Farmhouse Inspired Bathroom Makeover - The Vanity

by Renee @ Living 511

Updating our bathroom vanity with paint.

farmhouse inspired bathroom makeover the vanity, bathroom ideas, diy, home improvement, painted furniture, rustic furniture

For the past 2 weeks I have been working on painting the bathroom vanity. I love how this vanity was transformed with paint. I would like to tell you that this process was easy and that it went smoothly. Some parts of the project were but other parts were challenging.

I purchased the paint and primer from Benjamin Moore and TSP from Lowes Home Improvement. I used Stix primer and Benjamin Moore Advance Self Leveling Paint in Gray. The cost of the paint and primer was around $25 per quart, $50 total. This may seem expensive for a quart of paint and primer but I wanted to use products that were good quality and suited for this project.

The first part of the process was prepping the vanity for paint. I didn't sand the vanity but instead I used a de-glosser (left) on the entire vanity surface. I followed the instructions as directed on the label. I repeated this step twice before cleaning the vanity with TSP (right). Once the vanity surface was cleaned and dry, I applied the first coat of Stix Primer.

I applied a light coat of primer to the vanity with a Wooster sponge brush. I was pleased with the primer coverage but the sponge brush did leave lines in the finish. After the first coat was dry, I sanded the primer with a 320 grit sandpaper. I vacuumed over the vanity surface to remove the dust particles and wiped the cabinet down with a damp rag.

The same process was applied to the doors and drawers. I applied 2 coats of primer, sanding in between coats.

I rolled the first coat of the gray Benjamin Moore Advance paint on the cabinet. The paint is self leveling and dried to a smooth finish. There were some spots that needed to be sanded as seen below. Again, I did a light sanding in between coats with a 320 grit sandpaper. I removed any particles with the vacuum and wiped down with a damp cloth. I allowed the vanity to dry overnight before applying the second coat of paint.

Here is where I started having some issues. I prepped the doors the same way as the drawers and vanity base. I used the de-glosser, primed the doors with 2 coats of primer, sanded and cleaned in between coats. I applied the first coat of paint and it looked awful. I reused one of the mohair rollers that I had cleaned after painting the drawers and base. Well, that didn't work out very well. This resulted in an uneven and inconsistent finish. I ended up sanding the doors to remove the paint and achieve a smooth paintable surface once again.

I needed to get some new replacement rollers to complete the job. I went to Lowes looking for the Wooster Mohair Rollers but they did not sell them I opted to purchase another brand of rollers designed for cabinets and smooth surfaces. The new roller was bigger in diameter than the mohair roller which made getting into the corners and edges door fronts very difficult. I ended up painting around the edges of the inset first with a sponge brush and finished the center with the roller. I let the doors dry overnight only to find they looked worse than before. The new roller left a different texture on the doors and did not match the finish on drawers and vanity. The finish was rough and uneven. Again, another round of sanding the doors that resulted in this. This was the moment that I asked myself "What on earth have I done?"

This is finished doors after they had been re-sanded twice, 2 coats of primer, and a total of 6 coats of paint. There are still some imperfections but they are small. Small enough for me to live with. I definitely didn't want to repeat the above process all over again.

I have learned to achieve a smooth finish that spraying the cabinet doors is the preferred option. Painting cabinets is not an easy task. However, using the right equipment and products will save you time and money in the end.

Here is the before and after of the walls and vanity after they have been updated with paint. So far, I love the transformation. For more information about painting our vanity, visit our blog.

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4 comments

Hannah V on Feb 03, 2016
Gorgeous!

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- Renee @ Living 511 on Feb 03, 2016
  Thanks @Hannah V! A little bit of paint made such a big difference in this space. This room is coming along and look forward to sharing the completed space soon. Thanks again and have a great day.
  
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Jennyprrs on Apr 04, 2017

It turned out beautiful!! I did my kitchen cabinets and also my counter to look like granite with paint. I used the deglosser well but sanded then used a paint made for cabinets then sealed with a clear coat. Not sure what went wrong with yours. Do you think it was the type of wood or sanding after applying the primer? It looks beautiful regardless!!

Like Reply
- Renee @ Living 511 on Apr 05, 2017
  Hi Jenny, Thank you for your comment. I don't think it was an issue with the paint that caused me to repaint them. I think it was my technique. HAHA! The cabinets have held up well and I was very pleased with how they turned out. Thanks again for your comment. Have a wonderful day.
  
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