Bathroom Makeover Week 3 – Removing the WallPaper

We are already in week 3 of the One Room Challenge (ORC) and our bathroom is coming along nicely. Not familiar with the One Room Challenge? It is hosted twice yearly (Spring & Fall) by Calling It Home where twenty designers take up the challenge to makeover a space during a period of six weeks. Every Wednesday, for the first five weeks, they will share their space and the progress they have made. The last week of the challenge is all about the big reveal with the project all completed, hopefully. Guest participants can also join in and share a space that they have been working on via a link up that is provided each Thursday. Check out more of the the details here. But since we were in the process of making over some spaces, I thought it would be fun to join in and share the progress of one of them, our larger bathroom. You can catch up on my previous posts about the makeover here in week 1 and week 2. 

Last week, I discussed a hidden surprise and the new lighting we installed. Many of you expressed that you liked the lighting we chose. It has has already made such a difference in the space. Here is a little recap.

Once we had lights, we intended to tackle our biggest issue which was this horrible looking wallpaper. I am sure it was a great idea when it was first installed. But overtime, it began to peel off and did not look attractive (at least by the time we bought the home). I said I would discuss our choice of vanity this week but I decide to switch things up and discuss the wallpaper and a major setback we encountered.

Unfortunately, our bathroom remained looking like this (next image) for over a week. My husband’s grandma went to be with the Lord and so we had to put things on hold. At this point, the bathroom was no longer our priority but it sure was not a pretty sight. Remember this is the main bath because the one in our master bedroom is only a half bath. Not to mention, we had other extended family come over for a few days during this time, too. But we were able to make more progress once things were settled.

But I am happy to announce that the wallpaper has been removed – ALL of it!

But wait, it was not just one layer of wallpaper, it was two! There was some kind of undercoating at the bottom. The brown area in the following image shows the second layer under the flower one at the top.

That’s no fun! Originally, I intended to remove the paper myself but did not get far (see next image). My intent was to remove little by little until everything was removed, over a period of time. Once I saw the underlining layer, I gave up. My husband was not in any mood to remove it either so he recruited help from a handyman. I was so glad he did. We had removed the wallpaper in our kids’ bedroom before and while they were on a smaller scale and only one layer, it was still not the easiest job. But we were able to handle it. Not so with the bathroom. None of us had the desire to remove it. 

In this next image, all the paper is gone, both top and bottom and in less than a day’s work! It took the handyman way less time than we would have taken with the kids around plus with my husband’s job. But once it was all gone, it was like removing a heavy burden. Really, that wallpaper was seriously embarrassing! 

Now to patch up all the holes and get this thing painted. Are you wondering what color paint we chose for the bathroom? Well, I guess you’ll just have to wait to see:)

Have you dealt with removing wallpaper before? Did you do it yourself or did you recruit help? I would love to know your thoughts. If you wish to see more room progress from other participants in the ORC, click here.