One of the coolest things about doing it yourself, in my opinion, is that you can really get creative, get outside the box, and truly customize your home and your life with darn cool things.

Step 1: Start

This project came about because, well, not only did we strongly dislike the vanity the house flipper installed in our main first floor bathroom, but we really disliked it. That and it was flimsy, it was cheap, and a glass top with a glass bowl was thoroughly impractical for a bathroom that gets the most use out of any in the house.

Because I was on a budget, that limited things. For instance: an off the shelf vanity from a store. Most were terribly expensive and terribly boring, in our opinion. Our plan was to sell this bugger on Craigslist which would offset the costs of a new one.

So began a several month long pursuit in making something cool with limited funds. This one sold for about $250. Sweet.

Step 2: Make a Plan

I had no real plan.

But making a plan is good. Or don't have a plan and see where the adventure takes you like I did. I find that that frees things up for the creativity to get rolling.

I started by scrolling around on Craigslist and found that black metal hairpin leg stand first. I had no idea what it was meant to do or what it was for but it was missing a top, it was the exact dimensions I needed, and it was cheap. Twenty bucks cheap.

Step 3: Figure Things Out

So I was missing a top and needed to figure out a counter. I found a place that was offering free pieces of leftover granite so I trucked on out and found this cool piece above.

The husband didn't like it plus the pricing I received on getting it drilled out was quite excessive so the search continued.

Step 4: Keep Searching

Sorry for the lack of photos but this was back in the early days of my blogging adventure, before I realized I needed tons of photos.

But the continued search brought us to a guy two states away selling pieces of maple bowling alley. That the husband liked so with a little communication, the guy cut us a piece to size. Turns out bowling alleys are riddled with nails so for a little extra cash, we had him cut out a large hole for the sink. I drew up the layout for him in AutoCAD and sent it off to him which he followed to a T.

The sink, by the way, as well as the faucet were purchased on eBay. So check every site and check often. It took me forever to find both pieces, I'm that darn picky.

Step 5: Finesse

I myself had to drill out the faucet hole which was a minor fiasco. I had to drill halfway with a larger hole then halfway with a smaller so the faucet would seat properly. I jammed a hole saw, I....never mind, it was a process. But, I got it all handled in the end.

So when DIY'ing, beware things won't always go swimmingly.

Step 6: Buy Parts

Here again I forgot to plan before I left the house to purchase plumbing parts. But it all worked out ok.

Make lists, check them twice, be sure to measure things before you leave the house.

Step 7: Enjoy

Last step of a successful bathroom vanity DIY project? Enjoy the heck out of it. And be proud that you created something original and new. Creating a bathroom vanity is not a hard thing to do. It just takes patience, a bit of luck, and a hair of know-how.

In the end, this ran me about $40ish bucks over what we sold the original one for but it was over budget happiness.