This bathroom needed to be updated without changing the basic features: yellow ceramic tiles with green borders and stark white fixtures. Since the bathroom would be used by two children, Nancy Golden decided to find out what sort of theme they would enjoy. Both children agreed that they liked "jungle," so she devised a clever jungle motif to liven up the room without making it too juvenile. The first thing Golden did was to find a print fabric (figure A) for the shower curtain and window treatment. (She suggests that when performing a similar makeover you have the tile color with you at all times. One way to do this is to invest in a fan deck, a sample fan containing numerous colors of paint. If you don't have a fan deck, she suggests finding something else around the house -- a toy, a towel, an item of clothing, etc. -- that matches the tile color and taking it with you when you shop. She also recommends helping yourself to as many paint samples as you wish when you go to a paint store; they're free, but they're invaluable when it comes to decorating projects.) The fabric Golden chose, a jungle theme on a natural beige background, featured a vibrant coral color, which she decided to use for the wall color. First, however, she made a shower curtain from the fabric and attached it to a simple tension rod, which she mounted over the shower opening. Tip: When you're painting a room -- or even a single wall -- a "normal" color, first attach a paint chip in the color to the wall you want to paint. Leave it there for 24 hours so you can see how the changes in light affect the color over that period. If, however, you're going to be using a more offbeat color, invest in a quart of the paint and use it to make your own large color chip by painting a sheet of cardboard. Attach the chip to the wall and leave it for the same length of time, checking it every hour to analyze the color. Better yet, check it at the time of day you'd most likely be using the room so you can gauge how the color looks at that time. The Bare Facts: Use tea as a dye for draperies. Stamps can be added for a great treatment.
RESOURCES :
The Complete Book of Kitchen and Bathroom Renovation
Time Life Books
Website: www.timelife.com
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