Ugly Countertop Decorating Solution

This is the color of one of the counter tops in my bathroom.  And I say one of the counter tops because I actually have two counter tops in the bathroom.  The other counter top is a perfectly normal bathroom faux marble.  White, clean, simple, easy to match. 

Since I am renting right now, nothing can be done about the rogue salmon-colored counter top.  What makes my bathroom decorating problem worse is that all of my bathroom towels and rugs are cornflower blue.  I am not interested in re-buying a whole new bathroom set-up, especially not a set-up in a dark pink-orange color. 

I found a solution for only $20.  I scoured the fabric store for a fabric that contained both cornflower and salmon.  The ONLY fabric in the entire store that fit this description was a multi-color striped lightweight canvas.  Perfect.  And it was on sale. 

In theory, all I had to do was to finish the edges, put fabric grommets at the top, and clip the new shower curtain on top of the plain clear plastic one we already had.  In reality, I switched the height and length measurements at the fabric cutting counter and I had to do some interesting geometry to make it work.  I ended up with two patched panels instead of the one and two rectangular circumferences to finish, but I think it came out well.  I'd even venture to say my improvised seams add decoration to the finished product.

When I hung the curtains up for the first time I was amazed that my theory had worked.  A nicely decorated bathroom despite the salmon counter!  It only took four hours despite my big mistake at the fabric store.  If you, too, are stuck with some impossible bathroom colors, the solution could be in the curtain.  And you don't have to spend $50 (or much, much more) at BedBathBeyond to make it all work!

By Megan E. Field, Field Notes Guest Author

Comments

[Shelly Field]

Great job with bringing that rental bathroom together. Getting creative with the Singer sewing machine, figuring out how to make a shower curtain and redesigning because of a fabric purchase error are all worthwhile learning opportunities. Thanks for the article.
You can also add a coordinating print to stripes with a border top or bottom to add even more interest.