*This post is in collaboration with eicó Paints. As always, all thoughts and opinions are our own.
Our en suite has been needing a bit of a refresh for quite some time now. It’s actually a really good-sized room, although it does have one slightly random feature… a whole wall of built-in wardrobes!
Yep, wardrobes in the en suite. I’m still not entirely sure whose idea that was or why they ended up in there, but I have to admit, the amount of storage they give us is brilliant. So as odd as they might be, there was absolutely no way we were ripping them out just for the sake of it.
The doors, on the other hand, were definitely ready for some attention. They were an off-white/cream colour, but you could see patches of what looks like an old turquoise blue starting to peek through underneath, so I’m guessing they’ve already had at least one makeover in their lifetime! The little white knobs weren’t exactly helping matters either.
And because the wardrobes take up pretty much a whole wall, when they look tired, the whole room looks tired with them. So, as part of our en suite refresh, we decided to give them another new lease of life with a fresh coat of paint and some new handles.
Working With What We Already Had
The wardrobes themselves were perfectly fine, so painting them seemed like the obvious choice. It meant we could completely change how they looked, add some much-needed colour and save ourselves the expense of replacing perfectly good storage.
Our en suite already has lots of black and white, including the glossy black wall tiles and black and white flooring. Rather than fighting against what was already there, I wanted to choose a colour that would work with it and make everything feel a little warmer and more modern.
Preparing the Built-In Wardrobes for Painting
With any painting project, a little preparation can make a big difference to the finished result. The old handles were removed first, and I made sure the doors were clean and sanded down ready before I started the painting.
It was a bit of a process and wasn’t exactly one of those speedy little upcycles you can get done while waiting for the kettle to boil.
Choosing a Bold Shade
Then came the fun part. Finally getting some colour on those doors (and not all over me!)
Eicó sent us some testers along with a really handy colour swatch so we could have a play around with a few shades first. There are so many gorgeous colours to choose from, so it was lovely being able to see them properly in the room before making our minds up. The testers arrived really quickly too, which is always a bonus when you’re itching to get started!
We eventually settled on Eicó Alterior Matt in Avocado. Eicó call it Alterior because it’s for both interior and exterior use. This was especially useful, as being in the bathroom means that there is often lots of steam and moisture that we didn’t want damaging our newly painted doors.
We placed our order for the main pot and that arrived even quicker than the testers. I couldn’t fault the service at all.
Once the paint was here, I took each door off so I could make sure I got right around the edges too. The edges are routered, so I painted around these first before using a mini roller across the rest of each door.
The avocado green completely changed the look of the wardrobes and worked so well against the tiles. It was just the bit of colour the room needed
I applied two coats altogether. The consistency was spot on, it went on really easily, and the coverage was brilliant. It dried really quickly too, and was touch-dry in about an hour, which made getting through all those doors much easier. Another big plus was that there was no paint smell at all. When you’re painting indoors, especially near where you sleep, that’s definitely a bonus!
Finishing Them Off With New Handles
I ended up finding an absolute bargain on Temu. These antique copper-coloured T-bar handles were just 89p a set and exactly the sort of thing I had in mind. I was very happy with that little find!
I thought the copper would look lovely against the avocado, and I really like how they’ve turned out. They add a bit more character to the doors and make such a difference compared to the little white knobs that were there before.
The Finished Look
What a difference! Considering they’re exactly the same old wardrobe doors we started with, I’m so pleased with how they’ve turned out.
The green has warmed everything up and works really well against the black tiles, and I love the little pop of copper from the new handles too.
We’ve still got a few little bits we’d like to do around the room, but for such a simple bathroom refresh, this has easily made the biggest difference so far.
You can read more about eicó Paint here, and check out their different finishes here.
