Bathroom Vanity Upgrade (First post)

One of the guest bathrooms needed some help. The honey oak builders grade vanity is fine for some, but not our style. I contemplated painting it and scoured blogs and "how-to" websites, but ultimately decided to go with gel stain. What I discovered with gel stain is it doesn't "drip" like regular stain, therefore making it better for vertical surfaces. Besides painting walls I've never done any DIY projects, but staining looked easy enough and would be a lot less expensive than buying a new vanity. Our vanity has two drawers, two cabinets and is approximately 48"x30".

     

Supplies are as follows:

• Screwdriver
• Damp washcloth and soap
• Dry washcloth
• Frog tape
• Latex or Latex-free gloves
• Wood filler
• Plastic joint knife
• 2 in Foam brushes (you can use a tube sock as well but I didn't have any old ones to use)
• Sanding sponge (220 grit)
• Tack cloth
• Painting pyramids
• Drop-cloth (an old tablecloth, broken down boxes, a large plastic bag or sheet would work as well)
• General Finishes Gel Stain in Java (found at Woodcraft) *the 60 year old man who helped me at Woodcraft asked me if I found this project "on the Pinterest?"
• General Finishes Gel Topcoat in Satin (found at Woodcraft)

Step One: Use a screwdriver to remove cabinet door(s) and any hardware. Place hinges and hardware in a container so you won't lose them, unless you plan to replace them with new ones.

*Our toilet paper holder was attached to the vanity. It left four small holes in the side of the vanity once it was removed, so I followed directions on the tub of wood filler and used a plastic joint knife to apply it. You may not have this problems so I did not include this as a "step" per se.

 

Step Two: Remove drawer(s). For the life of me I could not remove the drawers so I was just really careful when staining.

Step Three: Take your damp washcloth with some soap (I used Dawn dishsoap) to remove dirt, grime, etc all over the vanity, cabinet door(s) and drawer(s). Then use your dry washcloth to dry.

Step Four: Tape off any areas you want to protect (i.e. floor, walls, countertop).

Step Five: Sand down the vanity, cabinet door(s) and drawer(s). I've never sanded anything in my life and it took me approximately 15 minutes total.

Step Six: Wear gloves and wipe down everything after sanding with the tack cloth. It helps pick up what was sanded off.

Step Seven: Put on new gloves. Open can of gel stain, stir, and use a foam brush to apply a light coat of stain to the vanity. Brush in the direction of the wood grain.

Step Eight: Place your drop cloth on the floor and set painting pyramids on it. Prop your cabinet door(s) on the pyramids and apply a light coat of stain. Brush in the direction of the wood grain.

First coat...

Let first coat of stain dry for 12-24 hours. Honestly the first coat is pretty ugly, so don't be surprised. On Day Two repeat steps 7 and 8. 

Let the second coat of stain dry for 24 hours and on Day Three repeat steps 7 and 8 again. Wait 4-5 days and continue with...

Step Nine: Put on gloves. Open can of gel topcoat, stir, and use a foam brush to apply a light coat of the urethane. Let first coat dry for 24 hours and repeat this step.

I let the second topcoat dry for another 24 hours and removed the frog tape and re-hung the cabinet doors. I wanted to install hardware since there was no pulls or knobs. I felt those would help make the vanity look more finished. 

Due to procrastinating being busy, we waited 4 days before installing the hardware. We found these knobs at Lowe's on clearance for around $3.00/knob.

My husband helped install the hardware. I'm still learning my way around a drill.

We used these handy-dandy templates to guide where we'd drill the holes for the hardware.

Ta-da! Behold the finished product. I wanted to be able to still see the wood grain and I think it turned out well.

                                     

This is just a step-by-step for re-vamping the vanity. Total cost= less than $100.00. I plan on re-painting this bathroom, painting the floor trim white, installing a new towel bar and new lighting. Stay tuned for this bathroom make-over...