Master Bath Renovation: Part 2 (floor)

While we were deciding whether we wanted to get a completely new vanity or if we wanted to build our own, we knew the floor would be going regardless. 4 years of hairspray build up had created a sticky, tacky layer on the floor (and it didn’t matter how much I cleaned it, it was still there).

Although ceramic tile was my #1 choice, the logistics just didn’t add up. We would have to look into a different sub floor, take up the molding, work in a TINY area with alot of cuts… get a wet saw, grout, spacers… it just wasn’t something we wanted were ready to conquer.

We decided on vinyl stick down tile. A.) because we aren’t going to be here forever B.) because it was easy C.) I guess this goes along with B, but all we had to take up was the quarter-round (not the thicker molding around floor). After the vanity was out we started ripping up the sheet of vinyl. We did have to take the toilet out to get the old vinyl out (and if you have never experienced it before, it’s pretty romantic to have a toilet sitting in your master bedroom for 2 days :/).

Also when we ripped up the floor we found not one but TWO types/pieces of CARPET that used to be in the bathroom. I know it used to be stylish to have carpet in the bathroom, but that’s like a 15 (out of 10) on my ick factor. I just feel like carpet holds dirt and bathroom dirt is not something I want around!

Prepping the subfloor was pretty easy-  We scraped up the old glue, sanded the rough spots, made sure all the dust was up, and primed the floor with Kilz primer. It covered some nasty spots and left us with a perfectly prepped surface for the tile.  I had to find the center of the room and then worked on the quadrants from there. (I feel like this picture shows how truly TINY this space is! If  had to guess it’s around 20 sq feet.)

The tile went down easily- the directions were practically self explanatory. There were arrows on the back of the tile (see the above picture to the left of my left leg) that had to add face the same way. And I had to be sure that any “seen” edges were the original edges (not what I cut) so they could fit together perfectly. To fit in corners and around the door I had to cut the tile with a razor blade. That was the most tedious part. I am totally NOT a spacial/visual person, so there were a couple tiles I cut wrong… but the majority of cuts were easy! You peel off the paper and stick it down like a sticker.

So after reinstalling the quarter round, touching up nail holes, repainting the trim, and reinstalling the toilet (with a new wax seal of course) the floor is DUN-ZO! We also caulked around the door opening where there is no moulding. I seriously LOVE caulk. It covers so much and makes things look so much better!

Part 1 was updating the vanity. See it here. 

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