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11.18.13

Looking Up: Melissa’s Powder Room Makeover

powder room ceiling before redecoratingMelissa wrote me about her powder room: “Overall it was fine but I was bored with it, so I decided to amp things up. The only place left to go was the ceiling. I’ve always loved jewel-box bathrooms, so that was my inspiration.”

The first thing she did was paint the ceiling metallic gold. Then she stenciled over it with a “Moroccan Dream” pattern from Cutting Edge Stencils.

ceiling stencil Houseography

“It took me about 4 hours over two days to stencil the 7’x3′ ceiling in our powder room, and another 1.5 hours to touch up the paint and rough edges from where the paint bled through.” She adds that her neck hurt for 3 days, but says it was worth it! (I have to say my neck hurts just thinking about it. Ha.)

Next, her husband framed the stencil with some white crown molding:

powder room ceiling stencil

The room had what is commonly known as a “boob light,” and Melissa wanted to switch it out for something different.

boob light in powder room

Inspiration came in the form of a lamp shade at Target:

Target lamp shade

She turned it upside-down over the original fixture and voila!

An inexpensive but modern-looking new light that doesn’t compete with the stenciled ceiling:

lampshade on powder room ceiling

The walls are painted Naval by Sherwin Williams in an eggshell finish: “It gleams a bit in the light which I love. The vanity was from Expo Design Center before it went out of business, and the mirror was purchased from my friend’s yard sale.”

Now that the ceiling is finished, here’s how the powder room looks in all its metallic-stenciled ceiling glory:

powder room reveal Houseography

Visit Melissa’s blog Houseography for more photos and details about the project. 

Categories Bathrooms, Before & After, Readers' Houses

A living room filled with furniture and a fireplace before redecorating
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Before & After: Decorating a 1950s Bungalow
bathroom before remodel
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Updating an Old Bath in an Edwardian Home

Comments

  1. Linda@Lime in the Coconut says

    11.18.13 at 8:54 am

    LOVE it….Ironically, I did a mini-makeover of our powder room (and did a mini post about it). Used almost the same color…just didn’t do the great ceiling they did!!

    • hookedonhouses says

      11.18.13 at 9:07 am

      Love yours, too, Linda! Here’s her post if anyone wants to see her navy powder room:

      https://www.coconutsandlimes.blogspot.com/2013/11/a-bathroom.html

  2. Luciane at HomeBunch.com says

    11.18.13 at 9:03 am

    No one would ever bored in this space!!!

    I love seeing creative powder rooms… they’re often small and you should add some fun to make it feel special!

    Great work, Melissa!

    xo

    Luciane at HomeBunch.com

  3. Alie B says

    11.18.13 at 9:34 am

    Ouch! My neck hurts looking at this too, Melissa! Now that’s commitment! 🙂 Fabulous job. Looks exotic and luxurious.

  4. Melissa @ HOUSEography says

    11.18.13 at 9:56 am

    Thanks for the blog lovin’ Julia. Yes, my neck hurt for 2 weeks afterwards!!! So worth it now though!

  5. Brandon @ Southgate says

    11.18.13 at 10:48 am

    I am inspired! I have toyed with painting my powder room black with a metallic silver ceiling for over a year now. This has inspired me to just do it!

  6. Joanna says

    11.18.13 at 11:10 am

    Thanks for the inspiration! Been planning on painting my powder rm a dark shade for a while, and these pics of your beautiful room have gotten me excited to get started. You did a great job Melissa!

  7. tricia @ littlecottageonthepond says

    11.18.13 at 11:13 am

    Lovely! I adore all the little metallic touches, and that mirror! SCORE!

  8. House Crazy Sarah says

    11.18.13 at 4:30 pm

    It’s precious! Nicely done Melissa!
    (Now I have to go Google “jewel box bathroom”!)

  9. Dean says

    11.18.13 at 7:13 pm

    Great job and overall expensive looking without a great deal of expense (except for your neck.) 🙂 I think your powder room is perfect and wouldn’t change or add a single thing.

  10. MissFifi says

    11.18.13 at 8:38 pm

    Well done.

  11. Erin says

    11.18.13 at 9:29 pm

    Gorgeous! What a perfect powder room!

  12. Sarah says

    11.18.13 at 10:47 pm

    I LOVE it! The mirror is amazing and looks incredible with the ceiling.

  13. Juju at Tales of Whimsy.com says

    11.19.13 at 11:13 am

    Nice!

    Question/request for advice: if you bathroom has a chrome faucet and chrome shower head can you have a bronze light fixture? Or would it look better chrome or brushed nickel?

  14. Wendy says

    11.19.13 at 2:15 pm

    Beautiful. I love Linda’s too. That star has inspired me! I love all the framed art on the walls in there too. Maybe I should be writing instead of redoing the bathroom right now, but here I go…

    PS, Julia, I’m having fun with all your bath themed posts right now

    • hookedonhouses says

      11.19.13 at 2:40 pm

      I’m so glad! Thanks, Wendy. 🙂

  15. Martha says

    11.19.13 at 2:59 pm

    This is lovely, the ceiling stencil is a perfect finishing touch. I am dying to know how do you attach the lamp shade to the light fixture? It is a brilliant idea and I want to try it.

    • David says

      11.19.13 at 8:04 pm

      I did the same thing in my hallway. There is a threaded rod that holds the fixture together. Unscrew the rod and buy one the length you need at a home center or hardware store. They even have long ones that you can hacksaw to any length. Then attach a finial to hold it together. Just remember your shade will be upside down.

      • hookedonhouses says

        11.19.13 at 8:07 pm

        So helpful — thanks, David!

        • Martha says

          11.19.13 at 8:19 pm

          Thanks David! Julia, I can’t find the post about this bathroom yet, but I’ll keep trying.

          • Martha says

            11.19.13 at 9:05 pm

            Oh thank you Julia…..I am so excited to try this…wish it wasn’t 9pm….but I will be on the hunt for a drum shade tomorrow!!!

  16. Esther George says

    11.19.13 at 4:41 pm

    Ouch…now that’s determination…beautifully done. Hi Julia thank you for sharing. Regards Esther from Sydney.

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