Everyone always asks how the renovations are going at the cabin. Full disclosure: slow. We have to work on it as time permits while still prioritizing our property management, gifting, and construction jobs. So it may have taken a little bit of time, but we finally finished the first project at the cabin in Lake Arrowhead, which we affectionately named, Fawn and Forest, and it turned out soooooo good.

We started with the downstairs guest bathroom since it needed the least amount of demo and work. We wanted to make sure the design felt like it fit naturally with the 1930s cabin, while still keeping the updated shower that it came with when we bought it.

To erase all the underwhelming white that existed, we embraced color and went with Sherwin Williams’ “Retreat”, a sumptuous green that fit in perfectly in our forested surroundings. We drenched the newly shiplap-lined walls, baseboard, and doors in this moody hue. Then we layered in a beautiful patterned wallpaper above to add some whimsy and movement. I love that the pattern is reminiscent of foliage.

Before

After

Since we couldn’t do a full remodel on the space, we opted to keep the existing shower, but replaced the builder-grade vanity with one that had a lot more personality and drawers for more storage. The middle drawer now houses all the essentials like cotton balls, Q-tips, and haircare products, while the bottom drawer houses extra toilet paper and trash bags.

Because the vanity is so small and counter space is limited, we also added two floating shelves above the toilet to hold pretty items, but they can also double as extra counter space to hold your makeup bag or toothbrush, while you’re getting ready. After seeing how much floating shelves cost online, I asked Brian if he could build them instead to save money. So naturally, we headed to the upscale lumber store and bought one piece of hand milled wood for $100. Then there were the brackets and all the effort and time Brian put in to make them perfect. Needless to say, after all the work he put into them, next time he’ll probably just tell me to buy them instead. But, I do think they turned out pretty snazzy, if I’m being honest.

A new mirror and bejeweled lighting fixture above the vanity helped to bring the space together with retro-inspired shapes and finishes. Brian had to pull new wiring to add the lighting fixture above the mirror and of course, nothing in this old place is standard, so he encountered a few obstacles along the way. (And I encountered a lot of cussing and questioning my design plan.)

In the shower, we kept things simple, but elevated, by adding in matching product dispensers, dried eucalyptus, and since there was room, a wooden stool I found on Facebook Marketplace. I loved her so much, I wanted to name her and my bestie suggested, “Sitney Spears”. So there you have it. I named a shower stool.

The biggest change to the space was definitely removing the wooden door next to the shower that allowed for access to the water heater. We moved that access to be in the adjacent bedroom so that we could remove the wooden eyesore and better utilize that void for some much needed bathroom storage.

Because there was no place to store towels or linens, we chose to replace the door with a custom built-in cabinet that again, Brian built by hand (standing ovation for those woodworking skills, babe). We added glass on the top portion to keep the linens dust free and a metal grate detail on the bottom to disguise unsightly items like cleaning supplies, a toilet brush, sponges, and backstock. Now we have enough storage for the room and a pretty place to put it all.

The final step was to layer in all those fun details that really help pull a room together: gold towel hooks, wood framed black-and-white vintage photographs, a gold toilet paper holder, oversized fluffy white bath sheets, rattan waste basket, jute rug, and more.

What’s your favorite upgrade to the space? Let us know in the comments below.