we had to slightly pivot when the distance I had originally measured actually ran right into the electrical outlets on the wall because that wasn’t something I accounted for with my measurements.

Since we were trying to minimize cuts in the moulding as much as possible to keep the project as easy as possible, we ended up keeping them 6 inches apart on the width but about 4 inches from the ceiling and floorboard trim.  The outlets were, in fact, in some pretty inconvenient places for us (lol), but we made it work. I had Craig hold up some pieces so I could visualize it before committing to it.

We basically measured everything out first using a level (you definitely want to use a level so that everything is even and your cuts will go together seamlessly) and made little pencil marks on the wall where each piece would go before we nailed it in.

From there it was just about cutting the 45 degree angles on the moulding and nailing them all to the wall. We used a miter saw to make our cuts.

Here’s some progress…

Were there some mess ups along the way? Of course. A few we just measured slightly off so when we made the cut it wasn’t long enough, which would have made it not level.  Just double check each one before you nail it in to make sure it’s level. For this reason, I recommend buying a few extra pieces of moulding just in case you mess up.  We bought 2 extras (11 total) and that worked well for us.

Once they were in place, we caulked the seam of the moulding to the wall and filled the nail holes with caulk as well. You could also use wood filler or spackle if that is your preference, then let it all dry.  Craig sanded the caulk over the nail holes once it was dry and then we were able to proceed with the next step: paint!

Here’s the finished look of the wall moulding, with a sneak peek of the paint!  If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve already seen this little sneak.  The color is Sherwin Williams “Oyster Bay” in eggshell sheen.  We aren’t finished with the paint just yet. I plan to paint the floorboard trim the same color for a complete color drenching of that wall. Stay tuned for the finished look.

DIY Wall Moulding – What You’ll Need

• Wall Moulding
• Measuring Tape
• Hammer
• Nails
• Level
• Caulk Gun & Caulk
• Wood Filler (if you prefer this over caulk to fill small nail holes)
• Sandpaper
• Miter Saw (if you don’t have one of these, you could instead try using Miter Shears and wall moulding that can be cut with them, like this kind which also already comes primed)

DIY Wall Moudling – The Steps

• Measure height & width of walls, determining how far apart you want your moulding to be and how far away from the ceiling and floor.  From there you should be able to do some basic math to find the even measurements for your room.
• Prime mouldling pieces, if not already primed
• Use level and measuring tape to mark off where each piece of trim will go. We just used a pencil to make a small mark for each piece
• Next you will trim to fit the size you need using the miter saw or miter shears.
• Double check each piece is level and the right length before nailing it in, but then just go piece by piece and install them all!
• TIP: We found out after the first box we made that it was easier to cut all the vertical pieces at the same time (this way we only had to measure one, then cut them all the same to fit) and then we did the same thing with the horizontal pieces.
• Once all are nailed in, caulk the seams and fill the nail holes with wood filler. Allow those to dry, sand the wood filler smooth, and then you’re ready to paint!

Since we had basically all the tools and equipment we needed minus the wall moulding itself, this project only cost us about $95.  Even if you have to invest in the other tools, they can be used for so many things you’d definitely get more use out of them later on.

TIP: If you don’t consider yourself to be very handy and don’t want to do a project like this but love the look, there are pre-made kits you can get on Etsy (like this one) where they will do all the math and frame out everything for you, and send you a peel & stick version.  All you’d have to do is peel it and stick it to your wall. I’d still recommend caulking after so it’s truly seamless. This is a more expensive option, but another option nonetheless!

Hope this helps you with your DIY wall moulding project! Let me know if you give it a try. I actually foresee doing a few other spots in the new house so I’ll be sure to share those, too!

SHOP THE POST:

xo,

Bess

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Tegan’s Nursery Reveal

Wall Color: Snowbound by Sherwin Williams | Rocking Chair in Cream | Crib (reused Emma’s) | Crib Mattress | Rug | Light Fixture | Mirror | Curtains (size: 50 X 96, color: Porcelain White) | Curtain Rod | Curtain Pullbacks | Dresser and Side Table (we painted both Revere Pewter by Benjamin Moore) + used this Hardware | Wall Hooks | Name Sign (Font: Heron, Size: 30 Inches, Natural Stain) | Flower Wall Art (size:11″x14″ inches) | Black Frames | Olive Tree | Olive Branches in Vase (similar) | Lamp | Nightlight/Sound Machine | Woven Hanging Rainbow Decor | Diaper Pail | Cozy Knit Throw Blanket

SHOP THE POST:

xo,
Bess

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Craig built some storage shelves that hang from the ceiling above the garage door, so we have a bunch of things stored up there which gave us a lot of space to make our garage gym.  I’ve gotten a lot of questions about the flooring and equipment we have, so I figured it would be easiest to put everything into a blog post that you can reference at any time if you need!  So in this post I’ll share all the details of our garage gym with links to anything I can find!

GARAGE GYM

But first, let’s do a quick “before”, shall we?  Everyone loves a good before & after!  Not much to it, just your standard garage.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

UPDATED “AFTER”:

As of January 2023 I’ve added a few more things to the space so I’m updating the post to share those things!

Here’s a list of equipment we’ve added:

• Bench
• More Dumbbells in various weights
• Slam ball
• XL Resistance bands
• Gym Clock
• Pull-Up Bar

The Details

Flooring: We went with this flooring after I read tons and tons of reviews – it ended up being the highest quality item I could find for the price.  It comes in a bunch of different sizes so you can find the one that best suits your space/budget.  When you first roll it out, it does lay flat immediately which is nice you don’t have to worry about it curling up.  But at first it is a little grippy/sticky so when you walk on it you’ll see your shoe marks.  In the picture above, the mat on the far right is one we just rolled out a couple days ago, as opposed to the other two that have been rolled out for about a month now.   Those don’t pick up nearly as much as the new one.  To offset this, I recommend just doing a quick mop/swiffer/something with some water to clean off at first and it will help make it not so sticky.  From there I just try to sweep and clean it on occasion.  Over time I think it won’t be much of an issue. The shoe marks above are more pronounced because of how I edited my photo to brighten it, but really I don’t think they are very noticeable in real life. I have been really happy with this flooring.  Doesn’t move, is just cushion-y enough without being bouncy.  I’d buy it again.  *UPDATED TO ADD*: We’ve had the flooring almost 2 years now and I do think it gets easier to clean as you use it, it’s just a bit sticky at first but that goes away and then it’s really easy to sweep/clean!

Treadmill: I know there are some super fancy, high-price treadmills on the market today…but I have zero interest in spending several thousands of dollars on one of them especially when I can get one for a fraction of the price that is still gym-level quality.  Horizon is a brand used in gyms for years and I trusted the name.  I got the T303 model and I got it on sale (it’s on another sale right now!) which takes $500 off the price tag and brings it under $1k.  Basically, it has everything I felt I needed in a treadmill.  I have only had it for a couple weeks but I have been happy with it so far!

TV:  Not necessarily gym equipment even though it does kind of go with the treadmill!  But Craig likes to use our old p90x workout DVDs too so this way he can hook up the DVD player and do those workouts in the gym…and I can catch up on my Bravo shows while I do cardio   Just got this 24inch smart TV!  I linked my Spotify account to it so I also use it to play my music, so it also serves as a sound system.  We also got this wall mount that is full motion so we can turn the TV if we need to see it from the floor.

Here are links for the other pieces of equipment that we have:

Aerobic Step | Kettlebell | Dumbbells (we have a few different sizes/weights) | Mirrors (*note they don’t come with hardware so you’ll need to also get mirror mounting hardware) | Weight Rack | BOSU Ball | Stability Ball | Foam Rollers | Mats | Yoga Block | Space Heater (got this for when it’s cold out and works like a charm!) | Resistance Bands (my custom-5 pack band set!)

I also threw a coat of paint on the back wall because it was looking so grimey.  I probably would have done it all over but didn’t want to have to take the mirrors back down.  A coat of paint does wonders!! Especially since that wall is going to be my backdrop for filming more workouts for y’all, I wanted it to at least look nice & clean!

______________________________________________

Honestly I just love this space so much.  Working out is such a happy place for me and I feel super grateful we have this space we could dedicate to it.  But even if you don’t (like I said, I worked out in my living room for years and years) all you really need is a pair of dumbbells.  My Besst Workouts Weekly Workouts are great if you’re short on space or equipment and many of the moves can be done with just your bodyweight!  Click here to sign up!

If you have any questions let me know!

xo,

Bess

The post Updated: What’s In My Garage Gym + Equipment & More appeared first on Bess Harrington Carter.

The Pantry: Before Organization

Okay, please do not judge me for that picture.  It didn’t always look like that, but wow did it really get out of hand. Yikes.  It was starting to give me *major* anxiety to go in there and try to find something.  I knew it would be a project to organize, but it simply had to be done…I could no longer live that way, lol!

First: Take it All Out

I went about organizing it by first taking everything out.  I took out every single thing on the shelves, minus the very bottom stuff on the floor. There’s just some big heavy stuff that doesn’t really have anywhere else to go at the moment, like a big case of wine and our stash of emergency waters, so that mostly stayed.  But I learned from The Home Edit that the first step is to take everything out, so that’s what I did.  The rest of my kitchen looked like quite the disaster during this process, as I’m sure you can imagine!

Second: Throw Things Away

I did this by throwing out expired items and anything else we weren’t going to ever use.  We also just had a ton of cardboard boxes that were empty that I needed to break down to recycle.  Everything (mostly) was taken out of it’s original packaging so all of that stuff was thrown out/recycled.

Third: Categorize

Next up is to attempt to categorize everything before putting it back in.  I had bought several different storage bins and other pantry organization items that I was going to use (everything linked below), so I just needed to figure out what was going where and with what.  Here’s the categories I ended up with:

• Spices – used the expandable rack so they’re all easy to see and find
• Bread – didn’t put this into a container but it has a dedicated “space”
• Pasta – put all the different boxes of pasta we have into a container
• Miscellaneous or Individual items – I ended up having a variety of things that were kind of one-offs (like individual snack packs of mixed nuts, for example) and so all of those things went into a container together
• Tea – tea got a container of it’s own
• Propel – we love the individual Propel water packets, so I took them all out of the little boxes that they come in and put them in a large Mason jar so it’s easy to grab them and see how many are left.
• Oatmeal – I eat oatmeal every morning so that went into a large clear container
• Things in Packets – I had a lot of things that came in thin packets, like Emergen-C, different seasonings, Salmon & Tuna packets, etc. So I was able to stack those all in a bin together in a way that they fit nicely and I could still see everything.
• Sweets – any thing like chocolate or other candy that we have went into a little bin together
• Baking goods – anything used for baking went into a large bin together.  I don’t bake super frequently, so I put these more off to the side and to the bottom of the pantry since it’s not really a priority item for me
• Things in Bottles – things like oils, vinegars, sauces, etc. lined up next to canned goods.
• Canned Goods – I don’t have a ton of canned goods but I did line them up individually by smaller sub-categories like:
  • Soups
  • Beans
  • Vegetables
• Snacks – split up into various smaller categories:
  • Top Shelf: mostly chips/pretzels/crackers/cookies or anything else that comes in a larger bag or box
  • Middle Shelf: Emma’s snacks – different clear containers for her different snack bars, smoothies, fruit cups
  • Bars – Craig’s CLIF bars got a storage container for themselves and then the various different bars that I eat all went into one.
• I also have a bin at the top that is empty, I can use that for something in the future or I may put coffee in it (we keep that at the coffee bar area) and I also have a bin for random smaller little things like napkins, toothpicks, birthday candles, etc.
• Peanut butter – I almost forgot!  Peanut Butter just has it’s own “place” on the shelf.
• Bottom shelf – paper towels, large water jugs

It makes such a huge difference to take most items OUT of their original packaging and put them into a clear container. It’s easier to see what you have so you don’t overbuy something when you don’t need to (I was doing this!) and it’s a lot easier to find something + it’s nicer to look at.

The Pantry: After Organization

Okay so here’s the after.  The key seems to be to put a “system” in place that you will continue to use, so when everything has a dedicated space, it’s easier to remember to put things back where they go.  I am going to eventually make labels to solidify this but I just haven’t gotten around to that yet!  You can make your own or buy really cute custom ones on Etsy.

Another thing I used that makes a huge difference is these shelf liners!  We have those annoying wire shelves, which makes it difficult to put individual items on a lot of times because they so easily fall through the cracks or don’t sit evenly.  The liners are easy to cut to size and do the trick!

It might not look like much, & may not Home Edit-worthy, but wow the difference FEELS huge. It’s no longer a stress-inducing space. And I am dedicated to keeping it that way!  I hope this helps y’all out in your own pantry organization projects.  Let me know if you have any questions!  I’ve linked the items I used below, they come in various different size options too so you can find what suits your space best.

SHOP THE PANTRY ORGANIZATION:

xo,

Bess

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The two biggest updates I wanted to make to our house when we moved in were 1) the primary bathroom and 2) the kitchen. Both spaces just had such potential; I knew they could be more. But, true to any renovation these days, it took time and happened in phases.  You can read all about our bathroom renovation in this post and this post!  In today’s post, I’m going to share our kitchen renovation and all the details!

Our Kitchen Renovation

To me, the focal point of any kitchen is the countertops.  It’s the first design element I notice and the one I get most excited about seeing.  I know it’s all about how it comes together in the end…but to me, the countertops are it.  I was looking for something not only high quality, durable, & reputable, but also beautiful and timeless.  I eventually decided on the Statuario Maximus quartz from Caesarstone which checked all the boxes and then some.  Having now had these counters for close to a year, I can easily say that I am so happy with them and highly recommend.

But, let me back up.

Let me show you the before picture.

Is the “before” kitchen the worst thing I’ve ever seen? Of course not.  But could it be improved?  Uh…yah.  Before we even moved in, we had the popcorn ceilings throughout the entire house removed and the entire house also got fresh paint.  The “before” picture is before any of that happened.  We also changed out light fixtures & added updated recessed lighting in the kitchen.

So here’s what we needed to do to achieve the kind of kitchen we wanted:

1. Remove short upper cabinets and replace with new, taller shaker style cabinets
2. Move microwave and replace with a range hood
3. Add backsplash
4. Get new drawer and door fronts for lower cabinets to match new uppers
5. Change small double sink to one large single sink
6. install beautiful new countertops

So for the upper cabinets, Craig & I took those off the wall ourselves, and replaced the uppers ourselves too.  We just used stock cabinets from Lowe’s (linked here) that look custom but were a fraction of the price.  I did all the measuring to see how many we would need, and what size, to fit across the width of the space with a hood in the middle.  Craig also built the hood on his own, from scratch.  He didn’t follow a plan but just kind of figured it out as he went.  So we definitely did as much as we could on our own before hiring out what we couldn’t, which is kind of our M.O. with home reno projects!

In terms of hiring out other parts of the project, we got a local handyman to do our backsplash (just went with the classic subway tile) and we ultimately had to get our new drawer and door fronts for lower cabinets custom made to match new uppers.  We used a local company called Carolina Cabinets & More.

I got questions about where our microwave went, and it’s actually in the tall cabinets to the right of our kitchen.  There’s a lot of extra space in there so that’s where it is!  I like that it’s hidden when we aren’t using it.

Then of course the main beautiful detail: the countertops!!

Here are the after shots of the renovated kitchen:

So much better, right?!

The countertops are an instant elevation of the space, even without anything else being different.  The other things really compliment them, of course, but the Caesarstone Statuario Maximus really steals the show…and I couldn’t be happier about it.

Other details:  Cabinet Knobs | Cabinet Pulls | Counter Stools

xo,

Bess

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Our primary bathroom renovation is officially DONE and whew am I glad to say that!  We basically did the renovation in chunks, starting with the vanity area makeover (which you can read about here) but in this post I’m going to do a more comprehensive post about our primary bathroom renovation + all of the details!

Primary Bathroom Details

The Vanity

All of the nitty gritty of the vanity area is in that post but I wanted to give you the quick links and give an updated opinion about our countertops.  They are Caesarstone quartz in “Pure White” in the polished finish and I. LOVE. THEM.  I’m so happy we went with the Pure White for the bathroom because it’s so clean and bright, and also because it doesn’t at all compete with the floor or shower tile.  We also have the Statuario Maximus in the kitchen.  Caesarstone has so many beautiful choices to pick from though, so I highly encourage you to check them out!

Vanity Links:

The Floor, Shower, & Bath Before Pictures

So to begin, the shower was so small I feel like an adult could barely fit into it.  Comically small!  And as you can see, we had some room to expand both towards the window and towards the closet door.  The floor tile and grout was really grungy too…the previous owners really just didn’t take care of it.  Yes it’s a bit dated but I think the fact it wasn’t well taken care of was the biggest thing.

We got several quotes from different places to replace the floor tile, bath, and shower.  We ultimately found a great fit for us that was comfortably within our budget.  I *highly* recommend getting multiple quotes because the prices that were given to us were all over the place!!  We basically served as the general contractor for the project, hiring the work for the demo and building/installation of the new tile, and also finding the plumber to do that portion of the work.  The other piece we needed to do was find a place to make us a custom shower door.  We went with Britt & Tilson Glass out of Asheville and are so happy with the finished product!

The work on the demo, building the new shower, tile work, and plumbing all took about 3 weeks.  We just had one guy who did all the demo/tile work so I’m sure if you hire a big team of people it could go even faster.  Then the glass door couldn’t be measured until all the tile work for the shower was done, so once they measured it they said it would be about a 4 week lead time to order/install.  It ended up being just over 5 weeks but it was worth it.

In the pictures below you can see our shower nooks…Craig & I each have a nook for our things and then the one near the floor is to put my foot on when shaving.  I saw this idea on Pinterest and I *had* to do it.  It is life-changing. 10/10.

The After Pictures

All The Details/Links

• Floor Tile
• Shower Tile
• Shower Tile Bullnose
• Floor Grout – in “Platinum”
• Shower Grout – in “Warm Gray”
• Bathtub
• New Toilet
• Shower Head & Faucet
• Shower Drain Cover
• Bathtub Faucet

*Be sure to talk to your plumber about if you need a new rough-in valve for the shower & bath faucet.  It may or may not be necessary in your case but it’s something to have them look at so you know if you need to purchase that as well.

Decor Items

Once all the renovations were complete, it was time to add the finishing decor touches.  Who doesn’t want a bathroom with a spa-like atmosphere?

• Bathtub Caddy
• Shower Mat
• Towels
• Matching Shampoo & Conditioner Bottle Set
• Ceramic Vase
• Olive Branches (these come in a big pack and I actually bought 2 of the ceramic vases and split the branches up!)

If you have any questions please feel free to leave them in the comments!

xo,

Bess

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Our primary bedroom is one I am so proud of…I think it balances masculine & feminine really well and it’s super comfy & cozy.  I wanted to share the details of things we have in our bedroom plus some updates to things I have added recently.  It’s all linked below, except the bed and a few of the exact pillows.  We got this bed a few years ago, so the exact one is no longer available.  I found a couple similar options instead for both the bed and pillows!

SHOP THE POST:

xo,

Bess

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The New Year always inspires me to think about new things I want to create for the year ahead, whether it be for business or personal things, and this year is no different.  I am feeling so inspired to really take our home to the next level by creating new spaces that really feel like “us” and dive deep into home projects for 2022!  I wanted to share my list of ideas and things I know I want to do this year…and we shall see how far we get before 2023 comes!  Some projects are bigger than others, and some are more decor-related, but I’m excited about them all because each little change really adds up to make a total transformation!  Okay, here we go…in no particular order…

Home Projects for 2022

• Primary bathroom renovation: new tile floor, new tile shower, new standalone tub (set to begin in January! We did the vanity area but we have professionals doing the rest of the work)
• Finish kitchen remodel…all that is left is the lower cabinet doors which are set to begin end of January)
• Build out Craig’s office (converting existing dining room to an office by closing off walls + adding doors, set to being after bathroom remodel, again professionals doing this work), then styling said office
• Add built-ins in living room (inspo pic here)
• Primary bedroom (faux) fireplace addition (I’m thinking a cement-look for the bottom part of the fireplace like this with shiplap above the mantle to add some character and coziness to our bedroom)
• Foyer Decor/Design (haven’t touched it since we moved in so it’s so bare, oops)
• Pantry redesign/organization
• Laundry Room redesign
• Expand deck & build patio
• Murphy bed in Bonus Room
• Create reading nook
• Update powder bath
• Sand/stain and/or paint current kitchen table + get new chairs or recover existing ones
• Make and install new shutters (want to do wood ones like this)
• New siding and/or paint existing siding (this is a *maybe*, not sure if we want to or not bc its not really necessary)
• Style coffee bar & shelving
• New lamps in living room

Like I said, some projects are bigger than others but I am so excited to share more home content with you in 2022!  You can also follow me on Pinterest where I have saved a lot of inspiration for these projects

xo,

Bess

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When we moved into our Asheville house we knew there were several updates we were going to want to make.  One of the most glaring needs was the primary bathroom in our room.  It was very dated and just not well taken care of by the previous owners on top of that.  So we saw it as a great opportunity to put our touch on the room since it has a great layout and plenty of space to work with.  We decided to do the improvements in segments, and we started with the vanity area since it mainly just needed cosmetic updates.  Today I’m going to share the details of our primary bathroom vanity makeover with you as step one of the complete bathroom renovation!

Primary Bathroom Vanity Makeover

The Before

For the vanity, we knew we were going to keep the existing cabinet that was already there, but we decided to paint it to give it a little facelift.  Not only that, but we changed out the hardware to really complete that transformation.  Paint & hardware alone makes such a big difference!  We painted it ourselves and used Valpar Cabinet & Furniture oil-enriched enamel paint in Grizzle Grey, satin finish.

The countertops, however, were going to be a huge eyesore and they absolutely had to be replaced.  The previous owners stained them really badly and they just were not in great shape.  We replaced them with Caesarstone quartz in “Pure White” in the polished finish and it made the BIGGEST difference.  I am so obsessed with how clean & pretty the countertops are.  Caesarstone quartz surfaces are heat, scratch, & stain resistant and they also provide a lifetime warranty.  They have so many beautiful color options, too, so it’s easy to find a surface to match all your Pinterest-worthy dreams.  (We also replaced our kitchen counters with Caesarstone quartz…I’ll be writing another post on that space soon!).  We’ve been super happy with the counters and I definitely recommend them.

For the sinks, we opted for a square sink shape instead of the oval to give it a more modern look.  I was kind of going for a modern farmhouse with a touch of contemporary rustic type of vibe for the bathroom – it will come more together with the rest of the renovation – and the single vanity mirrors & light fixtures instead of the one big one like it had previously helped with that. I opted for gold hardware and light fixtures, and then wood mirrors to give that more rustic/farmhouse feel.

Just a note: it was a lot harder than I expected to be able to match the golds.  Especially because it seems like so many different retailers call golds different names like “brushed bronze” or “champagne gold” and there’s such variety.  I had to send back several light fixtures until I got one relatively close (and to be honest, it’s still not a *perfect* match but since it’s separated by the mirror it’s not very obvious and therefore I was okay with it.)

The After

Vanity paint color: “Grizzle Grey” by Sherwin Williams

Shop the Primary Bathroom Vanity Makeover:

xo,

Bess

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