Small Bathroom Remodel Project - Part One

It's time. That small guest bathroom needs some work. It is large small enough for a shower, a toilet, and a mini sink. The bathroom is so small that I thought it was imaginary.

And that grout...wow...that grout.

This is a story about how a little bathroom stayed a little bathroom, but became much more fabulous.

The grout was yellow. Who knows how old that bathroom is, or how long the grout has been that way. My guess is early 80s. It looks as though the grout was supposed to be yellow. I'll show you. Prepare yourself, it's like a horror movie.

Time to get started. First, with my penny-pincher cap on, I tried a manual grout remover tool. It worked well, but I could imagine my unborn children heading off to college before I finished the job.
 

Time for Trip One to the home improvement store, to get a Ryobi Speed Saw Rotary Cutter, with Dremel grout remover bits.

I already have a garage full of Ryobi tools, so I loved that this one fit the battery packs I already have. While the saw was super-powerful, it ate through those battery packs. 10 minutes of work, 30 minutes of charging. So I ended up borrowed a corded Dremel from a friend. Yep, I went old school.

It took three days and five trips to the home improvement store. By the fifth trip, I didn't even wipe the grout dust off. I looked like I fell into a sack of flour. Another customer said he could help me with whatever I was doing. So I still got hit on looked like I needed rescuing.

When I finally(!) finished the grout removal/application process, I thought, "it doesn't look that much better." Then I took the "after"  pictures and looked at them side-by-side. Whoa, baby! I gotta do a happy dance for that one!  

Oh, you'll notice the new hardware. I put my penny-pincher cap back on, and I didn't want to spend too much. Simple chrome upgrades should do the trick. Also, the house was built in 1923, so I had to research to make sure chrome was a thing back in the 20s. Thank goodness it was! Chrome is cheap, is cheap is my favorite.

• Showerhead: Glacier Bay 3-Spray Handshower in Chrome, $19.48
• Towel Bar: Part of Glacier Bay Builders 3-Piece Bath Accessory Set in Chrome, $34.96 for the set
• Faucet Handles: Danco Ergo Replacement Lever Faucet Handles, $17.98 for both

Here are the before-and-after pictures. Ta-da!

I apologize for the greenish tint in the "after" pictures. Camera setting fail.

That's all folks. For now. Next part of this is the floor, which has sticky laminate tiles right now. Come on, it'll be fun, right?