When we moved into this house just a little over two years ago we immediately made plans to renovate the dated and lack-luster bathrooms. Unfortunately a few major plumbing repairs popped up and we decided to do a temporary kitchen update that took a bit longer than expected. This year we have decided to completely renovate at least the small bathroom, change one bedroom into a craft room and redo our bedroom and guest room. We hope to get the larger bathroom done as well but we'll see as there is still a fair amount of outside work to be done including installing a new dock. Of the four projects the bathroom will be the most extensive with completely gutting and starting from scratch.
With that in mind I have started do research on bathrooms and craft rooms. Not only am I pouring through magazines and websites I'm checking out friend's bathrooms and even taking pictures of motel elements I like. It sounds a bit funny to take pictures of motel bathrooms but why not? We love to travel so have an opportunity to see a lot of motel bathrooms some that have the elements I want in our bathrooms. The neat thing is with motels you get to try out the elements so to speak which helps make your decision easier.
Toilet Cabinet
Our small bathroom is off the open concept family room. This is the washroom my husband and I use most often. It consists of a shower stall, toilet, sink and storage. Expanding it is not really an option without losing part of the utility room built-in storage and the master bedroom closet. We've decided that we want to work within the existing space to create a nice washroom that works with the rest of the house.
Pictured is the washroom in the room we stayed in at Harrah's in Joliet, Illinois. I like that the toilet could be completely closed off from the rest of the washroom. So that is something I would like to incorporate into the small bathroom. I like the floating vanity too but am not sure how practical that would be for daily living as we would be giving up vanity storage. I think a vanity similar to dresser would work nicely as that would visually extend under the vanity while giving us the storage we need.
Granite Countertop
Pictured is another view of the washroom at Harrah's. Definite don't likes are the mirror, lighting and textured wallpaper. I do like the overall colour tones of the bathroom as well as a touch of quiet elegance. What I really like about the floating vanity is the granite countertop and the curvature of the vanity. I like the smoothness and feel of the granite. However, I was watching DIYnetwork today and they showed a kitchen countertop using soapstone. It was stunning! We wouldn't need a huge piece for the small bathroom so it wouldn't break the budget. I want to do a bit more research on the soapstone as I think it would fit our house even better than granite.
Extension
Pictured is the washroom in the room we stayed in at Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort. The vanity was again a floating style but with a leg on one end then wrapping over the toilet. I liked the curves of the vanity but did not like the actual countertop at all. I did like the extra countertop gained by extending it over the toilet tank. The immediate problem to doing this is of course toilet tank access and we all know at some point even with a newer toilet you might have to access the tank. We are also looking at installing dual flush eco-friendly toilets that have the flush buttons on the top of the tank. So even though I like that idea it is a no go for our bathroom renovations. 
Tiling
Pictured is the hot tub in the room at Soaring Eagle. We are considering this type of set-up for our large bath if we can expand it a bit. At any rate and beyond a shadow of a doubt these are the tiles I want for the smaller bathroom! They will fit well with the overall design of our house keeping a cottage feel. Originally I thought a similar tile but all the same size would be nice but I really like the mixed sizes that will add a subtle interest. I don't like the textured wallpaper so the entire bathroom will be tiled including the ceiling although thinking about it we could put tongue and groove wood on the ceiling to tie the room into the family room. Still, I really like the idea of the whole room being tiled with a glass shower wall and door. What I think would look quite lovely is a antique dresser with soapstone top for the vanity. The soapstone would look quite lovely with this tile. I'm still not sure what I want for a mirror/medicine cabinet.
Ok so now I'm armed with a few ideas it is time to go shopping. Please check back to see our progress on these projects.
Garden Gnome
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4 comments:
how do u get to travel so much ?
i love to travel too.
yeah, u r right, motels washrooms help u to try the stuff before u consider to buy em for yourself
Hi Raj and thanks for visiting. Traveling is just one of our priorities :)
I think being able to sort of live with certain renovation/decorating elements before buying them gives you the opportunity to see if you really do like them.
My brother wants to do the bathroom over here. The main thing I said (after I said no because I really don't want to live without a bathroom for an extended period of time) was to find a tub/ shower that has something to cope with long hair going down the drain and getting it clogged. I tried to use a drain filter thing but it really did not work. Plus I hate pulling the gloppy looking hair out of there after the shower. I do, but it isn't pretty. Enough hair still goes down the drain that it clogs a couple of times a year. Anyway, that would be a nice feature to find on a new tub or shower.
Hi Laura, I can so relate after doing a kitchen rennovation as there is only one kitchen. We are lucky in we have 2 baths so that will take the pressure off. I can so relate to the long hair issue. Wouldn't it be nice if they had something for that. I'm going to have to do a bit more research.
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