Good Bye Pink Tile, Hello Coastal Cottage

My cape cod style home was built in the 1940's and has been a work in progress.  I have always had a love-hate relationship with the downstairs bathroom which was covered with UGLY Pink Tile covering half the walls.  I began researching ways to paint the tile, rather than replace it and started a Pinterest board on some options.  (I know I should have taken some before pics but once I started the project it seemed too late.)   Anyway, here's what I did.

1)  I slipped on a pair of rubber gloves and thoroughly scrubbed the tile down with a mixture of TSP and warm water and let it dry thoroughly.

 2)   Using a 3" foam roller, I applied a coat of Benjamin Moore latex white adhesive primer over the tile, including the built in soap dishes, etc.  I also decided to paint the dark woodwork around the windows and the ugly medicine cabinet using the same adhesive primer to avoid a lot of scraping.

 

3)  After letting the primer dry thoroughly for a few days, I applied a coat of Benjamin Moore Brilliant White latex paint with my foam roller, being careful to outline the tiles veritically and horizontally before painting the surfaces to make sure I covered the grout well.  Again, I let the paint dry for a couple of days.  (No one was thrilled with having the bathroom off limits AGAIN)

  

4)  Finally, I applied a coat of latex polyurethane to provide additional strength and let that dry another couple of days, then primed and painted the upper walls with Benjamin Moore Jamaican Blue (kind of a Tiffany Blue color).  

A quick trip to Bed, Bath and Beyond provided the off white cotton shower curtain, and Walmart for a tan runner (kind of looks like beach sand) and lacy white cafe curtains and tan hand towels, my own wicker basket and antique nightstand, plus a few accessories including a sea shell and a little beach print that I had completed the design. 

I felt a little sad about the demise of the Pink Tile, so  I made a wall decoration from three of the leftover tiles we had in the basement to help me remember just how much I hated them.