Inspiration | Bathroom Vanity

Do you watch HGTV or DIY Network? Man, I am obsessed with home improvement television. One thing that strikes me as interesting is how everyone looking for a new house wants an updated kitchen and bathroom. A bad paint color or outdated tile can turn people off in an instant. What I see as just a little cosmetic work, they see as a huge time and money investment. I think home buyers tend to forget that a room that needs some love often results in less money up front and the possibility to turn it into a room that is JUST want you wanted - not simply new.

When we moved into our house about three years ago, the kitchen and bathrooms had all been renovated. New tile, paint, fixtures. The whole shebang. It was nice to know we wouldn't have to do a ton of renovation right away, but the tile, paint, and fixtures were... for lack of a better word... boring. It was new and shiny, but it just wasn't my style. Here's a photo of the bathroom when we moved in.

Over the last few years, we have been making minor updates here and there to help each room in our house feel more like us. We've done quite the overhaul in the kitchen, but I haven't touched a darn thing in either of the bathrooms. Believe it or not, I've actually grown accustomed to the blue/green subway tile and paint in the downstairs bath, but I just really can't stand the vanity or fixtures. I've tried and tried, but it just looks builder-grade and boring.

So I had an idea. I see no need to tear everything out and start from scratch, but what if we made a few updates here and there to spice things up a bit. I think an update or two could really make the entire space feel brand new. So here's what I'm thinking...

New mirror. Tyler and I both get ready in this space - often at the same time. It usually works out perfectly fine, but it would be great to have a larger mirror (or maybe two?) to give us just a bit more elbow room.
New fixtures. I'm in LOVE with the brass/gold hardware that's been on trend lately, but anything has to be better than the oil rubbed bronze I'm working with.
Update lighting. We have lots of bright light (thank you window), but the current light fixture is hideous. Surely we can DIY something, right? Regardless, lighting is everything in a bathroom.
Update the vanity. I like the thought of using something slightly unconventional, so I'm looking into a piece of furniture to use as a vanity. I inherited an old dresser from my Grandma last summer, and I think it might be perfect for our space. The biggest obstacle is going to be size. We can't have anything too deep since we don't have a ton of space to work with, but I'd love to get something wider than our existing vanity to maximize storage. We're using an old rolling cart to the left of the vanity right now. It holds some of my hair and make-up crap, but I think it would be great if we could get a dresser to fit our width exactly. If my Grandma's dresser doesn't work, I'm hoping to find an awesome mid-century dresser, come up with an IKEA hack, or possibly bat my lashes and convince Tyler to make something. :)

Here are a few images that are fueling my inspiration: