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Wanted to change the look and feel of my Victorian terrace's bathroom to make it feel more relaxing and more heritage looking. Changed all black modern fittings to more heritage-style ones (shower head and arm, mixer, toilet roll holder, lovely heritage tap, sink plug etc). Changed black push plate for toilet to white (in-wall cistern). Added marble tiles to the niche, tiling over existing tile. Painted and added traditional trim to the bathroom cabinet, and added a beautiful french estrucheon (keyhole cover). Regrouted the floors. Total cost around $1000.
Materials
Marble mosaic tiles
Dunlop grout for floor tiles:
https://www.bunnings.com.au/dunlop-800g-ready-to-go-coloured-grout-misty-grey_p6650145
Bathroom hardware, Mondella Maestro Mixer Diverter
Pine trim - straight coverstrap and inlay mould https://www.bunnings.com.au/15-x-11mm-2-4m-clear-pine-insert-mould_p0258492
Paint - sample pot size fine - British Paints Knowledge.
Primer to go over laminate on cabinet. https://www.bunnings.com.au/zinsser-1l-white-bulls-eye-primer-undercoat-sealer-and-stain-blocker_p15...
Sandpaper
Tile adhesive
White silicone
White spraypaint for bath plug https://www.bunnings.com.au/rust-oleum-2x-ultra-cover-gloss-white-spray-paint-340g_p1580672
White grout for niche tiles
Rub n buff to cover black shower screen fittings
Plumbers putty
Gap sealer
Painters tape
Tools
Hairdryer to loosen existing fittings
Strap wrench to loosen plumbing fittings https://www.bunnings.com.au/haron-100mm-strap-wrench_p4900118
Ryobi tile drill bit: https://www.bunnings.com.au/ryobi-4-piece-glass-and-tile-drill-bit-set_p0354520
Mitre box and hand saw https://www.bunnings.com.au/craftright-mitre-box-and-saw-set_p0490021
Spirit level
Stanley knife
Paint brushes and rollers
Tile float
Sponge
Drill (Ozito)
Steps
Step 1
Worked on the cabinet first - painted timber laminate with primer, then one coat of paint.
Step 2
Added pine trim to the borders. Used a mitre box and handsaw to cut the angles and attached with sika adhesive. Used gap filler to fix the gaps in the edges and then painted over with 2 coats. Painted bath tray the same colour as cabinet. Added french hardware.
Step 3
Changed over the toilet roll holder and towel rail. Used the original holes but fittings required an additional hole so used the ryobi drill bit for tiles- taped over site with a cross and watched the Bunnings video on how to drill through tiles first! Very nerve racking but the tape and going slowly prevented existing tiles from cracking.
Step 4
Changed the shower head and arm, tap and sink plug as well as bath tap. Plug was the most challenging to get out and the most challenging to re-fit, surprisingly given I'd done it before. Tap was the same set up as the previous (mixer tap) so extremely easy to fit to existing setup. Couldn't change the black bath plug so spray painted it with Rustoleum gloss spray in white which worked beautifully and stays put.
Step 5
Shower bath mixer diverter was very challenging. Because the plumbing is behind the wall, only fittings that fit the existing plumbing and sizing can be used. The original one did not come in chrome so that was not a solution. I also loved the heritage style ceramic handles. I got the cover plate off and managed to find at Bunnings a chrome version that fit the layout. The heritage style one didn't but I bought 2 mixers and fitted the ceramic handle to the non heritage style and it worked perfectly.
Step 6
Once I realised you can tile over tile I decided to add some mosaic tiles to the niche to break up the subways and add a little class! I chose a marble mosaic because the squares fit almost perfectly, menaning I didn't have to cut anything. After watching some Bunnings videos on tiling, I primed the area and applied tile adhesive and added the tiles. The final step was a white grout over the top.
Step 7
Once I worked out the toilet brand, I was able to purchase and change over the black push plate to a white glass one with a softer look and feel. I had a quick lesson in store on how to change it - relatively easy however the existing mechansim was in upside down! I took it out and but it in again, and fitted the new plate.
Step 8
Final steps: fix the black shower hinges and re-grout the floor tiles as the existing grout was disappearing! The Dunlop pre-mixed squeezy grout was perfect for this task. Used Rub n buff in silver to cover up the black edges on the shower. Added some antique silver bee towel robes to the back of the door for a final touch and additional storage.
