Besalted.

My upstairs bathroom is in desperate need of a renovation. But alas, until I finish my basement, it is not in the budget.  But I had this quart of Ace Besalt paint, and it really needed to go somewhere. So one day, as I was in my upstairs bath, observing the tan and white stripes that bled through the blue painter tape (blue = bad for stripes, green = good for stripes)--it hit me.  I could Besalt my bathroom and finally put up the gray and white stripe West Elm shower curtain I'd gotten for Christmas.

Get rid of the bleeding stripes? *ding*
Finally use my  new shower curtain? *ding*
Keep stripes in the bathroom with the new shower curtain? *ding*
Use the quart of Besalt paint I paid for and have a dark room somewhere in my house? *ding ding*

Really, it was a win-win-win... win.

I am a bad blogger and didn't capture a "before" shot of the stripes before I painted, but here is a picture of the bath wall and tile on the day I moved into the house:

Exhibit A

Observe the cheap tile, faux brown marble vanity sink and builder vanity mirror (with its one light-bulb falling out). There is honestly not one thing that works for me in this bathroom. The tile is cheap and old (and falling off in certain places), the floor is yellow, the vanity sink is flowery and faux brown marble, and my hands are forever hitting the back of the sink because the faucet is so close-set. And don't even get me started on the non-matching wood finishes.  But this is all a story for another day, when I can actually do something about the dated, defective finishes.

Today it's all about creating a distraction that is loud enough that you do not notice the ugly finishes Solution: Ace's Besalt paint. See Exhibit B. 

Exhibit B

Much. Much. Better.

The charcoal paint definitely  modernizes the bathroom, and makes the focus less on the dated finishes and makes it work. For now. There is still lots to do in this bathroom, but until the basement is done, it's tolerable. 

One note about the brand of paint--Ace Clark + Kensington Paint. It was the first time I painted with this brand and honestly, I have to say, I am not a fan. The color is gorgeous, but it does not go on as well as other brands I have tried. Part of it could be due to the fact that the quart I used is a flat enamel. I really debated using it in the bathroom because typically you want s a semi-gloss or eggshell in the bathroom--something with durability to it in case it gets wet and needs to have some wash-ability to it. What finally prompted me to use it is the can boasted to have a "non-reflective finish with excellent washability". What I discovered is-if any water gets on it, it leaves reflective streaks or spots on the wall. In addition, when I put up the curtain rod, the paint scratched very easily-there was no durability observed in the paint itself.  Maybe had I used a eggshell or semi-gloss it may have had better results, but I will most likely not being buying this paint again! Leaving you with one last picture.