Thank you Jamie! I appreciate your help :)

Unfortunately they painted both the bedrooms that horrible mustard yellow as well. So we will need to get painting pretty soon. I can't stand that color haha.

Do you think flooring is something we can do ourselves? We are very interested in DIY but this will be our first hands on project.

I definitely agree that paint is the best bet for the main bath. A new light fixture would definitely help. For a few hundred dollars, you could replace the toilet with a comfort height, enclosed trapway toilet.

Flooring is a big project. For now, have the grout professionally cleaned and sealed. Chances are it was originally close to the floor color and will look better if you get it back to its original color. If you want to do it yourself, look for a grout pen close to the color of the tiles and spend a few hours lightening it up.

Add a pretty piece of artwork over the toilet in the first powder room. Pick a color from it for towels and a soap pump bottle. What's the brown stripe above the right side of the vanity in there? Is it tile?

I agree that a pretty mirror in the second powder room would help as well. Target has many options available at very reasonable prices. Maybe something with a wood frame to add some warmth and a soap pump in wood as well. This one is only $40 from Target.

https://www.target.com/p/round-decorative-wall-mirror-wood-barrel-frame-threshold-153/-/A-50302584?ref=tgt_adv_XS000000&AFID=google_pla_df&CPNG=PLA_Home+Decor+Shopping_Brand_Competitor&adgroup=SC_Home+Decor&LID=700000001170770pgs&network=g&device=c&location=9012215&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpcLZBRCnARIsAMPBgF1uiIiAGVgnncrjkXm6mmuKThoLa_3iBxv2774aCoTTbcEG7IFkGUYaAtXPEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.d

You could even add wood pulls to the vanity. https://www.houseofantiquehardware.com/aris-wood-cabinet-pull-8-13-16-inch-center-to-center?utm_source=froog&utm_medium=cse&utm_campaign=gdf&partner=froog&CAWELAID=120035490000000699&CATARGETID=120035490000028907&cadevice=c&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpcLZBRCnARIsAMPBgF353Z2rY_1z7XI-OFMlL2qRXvUJ1E0mgB0s3DmQP2ssxazHkagE5kEaAgQyEALw_wcB

Leather handles like these set vertically would be fun as well.

If you want to spend a bit more, I love IKEA's Stockholm mirror for $99.00. https://www.ikea.com/au/en/catalog/products/40249961/

Again, find some artwork you love to add to one of the walls.

Hope this helps!

Thank you Katinparadise! I actually love the Stockholm mirror too. I was thinking of placing it in the master bathroom.

Loving the idea of adding in some artwork and matching the towels to it!!!

If you are asking here if you should DIY we really can’t answer that for you. Watch hours and hours of YouTube videos and then you decide what you can handle. Lots and lots of discussions and examples of people getting in over their heads but then also examples of well executed DIY. Read, watch, educate and plan. Wouldn’t hurt to interview contractors and get quotes for the work and then compare that to the time and effort you would need to put in. Good luck!

What I would do is try to start some uniformity by remaking them all (semi-gloss) white bathrooms for now. First painting the walls white and swapping out all the hardware to the same silver finish. I would keep the flooring for now and do a DIY sanding (just enough to get the gloss off)and cabinet painting to white in all of the baths. Then I would accompany that with all white bath/ hand towels and either white or silver bath sets. After that then work on flooring and moving forward on customizing each one to your liking.

We just remodeled a bathroom in our house. I would start with the walls and go from there. Everytime I thought I was about to move forward something else would need fixed. That is common with bathrooms. Ours was wallpapered and had a good amount of water damage. We had to replace the underlayment which was under two layers of flooring and paneling. That was not an easy task. If you aren't sure of your ability to remove the floor and replace the underlayment if necessary I would go with simply painting and updating hardware/lights or even painting them too. I don't have that many pictures of before vs after. We used a primer and cabinet enamel for the vanity and sink. I also used Rust Oleum oil rubbed bronze spray paint that has a trigger (I forget the name but I fell in love with it's ability) for the gold hardware, an old gold light, and even the faucet and door handle which I polyeurethened. We put down peel and stick vinyl tile but also added an adhesive to really make it stay. I also used 1/4" planks as an accent and put a thin piece of trim that isn't pictured above it. Paint really makes a huge difference, start small and work your way up.

You're welcome. I love that mirror. I've been obsessing over it for a year but just don't have a place to put it in my house.

Powder rooms are a place to have fun and add a little whimsy so don't be afraid to think out of the box if you want to add artwork.

Overall the bathrooms aren't too bad and how much updating you do will depend on your budget and/or DIY comfort level. Here are my suggestions.

Powder Room 1

This bathroom looks really nice to me. What do you think needs updating? Looks like maybe the tile grout could use some steam cleaning since I see some color variation. Not sure what that strip is to the right of the vanity but I'd remove that. Consider changing the floor vent cover to white since I think it'll blend in better.

Powder Room 2

This room looks like it could use the most updating. Replace the vanity. Depending on if you need the storage, a pedestal sink might look nice. Replace the mirror with something more contemporary with a nice decorative frame. Looks like the flooring is sheet vinyl. It is absolutely possible to DIY replace flooring: tile, wood-look vinyl, engineered wood, etc. It's really a question of your own capabilities whether you can do it yourself.

Main Bathroom

Paint. Looks like again the tile grout could use some steam cleaning. Replace the vanity and mirror. Replace the shower curtain with a nice quality cloth shower curtain with liner. Consider replacing the toilet (it looks older based on the color and height). Again consider changing the floor vent cover to white since it will blend better.

Powder room #2 looks like a good place to get your DIY feet wet. Replacing the paint color, vanity doors, mirror and lights will go a long way. A homeowner recently sent me this photo of her hubby and brother-in-law ripping tile out of a kitchen (they replaced it with wood to match the rest of the rooms within the open floor plan). Just a preview of what you might be in for:

Thank you thinkdesignlive, yes it is true that only we can decide if we are able to take on this task as a DIY. Have taken your advice and booked a contractor to come in for an estimate next weekend to get an idea of the pricing.

Mon that is exactly what I was thinking too. The bathrooms are all so disconnected and nothing flows. Uniformity is really needed and I like the idea of starting them all off at a standard white/ eggshell.

Aaron, that's a great job!! Must be so satisfying to see the hard work pay off. Hopefully in a few weeks we will also be able to upload some before and afters. Thank you for providing the details on the work. Really helps with the planning out!

Pricklypearcactus, I think the main thing is as Mon said there is no uniformity. Looking at the pictures makes it seem like the bathrooms are from different homes almost. The grout idea is great and might be what we will start with as we are limited with the budget unfortunately :(

Becky, my husband really liked the idea of using Powder Room 2 as our trial run LOL! Thank you for this. Looks like we have our work cut out for us!

I really want to replace the vanity, mirror and the toilet in all three to just bring them all to the same level but I guess a limited budget warrants sacrificing some of what I want.

Start a list...

The first bathroom pictured looks fine....the vanity looks filthy, tbh. So start with some elbow grease there. Even if you decide to paint it will need to be clean. Cost for that is nothing but cleaning supplies and aching muscles (but get used to that--you'll be in fighting shape before you know it). Take down the towel holder and patch the wall. Get a new one that matches. Grout is also filthy so get that cleaned. If you still don't like the color, grout dye is available. I don't mind the mirror at all...Not sure what that brown bit parallel to the vanity is??

Next bathroom is more of a challenge but is totally doable. I would rip everything out and pay someone to tile the floor (it looks like vinyl). Go to a Floor and Decor and pick out tile--they'll find you a tiler) Get a new sink and vanity on clearance at Lowes or get an Ikea one. New light (or turn the existing light down, but small, simple lights are inexpensive and easy to re-wire in...(BE SAFE WITH THIS)... Clean and re-install the toilet (we're doing this now as a loo is just a loo...). I would have a plumber re-install the toilet as it's tricky--not hard but a pita to set correctly.

Third bathroom, once again clean clean clean...I would look for a granite remnant--visit a yard and see what they have. Get a new sink. Faucet is your decision as I can't see that well...Don't care for the mirrors in either bathroom...Removing the toilet will be a necessity here, too, as you need to paint behind the tank.

Of course, paint, paint, paint...

To be honest, everything looks pretty good. Just a couple of purchases and you'll be okay. You don't need a contractor. Not at all. The biggest issue is tiling the second powder room. Most likely you'll want to paint the vanities because that's the trendy thing to do now...I wouldn't but if you choose to do that, go to Benjamin Moore and ask them for advice...probably you'll want the Advantage(?) paint...

Congrats and good luck!! Remember, step by step, you can do this.

Thank you pennydesign for the great simple ideas as well as the encouragement.

I am thinking of painting the bathrooms Sherwin Williams Sea Salt and painting the two wooden vanities and the mirror frame white too. We cannot afford to re do the flooring so I am thinking of maybe just trying to re-grout the tiles as the grout is filthy and too dark. Not sure if this is a good idea?

Also planning to change the toilet, faucet and sink in the master bathroom. The tub is really old but again will just need to clean it up for now and make do. Same goes for the shower back splash.

Just found this post that basically describes exactly what I will be trying to achieve on the low budget we have! She even used the same paint shade. Hahaha! This helps with the visualization. I just want to lighten up the bathrooms and make them feel bigger and cleaner.

http://www.livelovediy.com/2012/07/decorating-bathroom.html

Clean the grout well (check youtube for ideas...I use plain bleach and a very tiny brush but it's a toxic environment that may kill brain cells...so be warned.) After it's cleaned see if the color is okay to you. If so, just go over it with grout sealer.

Just did a bathroom in Sea Salt...I absolutely love that color....

I don't believe in getting rid of things that you can live with...and I also like to reuse as much as I can both due to budget and the environment.

We've just purchased the Advantage paint for the vanity in our master bathroom. If I get to painting before you do, I'll report back on what I think of it. We used a Sherwin Williams recommended paint in the other bathroom and it's fine, but it could be better, so we're going to try the BM Advantage this time.

You have a good plan. (Don't forget to check Craigslist for mirrors and lights if you're in a high remodeling-addiction area..)