If you’re thinking about doing a bathroom renovation soon…read this post!  We recently completed a bathroom renovation and we learned a lot in the process.  Just to give you a little background on the project, Reid and I hired an architecht last fall to help us with renovating our home.  We knew for sure we wanted to replace windows but wanted to ensure we weren’t wasting money on new windows in parts of the house we may change later.  So we gave him our entire wish list and before we knew it the project took on a life of its own.  So after three months of design meetings we received gorgeous plans of our dream house.  Then we learned it was going to cost much more then we were willing to spend.  So we decided to stage the renovation in three parts.  The first part was completed this past summer which included all new windows (requiring several walls to be rebuilt), a front portico and door, replacement of a decaying second story deck, opening up our living room and sunroom to make one big room, interior and exterior paint and a redo of our master bathroom.  Our master bathroom will hopefully become a guest bathroom (in stage 3) so I tried hard to keep this in mind.  This bathroom was a fun little project that I really enjoyed working on.

Unfortunately, I don’t have before pictures to share.  You’ll have to trust me that it was bad.  It had yellowish toilet, sink, vanity and bathtub surround.  A 30 year old tile floor that was losing tiles weekly.  A fan that didn’t work so mold was always growing.  The bathroom is small at 5 x 8 feet and we had no plans to enlarge it.  So I wanted the bathroom to be light, airy and spa like.

Below is the design process I went through.

First, I searched for inspiration pictures that I referred to during the design process.  This bathroom is so peaceful, pretty and unfussy.  Things I love about it are the big windows that let in lots of natural light, the beautiful artwork, the clean lines of the tub, plumbing fixtures, and shower glass.  The architectural details and accessories keep it from being too bland!

This bathroom also uses a monochromatic color scheme but it is not boring because of the different materials used such as the small 1×1 glass tiles on the knee wall, the 12×12 tiles on the floor, 8×8 tiles in the shower, the stones around the tub, and the weathered wood vanity.

Even though many spa like bathrooms do not have soft window treatments, I prefer them in the bathroom.  There are so many hard surfaces in a bathroom that I feel they need to be offset with the softness of fabric as the roman shade does in the bathroom below.

Then I set out to complete a design plan that included all the elements I wanted for the bathroom.  No walls were moving but I was removing the tub to make a nice size shower.  Below is the design plan I put together.  I like seeing all the elements together so you can ensure they all compliment each other plus it helps you visualize the final result.  The starting point was the fun striped fabric from one of my favorite sources. 

Below are the pictures of my finished bathroom.  Some of the pictures came out a little more “golden” then the actual color (my camera skills need some work!).

Below you’ll notice a vessel sink, the wall mounted faucet (keeping a small vanity top free of clutter), and a decorative mirror that is covering a built in medicine cabinet.  You can see the window treatment in the mirror.  The background color of the fabric is a soft white.  I did not want white white fixtures which would have made the bathroom feel too cold.  Instead I used the bisque color for the sink and toilet which is much softer and warmer feeling.

I used a fossilized limestone material on the vanity, shower sill and shower niche.  I supposedly have to be careful not to spill red wine on the top because its porous but honestly I think a little comet on a honed surface will take care of any stain.  The fossils of shells were just too cool to pass up!  I also went with a simple shaker style cabinet door style.  I wanted a clean look that complimented the more contemporary plumbing fixtures.

A towel bar was put on the side of vanity so it wouldn’t take up any valuable wall space.

I went with a toilet with a skinny dual flush bowl (14 inches wide).  Takes up less visual space in a very small bathroom plus it’s eco friendly.  I did consider a wall hung toilet (very European!) to take up even less visual space but it was too costly to install.  The dual flush bowl works great and would highly recommend it.  Soft close toilet seats are great too.  No more slamming sounds when the seat is dropped down.

I found the artwork above the toilet in a gallery 10 years ago while visiting Niagra-on-the-Lake, Canada (a beautiful town if you’re up that way).  I thought they worked with the look and feel of the bathroom.  I placed them above the toilet instead of a towel bar so I could see artwork when I walked into the bathroom instead of a bath towel.

Below is a flat roman shade for the new window which is slightly larger than the old one to let in more natural light.  Honestly, the shade is more for decoration then for privacy.  The window is hung high enough and I’m short enough that I won’t be flashing the neighbors!  

I also had a pocket door installed (sorry no picture).  Before the door opened into the bathroom making it feel even smaller.  Now I can leave the door open and make the bathroom feel even larger.

The bathroom rug adds some soft texture.  I hung a 3 way hook on the wall for my towel, bathrobe, and PJs.  I also used the floor tiles for the baseboard moulding.  If the budget would have allowed, I would have wanted a frameless glass shower door.  Instead I opted for the much cheaper semi frameless door.  They sell these at the big home improvement centers but instead I used a local bathroom and kitchen supply center for mine.  I was able to upgrade the glass thickness and get one without a towel bar (didn’t want to hang a towel on the door and block the view of the tile).  These options did not cost much more money and I think greatly enhanced the shower.  

I also had a teak seat installed that folds up and down.  It supposedly holds up to 300 lbs!  In reality I use it more as a foot rest when I’m shaving my legs instead of a seat.  

I wanted a tile that looked like a natural marble.  The natural marble doesn’t cost any more than this tile per sq ft but it was much costlier to install…maybe for my next bathroom redo.   On the shower floor is a natural stone tile that feels great on the feet.  

Here’s a close up of the tile design.  A mix of 12×12, 2×2, and 8×8 tiles (cut on the diagonal) accented with 2×2 blue glass tiles were used for the shower walls.  No fancy shower sprays here.  Again, this will hopefully become a guest bath one day so we cut out many of the luxury items.  The shower head works great.  My shower is now the “dog shower” because she can now walk into it easily and the removable nozzle makes it easy to rinse her off.  Good thing I love her!

I hope you enjoyed the pictures and information.  If you are considering a bathroom renovation and would like some guidance, please don’t hesitate to contact me about my design services.

Thanks,