As many of my readers know, I've been working on Adam's bathroom for a while now because I wanted to make each piece tie in perfectly and make sure I wasn't settling on my vision. However, I also didn't want to make it too "toddler-y" because then I'll just be changing it again in a couple of years. So here's what I did -
To give you a point of reference, here's the bathroom when we bought it:
Plain Jane, right? It's a pretty typical bathroom with what seemed like all the original pieces.
So I began by removing the towel bar and replacing it with hooks. For some reason, I like hooks a lot better than bars, just aesthetically. I found a wood bar with the hooks at Home Depot (which has become one of my favorite places to go). Then, to tie it into the theme, I found "superhero" door knobs at Hobby Lobby. I removed four of the hooks and replaced them. Note: I put the hooks I removed in a closet I put extra pieces and odds and ends because there may be a time (when I'm redecorating most likely) when I want to put them back in.
I bought the shower curtain, rug, and toilet cover from Target. They were very reasonably priced and fit in perfectly. The shower curtain I've actually had for almost two years - before this theme was ever thought of. I just thought it looked cool in our apartment at the time.
Before Adam was born, my sister gave me a wooden Spider-Man comic book cover for when Adam got here. It didn't really go with his room's theme, so it had been sitting on the floor for a long time (too long). It fit perfectly in between the door and the mirror. Right underneath I put a hand towel ring. I went back and forth with this ring. I wanted to put a different element for the towel, but I couldn't find anything I liked that didn't make the wall look too cluttered - so a ring is what I got.
At Hobby Lobby, I found a Batman comic book cover on wood that matched the Spider-Man one AND it was on sale, so I had to buy it. My first thought was that I would put these two wooden pieces on the big wall for the focal point, but after I started hanging them, my mind changed quickly. Batman went above the cabinet instead.
On the shelf over the toilet, I put superhero ducks that Adam got from Christmas from his Aunt Emma. I think it not only incorporates the superhero theme, but also the fact that we're in a bathroom.
Several items I created myself because I couldn't figure out what I wanted exactly and got sucked into Pinterest. Rusty and I visited 2nd and Charles and bought eight $1 comics from heroes and art styles we liked. Then, I began cutting strips and panels I liked (and that didn't have any cursing, nudity, or harsh violence). I cut ALL of the comics because I knew that I would need more strips then I estimated. Note: I made sure I included male AND female heroes because I didn't want Adam growing up thinking females weren't included.
This first - and biggest - project I used the comics for was the focal point in the bathroom. At Goodwill, I found a poster-sized frame and began to mod-podge the strips onto the cardboard back of the frame. I laid down my large pieces first and then went smaller to fill in gaps.
I did the same thing to three smaller (6x4) frames that I also got from Goodwill. I was fortunate to find three matching frames, so you never really know if you'll find exactly what you're looking for. For these, I painted (just leftover acrylic red, yellow, and blue paint) comic book onomatopoeia.
I still had plenty of comic book panels, so I took some bigger ones and covered the outlets. I had this idea from when I was a child (maybe fourth grade) and I did this at Vacation Bible School. So I took the same premise, and added a different level to the theme.
Finally, I found a project for the rest of the comic book pages. At Goodwill, I found a trashcan that had never been used (it was still in plastic wrap) that was a thick cardboard. I painted the inside with some leftover paint from when the walls were painted because it would match the colors and protect the trashcan since the paint is waterproof. On the outside, I again, mod-podged the strips until it was completely covered.
So there you have it - Adam's bathroom! I'm very pleased with it even though Adam has no idea what was going on and doesn't even notice it. However, my goal was to finished before Rusty's sister moved in since she'll be sharing the bathroom with Adam and I met my goal! Other than Adam's room, it is the only room in the house that I can say is completely decorated!
