Our Budget Cabin Guest Bathroom Makeover Reveal

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Better Homes & Gardens at Walmart. All opinions are my own and always will be! Thanks for supporting the content that keeps Jojotastic going.

Now that I’m back to blogging full time, I am beyond excited to share a major makeover reveal: our cabin’s guest bathroom! We originally started this project in order to celebrate the launch of the new paint collection from Better Homes & Gardens exclusively at Walmart… and then it spiraled into a much larger overhaul of the entire space. Which I am totallyyyyy fine with because, if you’ve followed me on Instagram for a while, you know about the smell. That bathroom has always been gross, ever since we moved in. But now, it feels like a chic space for our guests! Let’s dig into the before photos, my design plan, the new paint from Walmart, and the reveal.

Before & After: Our Cabin Guest Bathroom Makeover on a Budget

Before photos

When we first moved into the cabin, it was absolutely filthy. And the grossest part was the bathroom off our dining room. Not only was it dated in aesthetic, but it straight up smelled horrible. Part of that was the vanity. Each drawer was full of caked on makeup and scented products that had been sitting for who knows how long. Then, one we’d demo-ed the vanity, we realized that the back of it was almost entirely open to the crawlspace below! Finally, we also discovered a secret door that leads to the back of the shower plumbing. That also was open to the crawlspace and had a few petrified rodent friends in it.

For some reason, I don’t have true ‘before’ photos from when we moved in, only the listing photo. But here are a lot of photos from various stages of the demolition, as well:

As you can see, I did a LOT of work to remove the existing tile and get it down to the sub flooring. I’m proud to say that I did all of that work myself!

My design plan

Every time I tackle a new design project, I make a moodboard in Photoshop so I can visualize all of the elements together. This is the final design board I put together, after many iterations.

The Reveal!

Paint & Beadboard

I am so incredibly happy with how our cabin guest bathroom makeover turned out! The biggest change is definitely the walls. After repairing the drywall in order to seal out the smells, we installed leftover beadboard from our main bedroom suite renovation. My biggest goal with the entire cabin design is to bring charm and character into the space… and beadboard is one of my favorite ways to do that! Plus, I loved that we didn’t have to buy more material for this project and could use what we already have on hand.

Once the paneling and trim was installed, then it was painting time! The top half and ceiling are the same creamy white as the rest of the cabin (to keep things cohesive), but the black is allll new! It’s actually a blue-toned dark grey called Cavern Grey and it’s from the new Better Homes & Gardens paint collection at Walmart. I’ve always wanted a black bathroom. Not for any particular reason, but just because it feels so chic! So I leaned into that hard with this project and I couldn’t be happier!

The paint itself was great. I loved that it includes primer and is low odor, Zero VOC. We used the semi-gloss finish because it is highly washable and stain resistant — perfect for a moisture-rich environment like a bathroom!

Bathroom decor & finishing touches

Finishing the guest bath makeover was a mix of utilizing existing items from previous homes (the storage cabinet and mirror), installing new bath decor from Walmart, and then layering on vintage finds (the horse and chicken artwork). I loved being able to get the renovation materials we needed for such amazing prices and all in one place.

I was also blown away by what I could find, like the brass faucet (just over $50!) and the light fixtures (a little over $25 each).

The lighting is actually a really simple hack: these fixtures were meant to be ceiling lights. But I loved the simplicity of the globe and decided they’d be great wall fixtures as well. I LOVE the scale and proportions of them with the mirror.

Special touches for guests

I also stocked the apothecary cabinet with a few essentials for house guests. I mixed and matched a few different glass canisters and then filled them with samples of various beauty products. That way guests always have what they need — or can treat themselves to sampling some new skincare!

I also layered on a patterned hand towel to bring a bit of style to our otherwise basic white towels. The neutral taupe in the diamond patterned towel helps to tie in the color of our existing shower and tub since we couldn’t afford to replace that.

And just in case the smell decides to come back, I’ve taken precautions: I snuck an essential oil diffuser in the corner behind the plant! Plus, I added one of my favorite candles in case guests want some ambiance — BTW how cute is the new packaging on these?? I can’t wait to upcycle them into planters when the candle is burnt.

And lastly, I used another one of the stools to provide a bit of countertop space for guests! Because we re-used the pedestal sink from before, I realized counter space was needed. The stool provides that — or a surface to display fresh flowers!

So what do you think of our budget guest bath renovation?? I’d love to know what you think‚ especially in regards to the new black paint! And stay tuned for more posts breaking down the details of this space even more (including the flooring!).

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Photography, design, & styling by Jojotastic.