Kristin Keyes, the founder of Nashville-based Kristin Keyes Interiors, proudly takes a secondhand-first approach to design, regularly sourcing pre-loved goods for her clients’ homes and her personal home alike in the spirit of minimizing waste and prioritizing personality. “We start with what our clients already have, edit out what’s not working, and layer in pre-loved pieces to build artful, comfortable spaces,” says Kristin.
While Kristin regularly weaves secondhand pieces of all kinds into living rooms, dining rooms, bedrooms, and offices, she recently decided to take on a new challenge: revamping one of the bathrooms in her own 1920 home with thrift finds galore. “I’d always thought it could be done, and I was dying to try,” she says of the endeavor. Below, she reveals an exclusive reveal of her finished bathroom, which is a true testament to her resourcefulness and creativity.
Get Creative with Storage
A wood shelf wraps its way around the bulk of the bathroom—Kristin credits the idea to a fellow designer and friend, Cindy Cadena of Arias Interiors, with whom she worked on the room’s layout and initial vision. “Our carpenter built the shelf from wood sourced from other historic homes,” says Kristin. “Like-minded partners are everything.”
Focus on Composition
Kristin didn’t set out with a specific design plan in mind. “Rather, the design came together in layers as I found the different elements,” she says. She sourced both the vintage yellow sink and green wall tile by Edward Martin on Facebook Marketplace early in the process. “Once those two elements were locked in, they drove the aesthetics of the space for the rest of the project,” she says.
When prioritizing secondhand pieces, this kind of adaptability is essential. “Let go of the idea of finding the perfect piece and focus on building the perfect composition,” says Kristin. “Start with the items that take up a lot of visual real estate and be flexible.” Other Facebook Marketplace scores in the bathroom include a never-before-used bathtub (for just $100!) and new-in-the-box sconces by Visual Comfort.
Don’t Be Afraid to Mix and Match
Kristin underscores just how valuable a resource Facebook Marketplace can be for projects of this nature. “There are tons of people trying to sell tile left over from their own bathroom renovations, often at steep discounts,” she says. “The trick is that most of these people don’t have a lot of tile, so you have to come up with a design that uses small areas of several different tiles.” As long as you’re fine with a bit of mixing and matching—Keyes certainly was in her own space—you’re golden. “My bathroom has three different tiles: one for the walls in the main area, another for the shower area, and a third for the floor,” she explains.
RELATED: 60+ Stunning Bathroom Tile Ideas That’ll Upgrade Your Washroom
Save This Genius Wallpaper Hack
Rather than painting the bathroom walls, Kristin wallpapered them using 11 rolls of vintage JCPenney paper she scored on Facebook Marketplace for $100 total. “If I see a listing for a large quantity of wallpaper, I’ll go for it, even if it’s a little weird, and build the room from there,” she says. “It was neutral and flexible, and I ended up loving the texture it brought to the space.”
RELATED: 40 More Inspiring Ways to Use Wallpaper in Your Bathroom
5 More Charming, Thrift Find–Filled Bathrooms We Love
Loving Kristin’s storied, secondhand-forward bathroom? Take a look at a few of our other favorite bathrooms that embody the vintage look.
For some antique flavor, you can’t go wrong with a claw-foot tub like in this bathroom by Jenna Sue Design. You can often source these romantic pieces from older homes undergoing renovations and give them a new life in your own.
A wooden wardrobe provides valuable bathroom storage while adding instant character to this already vintage-inspired bathroom in a former farmhouse of designer Christina Salway.
You can display all kinds of vintage art in the bathroom—bring on the florals, framed textiles, antique plates, and more. Either hang in a fun composition or line them up on a ledge as Country Living Executive Editor Jennifer Kopf did here in her Missouri farmhouse.
Vintage seating in the bathroom? If space allows, go for it—having a pretty perch will make your nighttime routine feel extra glam.
Why settle for one mirror when you can create a gallery wall with a soaring collection of pre-loved pieces as homeowner Erin Pata did here?
