Addison West Design Blog

Updated Powder Room

We love it when friends ask us for design advice. We also love wallpaper in bathrooms. So when a close friend recently asked for ideas on a powder room re-do we couldn’t wait to give it some thought!

The story:

Our friends recently moved into a new home in Marblehead, Massachusetts. They’ve done a LOT of work to make the home their own including paint, a new kitchen island, custom rugs, and an amazing deck. But there were still places where things just didn’t feel “finished” for them. The 1st floor powder room was on that list.

They were thinking about brass and blue but didn’t want to go overboard on the nautical theme. Budget was also a consideration so keeping the existing flooring, sink and toilet was a must. And finally, they wanted it done FAST.

Before:

This small powder room is right off the kitchen and used frequently by guests. They didn’t love the beige walls, chrome fixtures, or mirror.

Small powder bathroom with grey walls, black and white floor tiles.

After:

We looked at a variety of blue wallpaper options. In the end, Serena and Lily’s ‘Feather’ fit the bill. They matched that with a lovely light by Hinkley that features both brushed nickel and that brass accent that they were looking for. And then capped things off with a nautical inspired mirror, also by Serena and Lily. Both recommendations from the amazing @marcigallup.The whole project took less than a MONTH to complete due to great planning and focusing on in-stock products.

Small bright powder bathroom with patterned wall paper, round bamboo mirror and black and white floor tiles.

Take-aways:

Crowd-source advice and opinions. Our friends ended up getting input and ideas from a few different people and places. At the same time, they trusted their gut. In the end, they found inspiration from multiple sources and brought it all together for an awesome self-managed project.
You can save a lot on project expenses by repurposing existing fixtures. Especially those that can require skilled installation like toilets and sinks.
If time is a constraint, it’s best to focus on in-stock products and try and avoid custom items which can add weeks, or even months, to your project.

Sources:

Wallpaper: Feather by Serena and Lily