Master Bathroom Peel and Stick wood plank flooring
by Cason Smith
Hey ladies and gents …
(Let’s pretend there ARE “gents” out there, other then me)
I thought it was about time, for me to take over a post or two on this blog of “OURS” to let you know how things are going around here.
Shelley seems just a bit too busy…
to post about the little happenings and projects that we’ve been working on in the last few months, so I’m taking over, to help out.
Okay, to be fair, she’s really been swamped in vinyl orders, blog business stuff, kids school and projects, but I just found this in her computer files from yesterday when she got her “hair did”, and it was just too funny not to post.
I have issues over how much that camera is attached at her hip… Kind of obnoxious sometimes, right guys?
“Instead of taking pictures of the mirror falling off the wall on top of me…
why not give a guy a hand!” 🙂 J/K
Love you, babe.
Most of all I was told by my Dad, before I got married that
“A Happy Wife is a Happy Life“.
(I want it in vinyl somewhere, but Shelley says no-way, because she thinks people will figure that she’s just trying to brain wash me with vinyl lettering quotes. ha!)
Really though. It’s so true.
Give a little, take a little. Isn’t that what marriage is all about?
. . .
Okay, so this last week we installed a new floor in our master bathroom.
Thanks to my wife, and her spontaneity…
With the budget for this project dwindling down fast, we decided that we would go the peel and stick rout, for our flooring option.
Have you tried this stuff? It’s awesome and CHEAP!
Shelley saw this idea first, on Kevin and Layla’s blog and knew it would be a good alternative for us in this space, since we didn’t want to strip the old linoleum and move the vanity to lay down the real hardwood flooring.
We bought our peel and stick planks at Lowes.
Shelley will give you more specifics on that later, I don’t want to think logisitcs right now, that’s Shelley’s department…
hence the reason I’m not the “main blogger“.
We started with a coat of self stick tile primer.
I painted a thin coat of this stuff straight onto our old linoleum, to fill in any cracks or holes.
After we let it dry, for about 20 minutes, we started laying down the planks.
Once we got to the toilet, I had to disconnect it, so I could stick some of the planks under the toilet base.
This is where the funny comes in.
For those of you SHELLEY who haven’t taken off, or even seen a toilet out of it’s place, it’s really easy.
First, you shut the water off.
Then you drain all the water out of the tank, by flushing it.
Once that’s all done, you just lift the entire toilet straight up, so that you don’t break or mess up the beeswax seal that is under the toilet, around the pipe, and then you’re done.
Easy.
Now you can actually lay flooring around the toilet base, or get to that small space of wall to paint it or whatever.
So, while I was convincing my crazy clean freak dear wife that the beeswax seal was just, that …
BEESWAX and NOT “nasty yucky brown stuff”, she looks over into the empty toilet bowl and says…
are you ready for this?
“What the!?…. CASON!
Someone put a necklace in HERE!”
HAHAHAHA! Oh I love her.
Now that was a DIY learning moment at it’s finest.
Don’t worry, I explained it all to her.
While that chain might LOOK like a necklace, it’s actually,
ummm never mind, no one needs a lesson on toliet guts 🙂
ummm never mind, no one needs a lesson on toliet guts 🙂
MOVING ON
Okay, so down to business.
The wood planks can just be cut with a utility knife, so we got to cutting the strips where we needed them, to finish things up.
Once you’ve scored them, you can just bend them like this,
to break them apart.
Really easy.
Peel off the back, and stick down.
Man! This has got to be our easiest, and probably cheapest project to date.
We only spent about $45.00 on this whole floor, including the primer.
Now I’ve got to get back to work.
I’ll let Shelley take it from here, with some pictures of the finished floor in the daylight.
Thanks for letting me takeover today, ladies.
I’ll have to interject a little more often, don’t forget why,
“A Happy Wife is a Happy Life”… Live by it, men, It Works.
Blog Updated = Happy Wife
. . . 
Shelley:
Hardy, har, har, har
What a nerd! I love that kid.
And PS.
It’s not like I’m adjusting settings on my camera to get the right lighting while the mirror was falling on top of the guy! I totally used my automatic functions to snap the picture asap, so that I could still help him!
jessh… I’m not THAT heartless!
🙂
Oookay, so really…now that I have full reign, back over my blog…
I’m here to share some photos of what we have so far.
First off… these faux wood planks are from Novalis. Our local Lowes carries them.
And this is what the Self stick tile primer, and low nap roller looked like, that we bought.
Today our floor looks like this!
Now… if you’re thinking one of these two things…
A: Warm brown wood flooring? Thats not what I was expecting.
or
B: Woah! Wood planks on the walls, Wood colored cabinets AND wood floors!?
this chick has lost her mind!
Well… then you’re probably in the same boat as my husband.
So just grab a paddle, and ROW ALONG!
Because you don’t see the VISION!
LOL…
I kid, I kid.
It’s going to come together, I promise! And I love the texture and movement that the wood grain gives to the space. If it was a perfect world, I could have gotten the box of dark mocha flooring for $179 a box and have a handy man install it, after he ripped out my vanity and linolium… but instead.
I wanted it done in ONE night, with VERY little work 🙂
I can be quite impatient.
Probably the BIGGEST thing that bugs me, as of right now…
Don’t worry. It won’t be like that for long.
I have plans.
Muah, ha, ha, ha!!!
.
.
.
Okay… not really.
I don’t have any plans other then to find someones number in the greater Salt Lake area, to come out and give me a bid on how much this puppy will be, to paint!
lol.
I posed the question on my facebook page the other day…
“I’m thinking I want to hire the painting of my bathroom vanity out, so it gets done right! Would that be a complete DIY blogger “no-no???”
Either way… I’m on the prowl.
I need a professional cabinet painter. I’m not willing to tackle this project alone. Those babies cost WAY too much to have any “oops’s” on them.
So this room MAY just have to look a bit “cabin-ish” for a while,
till we can find a reliable good vanity painter.
Bear with us, folks. We’re gettin’ there. One project at a time.
We’ll keep you posted!
🙂
UPDATE:
We get asked a lot if our peel and stick flooring has held up okay… and the answer is YES! It’s doing awesome 🙂 We have water on it all the time, because this where we shower and bathe our kids mostly, and it’s held up perfectly! Like I mentioned before, just make sure you have a really clean, dry surface for your peel and stick pieces BEFORE you lay them down.
Melinda says
I really like the flooring. 🙂 Alot. Hee hee. I am impatient too. But so much that I would just go out and by myself some white paint spray can or no spray can and 'diy' type. lol. I tackled my sons dresser today…it is still a work in progress, considering I had to put down the brush every 34 minutes to change or feed or cuddle my 4 1/2 month old. 😉 But I like your bathroom. Very cute. 🙂 I understand when you have a vision…you know what it looks like in your head. And your hubby is probably like, "What are you thinking?!" lol. Mine is that way too. Ha!
Lindsay says
I love Cason's post! The floor looks great – also I noticed more liquid nails trim around the bottom. Going for the faux chunky baseboards? I can't wait to see the finished look!!!
Samantha2818 says
We put something similar down on our bathroom floor about 8 years ago and it's still going great. Yours looks beautiful.
PLEASE don't pay someone to paint your cabinets. I promist I can talk you through doing a totally proessional job yourself. We paid someone to paint our kitchen after we had it built and he charged £800. Shortly after we finished we addred a corner cupboard and I painted that one to save money and I did a better job.
Let me help 🙂
~Sam
Ashley says
those floors look great! too bad we have hardwoods in the hall just outside the bathroom. otherwise I might give that a try.
Unknown says
🙂 Great post!!! That flooring looks awesome! And for so cheap! Love it!
Doran & Jody says
I think it looks great!
Just add the rug for the contrast and WaLa!
I should "start" this project at my house so "daddy" will HAVE to finish it! Great idea!
Lisa says
Oh you two make the perfect pair! First off I love the bathroom so far and I can't wait to see the vision unfold.
Second, I hope your feeling better Cason! I am getting ready to have Nadine stay with me this weekend and I found my college pictures. Hahaha remember that booth that sketched out picture in the mall, yep still have it.
Third, Shelley I am SOOOO excited about your photography 🙂 If you want all the free lessons on PS I would be more than happy to show you everything I know. I am kinda a freak when it comes to my obsession with photoshop. We all have something like that, right {wink}.
Good luck with the bathroom! Can't wait to see what's next.
Anonymous says
ohhh my gosh!!! funniest post ever!! i'm busting a gut over here. cason, you're hilarious… you really should post more often although shelley is equally entertaining. you two make a great team. (i confess i was really confused when i first saw the "necklace" looking chain in my toilet, so you're not alone) hahaaa! the floors look amazing for how inexpensive they are! can't wait to see the painted cabinets and whatever projects you have cookin' up! 😉
Jennifer @ Rustic Renditions says
OMG, don't paint the vanity cabinet! It's too gorgeous to cover it up! Put a nice rug down to break up the monochromatic coloring of the wood. 🙂
Mindy says
Oh how my husband can empathize! He loathes my camera. But I love you floor!! We used this same stuff when we built our hotel. Best stuff EVER!! It holds up terrifically to high traffic.
Heather says
Funny post. and gorgeous floor. you think it would work on a bigger scale? like whole downstairs scale….we are looking to rip out the carpet and put down something more durable.
Lisa says
The floor looks great! My dh's idea of home improvement is dialing the phone. That's okay, we all need to know our limitations.
Emily Love says
Haha this made me laugh because the first night we moved into our house the toilet chain broke and since I am the handy"man" in our house I fixed it…with a necklace. So there really IS a necklace in my toilet.
Ali says
I love the floors they look great and from the pictures I would have never known they weren't real if you hadn't said so. Can't wait to see the room all finished!
Simply LKJ says
Ha! Love ya Cason!!! A necklace??? LOL Okay, so I happen to be married to a person whose dad was a professional plumber! Don't hate me!!! Shelly…you can soooooo paint those cabinets yourself! I did mine, love them, and it wasn't hard. But, I totally understand if you are over it and want it done yesterday and hire a painter…been there, done that too!!! Love ya!
Britiney @ Consider the Lilies says
We used a company called "Cabinet Cures" to paint our kitchen cabinets and they did a great job. I think it's a nation-wide company, so you may be able to find them in UT. It was pretty reasonable and they gave us a 10-year warrantee on the work. Can't wait to see what you come up with!!!
Roeshel says
Hilarious! You two crack me up! My husband's saying is very similar "do I want to be right or do I want to be happy?"
Sometimes a DIY'er has to hire professionals. Now if you had the nasty gold oak OLD vanity we have, I'd say "paint it", it's bound to be an improvement even with imperfections! We're mid-kitchen remodel and there was no way we'd do DIY-granite install. Some things are safer in the hands of professionals (and cheaper in the long run!).
Looking forward to seeing it all checked off your list. The vinyl wood looks awesome!
Take care. ~Roeshel
Taija says
Oh I just LOVED this post! I was so entertained! He needs to post more often! The floor looks AWESOME!! If I had just seen the pic and didn't know it was peel and stick I wouldn't be able to tell the difference. As for your vanity… painting it is an awesome idea. I discovered this product from country living. caromalcolours.com/Caromal%20Colours%20RECLAIM.php It's not a laytex paint. It rocks for painting kitchen cabinets, vanities etc. It dries rock hard and is super durable. I don't sell it, (just realized how I sound) but it might save you buckets of money! I saw it at our home show last summer… so impressed. Good luck with whatever you do! You ALWAYS get it right!
Jen and her men says
Shelley, you can paint those cabinets yourself! That's like one of the only home improvement projects we've ever done and it's SOO easy. We found a tutorial on sawdustandpaperscraps.com. I've looked for the link for you and can't find it, but it was really helpful. You'll be so mad if you hire it out only to discover later how simple it is 🙂 It's not fun, but it's worth saving the $. Good luck! Can't wait to see the finished product!
Denissa says
Ok, first I am DYING!!! So funny…you two are just too darn cute 🙂 The floor looks great and the price is even better!! Awesome job, once again!
Btw, Shelley check out the post I did w/ the grey R I ordered 🙂
Pine Tree Home says
Girl, you can totally paint those cabinets yourself. Try the backside of the doors first to get a feel for it. The floors look fab!
Kathryn says
We used that exact same flooring in our laundry room. Best $35 we ever spent! It was incredibly easy and it looks so darn real. Great job.
Lizzy says
FG's Custom Finishes
Tino Guerrero
801.427.4959 or 801.623.9159
fgscustomfinishes.com
They are great!
Mama Mimi says
Hahaha Cason….glad to "hear" YOUR sense of humor this time around! You two sound a lot like the two of us =)
Love what you've done….and don't worry Shelley….I know better than to think you've gone matchy-matchy crazy. I figured it was just the beginning =)
Mindy says
The flooring looks great! We used certa-pro painters (we lived in Kearns at the time and he came right over to give us a bid) to do our cabinet doors in a past kitchen. It only cost about $500 for the whole kitchen, all we had to do was paint the cabinet boxes. You might give them a try. I just wanted the doors to look perfect and I didn't think it would happen with a paint brush. We were super happy with the result.
Fun post to read!
Angela says
LOVE the floors! I can't wait to see how it all turns out.
Becky says
Cason you need to post more often. You guys are hysterical!!!! Shelley you are sooo funny about the necklace. I busted up laughing!!!!!
Bathroom floor looks AMAZING!!!!!
Emily says
Let me know as soon as you find that cabinet painter, because I need one too!?
Esther Lynn says
I loved this post you are both the funniest people ever!! I can't miss a day of this blog, and I really enjoyed the tag team idea!! I mentioned to my husband and he laughed and said good luck with that!! Ha ha I bet with time!! Thank you, it was just what I needed after a hard day!!
createthelifeyourlllove.blogspot.com/
Bridget says
My friend just painted her kitchen cabinets with the Rustoleum painting kit. It comes with paint and a stain so you can either leave the cabinet painted or rub the stain on for the antique look. She has never painted before and they turned out soooo good. Even my husband (who paints everything for me) was impressed with her work. I think you should go for it yourself.
Shauntel says
Check out this blog post from a DIYer. She makes it sound so easy and gives great step by step instructions.
the-polka-dot-umbrella.blogspot.com/2011/02/dresser-refinish.html
Jess says
Oh my! I had no idea peel and stick flooring exhisted but I'm probably going to run directly to my local Lowe's to get some! How awesome! It looks fabulous!
Heather says
shelly, paint the cabinets yourself! There is an awesome product called caromal colours by country living. This is the best product I have ever used. There is no sanding or priming involved. I painted a whole hutch and still have half of the jar left! You can even dstress it if you want or just keep it clean and simple. I love it- check it out!
caromalcolours.com/furniture.php
Mary says
I KNOW you can paint that cabinet. Layla and Kevin have a tutorial of how they painted their kitchen. YOU AND CASON can do it, I promise. You also have a reader who is willing to walk you through the steps. I have faith.
Enjoyed Cason's post. He is a real cutie and y'all are precious.
Mary
Tracy says
great post! I love your blog and your vinyl and Cason you just had me cracking up!
I completely understand the vision thing…mine come to me in the middle of the night or when I am randomly doing something else…my husband has requested that I stop waking him up to tell him about them though.
I am in the process of updating our early 80s kitchen to liveable while saving money for a total remodel. I was contemplating the peel and stick flooring…the pictures look beautful, my question is do they look like real wood in real life? Oh and are they pretty simple to lay? I might go the tile option as opposed to wood…but I am considering all my options.
btw – I am a beginner DIYer and tackled my kitchen cabinets last Spring…it takes awhile but if I can do it (and I am not patient) anyone can! go for it and save yourself the money.
Bud & Kim says
Hahahahahaha! You guys crack me up. Can't wait to see you in about a week or so.
Tonya @ Love of Family And Home says
Shelley-
So not only are you hilarious, but your husband is pretty funny himself! You too crack me up! I think the new flooring looks fantastic! I would have never guessed that to be vinyl! Wow! Great job!
Lindsay says
I think it is all coming along nicely…I am trying to figure out what the white tubing is along the wall (with the tape)….looks like a water line and wondered if you were going to paint it the same colors as the wall. Hence, invisible water line. Good luck. I want to find a cabinet painter to do over on my island in my kitchen but I feel bad, the house is only 6 months old. That will be a hard one to convince my husband to let me do. 🙂
Unknown says
Your husband is just as entertaining to read as you are. 2 Peas in a pod that's for sure! I can't wait to see the finished product.
LaurelK says
Too funny, best part of my day. Thank you!
On the cabinets, have you seen CG's review of Rust-Oleum Cabinet Transformations system? Looks like a winner, that is our plan for our kitchen cabinets.
centsationalgirl.com/2011/02/a-new-solution-for-transforming-your-cabinets/
Kayla Davis says
we just painted our kitchen cabinets, and it wasnt too bad. the hardest part was the waiting for paint to dry. its WAY cheaper and painting mess ups are much easier to cover up if you do it and know immediatly and can fix it, than someone who tried to hide it until they get paid then you have to sand and repaint and hope the spot matches (been there). We did our whole kitchen (ALOT of cabinets) in 4 days. not too bad..
Skye McLain says
cason – you are a smart, smart man my friend!! you did a great job on the floors and the tutorial was awesome too! 🙂 i have been thinking about doing this in my bathrooms and kitchen and you have totally convinced me!
shelley – you are one lucky lady. a handy man who isn't afraid of that nasty brown thing under the toilet and handsome. cha-ching! 🙂 its lookin good! i think you could paint the cabinets but i understand if you don't want to. what about the rustoleum cabinet transformation kit? anyhoo – have a good weekend girl! 🙂
Kari says
DON'T hire out!! You are SHELLEY! QUEEN of DIY!! Centsational Girl, Thrifty Decor Chick, etc etc ALL did their own! YOU can do it!
That floor is AWESOME!
Unknown says
Wow Shelley you are so much braver then I am. I would NEVER take a pic of me or let someone take a pic of me while my hair was being colored… You go girl!
I love how you and Cason work together you guys are so cute!!!!!
I can't wait to see what your final look in the master bath will be when it's all done…
love the doctors
Anonymous says
The floor looks great. I just purchased the RomaStone 18×18 vinyl tile from Lowe's that you can use grout with. The man who was helping me said I needed to level out the floor with a skim coat, but the only size bag they had was $36.00, more than the tile itself. Where did you find the tile primer at? Thanks and I cant wait to see the rest of the bathroom makeover!
Stephenie from Decorating Addiction says
I love the new floor and I think you're selling yourselves short. You can TOTALLY paint those cabinets!!!! 🙂 Love Cason's post. Great job.
Andrea says
Too cute!! How cool is it that Cason took over the blog, love it from a man's point of view. I could only wish my hubby would partner with me on mine, but until then(won't happen, but I can dream)you guys can keep enteraining me. Love the floors and can't wait to see your cabinet painted. Happy Friday Shelley and Cason
Unknown says
Great post! Hilarious, but great info! My hubs is at Lowes now and I'm calling him to bring this stuff home! We have a bathroom in desperate need of some new floor and this is the way to do it!! Thanks yall!
Nicole@Thrifty Decorating says
You guys are hysterical!! Love the flooring! What a great idea!
Designed by Chance says
This post was so amusing. I'm always laughing when I read House of Smith's it is great fun.
I'm going to be painting my vanity (got it for $150, a steel so no worried if I mess it up) next week, if you want to see how I did it you can check out my blog then.
The floor looks great!
Jessica says
You guys are a riot, I adore reading your blog. Great work!
Melissa says
Oh, this made me laugh! I was completely grossed out by the wax ring thing too, Shelley! We did the same kind of floor in our old house and actually loved it. Love to see what you guys are up to…have a great weekend!
xo
The Chezik Family says
my sister in law did my kitchen cabinets, jodie's cabinets and my parents bathroom cabinets and they looked great. Let me know if you want her info.
Amy says
rustoleum has a new product out. centsational girl just reviewed it on her blog. it looks awesome! you can easily redo cabinets and countertops in a bunch of great colors! hope this helps!
Unknown says
OMG – This is the answer I've been looking for! Our bathroom floor is terrible and I don't want to put much money into it (moving within 2 years), but I want it to look nice for resale and for my own sanity.
THANK YOU…my hubby is leaving for a week. This may be done by the time he gets back.
AWESOME!
Bridgette says
Thanks so much for the laugh! I so needed that. The floor looks awesome. Now I know how to save my rental's flooring that the vacuum ate. Thx!!
Amy @ 11Magnolialane says
Love the post. Your hubby is hilarious and a great sport! Floor looks great, I can't wait to see the rest.
Red headed left handed Bishops says
My sister-in-law does BEAUTIFUL cabinets!! Seriously, right up your ally beautiful!! Let me know if you want her info. amypbishop at gmail dot com
lisa_d says
Your hubby did well on your bathroom.
philippine homes
The Painted Home says
I see the vision sista'! wish I lived closed to help you out with the vanity!
thepaintedhome.blogspot.com/2010/06/builders-grade-vanity.html
dying to see what color you choose.
good luck Shelly!
d e n i s e
Winter says
My husband installed the same flooring in our in laundry room and my new craft room! He said it was super easy and I love the look! 🙂
Staci says
I linked you again! danggoodfinds.com/2011/03/weekend-project.
You are amazing. It was so easy and I love how it turned out. I now want to do the whole main floor!!!
Nicole says
i am longing to paint our kitchen cabinets but my husband is really unsure. Miss Mustard Seed just shared a product that she seemes to love and i think might be the right paint for the job
missmustardseed.blogspot.com/2011/03/mystery-paint-revealed.html
i love your blog and all of your great ideas! good luck with the paint, i cant wait to see how it turns out!
Randi says
I love your new floor! I like the wood alot…we have some planks left over that came with the house, I'll have to see if it is enough! Watch around your toilet though, those wax seals are supposed to be one use things, and once you move the toilet you are supposed to replace them to make sure you keep a good seal with no leaks. Leaks would ruin that wood floor in a jiffy, and since they are on the linoleum it might be hard to notice a leak until it really ruins things.
Unknown says
I really love that flooring. I used it a while ago in a Reno House I did when the product was new and expensive. Glad to see Lowes carries it now and that it is cost effective!
LeeAnn Clawson says
I think a just putting a rug down will help break up the matchy matchy of the woods. :o) Easy Peasey!
Kates says
Cason should post more often, I loved hearing his point of view! 🙂
Anonymous says
We put that exact flooring down in 5rooms,including hall, bathroom, kitchen, and utility room,about 10 years ago. Still
Looks great!
Brandi says
Did you have to pull up any quarter-round at the bottom of the baseboards or did you just lay it and it looked fine and smooth?
Chaco'sMom says
Would this install well over tile? My concern is where the grout is, since it's lower than the tiles.
Katie says
I recently came across your blog via pinterest and I am glad that I did. I've been wanting to use that type of flooring in our bathroom as well. I'm glad that you made it seem so simple. You guys have definately inspired me. Thanks! I am going check in on your blogs more often 🙂
Unknown says
Do you think that floor could go over tile? It has the grout line in it so it's not as even underneath as linoleum would be. Just wondering!
Anonymous says
You mentioned that you were considering using this on the walls. I would really like to do my bathroom walls with a faux grey barnwood style material as I am attempting to create a salty/nautical look. Have to cover the walls cuz the previous owner glued viny wallpaper over sheetrock and I don't want to try to repair it – would probably look cobbled together. Can this be done with the product you used? Any tips?
Anonymous says
You mentioned using this product on the walls. My bath previously had glued on vinyl wallpaper and I need to cover it rather than do a cobbled repair job on it. Am trying to create a salty/nautical look and would like to use the barnwood grays on the wall. Any tips? Thanks. (Cheryl from Portland, OR)
Unknown says
Thanks for the great info.. We are getting ready to lay this type of flooring (also purchased at Lowes) but I could not find anywhere how long it will take for the Henry's primer to dry.. Good to know it took about 20 minutes.. Your floor looks awesome!
Unknown says
Don't paint the vanity! It's too pretty find some interesting rugs to break it up anything but painting it!
Unknown says
Great job! Love this floor you did in you bathroom. I recently purchased some wood planks from pidfloors.com/ and these guys promised me the best results in the bathroom. They were right! It came out awesome. I need to photograph my bathroom and post a few pics here.
LibbieLou says
Question, can you do this ontop of yucky tile? And or Plywood?
LibbieLou says
So, can you do this on tile and plywood too, or just old linoleum?
Paige Roberts says
Thanks for sharing, going to do my bathroom this weekend!!
Beth Lanzoni says
Thank you so much for sharing this idea. It inspired me to try it in my entryway, then the bathroom. This led me to paint over the panel board. Next is the vanity and medicine cabinet. Total bathroom makeover for less than $200.! I even impressed my husband with my skills! The only thing he had to do was cut the trim for me. Did the rest myself!