An architect friend gave me a key piece of advice; think if you are about to buy or rent – can you live with the bathroom and the kitchen? These are the two most expensive rooms to renovate. If it requires plumbing or electricity and you don’t have the money, walk away. These incur major labour costs and, more often than not, you will discover other issues behind such as a leaking sink – our current apartment -or a totally live electrical box in my first house! If you have an unlimited budget, lucky you but this post is focusing on doing what you can with the basics.
Many people start out renting and are in their first job or have moved and have already spent their budget on travel and other key aspects of changing their lives. There are some simple tips and tricks that are manageable for even the least handy person. My story was that I had moved in to a French apartment for eight months before moving to Berlin. It was shabby, not chic, as the week before, the upstairs apartment bathroom had flooded and leaked in to my apartment. The landlord was wonderful and gave me a cheap rent but it was depressing. I was allowed to do some basics on a budget so here are some ideas.
Equipment
You will need the following basics, a ratchet screwdriver set (so easy to use), sandpaper, paintbrushes and drop sheets. If you can afford it, buy a ‘reversible’ portable drill. In order that you can expand your range of power tools later, try and invest in one which has a detachable power pack which can be charged and used with other attachments like a sander or saw. When buying bits for the drill, remember to buy both wood bit and masonry bits. If your budget stretches a bit further, get a small sander. And people, if nothing else, learn how to use a drill, it is easy!
Let’s Get Started
Shower curtains – I moved in to the shabby apartment, walked in to the bathroom and stared at a brown patterned curtain that can only be described as ‘dingy’. I bought cheap silver shower hooks (not plastic) and two shower curtains, a plain one to go inside and a lovely chic grey and white Corelli patterned one for the outside and I let it drop to the floor. This hid the sad looking shower and taps and gave a sense of style.
Mouldy grouting – I dug out as much mould as I could, cleaned and re-grouted with a tube of white. You can get this at any DIY store and it brightens any bathroom tiles.
Mirrors – there was a piece of mirror hanging above the sink. I bought a silver Indian-looking filagree mirror at Maison du Monde to replace it and carefully wrapped up the old mirror and stored it for when I was going to leave.
Storage – a cheap DIY store white shelf was placed below the mirror. I drilled holes into the grout and put in plugs (ask at the DIY store) to hold the screws in. Avoid drilling in to tiles unless you have a high-speed drill and the appropriate bit (part of the drill), or they will crack and you will have even more renovation to deal with. I added a hook on the door and replaced the old bath towel rail with a cheap silver one.
Painting – I re-painted the room white as it was stained from the flooding. I also sanded and re-painted the electric heaters with special paint. This wasn’t perfect as the heaters were old but at least it looked fresher.
Flooring – you could re-grout but I couldn’t do anything so I covered the floor tiles with the biggest bathroom mat I could find.
Toilet – replace the seat with the best you can afford.
Decoration – you can get really cheap prints and frames if you look around. I went to a photographic store and had one of my photos blown up for 10 Euros and put it in a 10 Euro white frame which I painted grey. I added soft grey towels, a bathrobe and white ceramic soap dispensers.
Tips to Remember
If you are renting, ask your landlord first if you can change anything. Most allow it as long as you restore it to what it was. If you can’t paint anything in the bathroom, disguise the ugly bits as best you can and look for items you can buy on line. If you have bought your place, think in stages; what can I renovate now and live with and what can I do in future years.
