Makeover Madness: Part 1

My kids have gone off on their annual trip with Grandpa and Grandma. I have been using this time to spruce up my house a bit.  My first project involved painting over my old and rather dated bathroom counter tops. Here are the "after" shots.  If you want a peek into the process and see which products I used, read on.
 
 Here are some more tricks I learned the hard way:

• Taping around the sink is tricky. I had to cut and patch together a custom template. A shopping bag securely taped around the faucets worked well to protect them.
• Spray paint will easily scrape off a toilet tank and bathroom tile. (Refer to the third picture down.)
• To touch up after pulling the tape off (especially around the sink) spray some paint into the spray can's cap and dab paint on with a cotton swab.
• I had to use one coat of varnish for every coat of paint I applied for good coverage. 
• Different colours of paint will cover differently. I had to use the entire can of paint for my grey counter, but about half for the brown one.
• Sand lightly before painting.
• Check to make sure the varnish you use is compatible with your paint. I had to use oil-based varnish to finish my oil-based spray paint.
• Let the final coat dry longer than you think it needs to before removing the tape (a good 24 hours, especially if it is humid where you are) you may have to score the tape with the tip of a sharp knife to get it to come off cleanly if there are many coats of paint and varnish built up on top of it.
• Here are the products I used: Rustoleum Accents Stone Spray paint (in grey stone and sienna stone) and Varathane oil-based varnish in Satin. I prepped my counters by washing them and then lightly sanded with 120-grit sandpaper, then wiped well with a damp rag.