Bathroom vanities can be updated in a variety of ways. Naturally, if you’re removing your old dresser, you can simply choose one of the many different styles and install it. However, if you’re working with what you already have, you’re a bit more limited.

Painting is always the least expensive repair and will produce the most change for the least effort. Some of the things you’ll want to consider are the color and type of wood. If you have oak cabinets that are 20-30 years old and you’ve never painted them because it’s “against the law” in most minds to paint oak, just paint them; Consider that if you really don’t like oak anyway or are just tired of it, what difference does it make? If you could replace the dresser, would you choose oak again? If not, I say go paint.

Dark colors on oak are best, as the grain will show through if there is enough light in the room. A rich dark brown or black or a deep midnight blue, green or red that is almost black will look great in lower cabinets and help ground the room. If you want to experiment, first remove one of the cabinet doors and paint the INTERIOR to see if you like the look; if you don’t like it, you can remove it without altering the original final appearance of the exterior.

Another option for an update without removing your original cabinet is to replace the doors with new ones. Look online and make the measurements large enough to cover the frame of the old cabinet. Another thing you can do with plain cabinet doors is to add molding to add a bit of interest. Be sure to scale the size of the trim to the size of the doors and drawers; keep it simple for the most elegant look.

You’ll probably want to replace your faucets, so make sure the metal you use in your fixtures matches the metal you put in your freshly painted cabinets. Years ago, oak cabinets didn’t have hardware as they just weren’t in style, but painted cabinets do benefit from a little “bling.”

Your vanity paint will need to coordinate with your choice of mirror. If the mirror is new and has a metal frame, you’ll want to match the choice of metal for the faucets and cabinet hardware. The same goes for the mirror paint color if that is the color you decided to use.