1 of 5 in the bathroom remodel series
A look at our second floor main bath before the bathroom remodel and the must-have items on our wishlist.
Today I am sharing with you our second-floor bathroom
Before the bathroom remodel
Guys, if I told you that before the bathroom remodel, we used to have Pepto-Bismol pink tile in the shower and wallpaper on the walls, would you believe me? Ugh, …it was so bad.
And not because I don’t like pink, but because the grout was cracking and dirty (and black) in places. The wallpaper was peeling and curling in spots. There was no coming back. It was gross and all of it had to go.
We knew when we bought the house and moved in, that kitchen and bathroom remodels were in our future. The bathroom upstairs seemed like the perfect project to tackle first based on size, budget, and timing.
The LAyout
We knew going in that we couldn’t make significant changes to the layout. It’s a decent size bath but we couldn’t separate the tub from the shower which would have been a dream.
I also would have liked to have a separate water closet, but those will have to wait for our next home.
There was one big and important change we could make though that would add a ton of value and functionality to the space. And that was adding a double vanity.
The original layout included an L shaped vanity with only one sink. The other end of the vanity was a lot of wasted space.
It was designed like a desk with one long pull out drawer that offered very
To make it functional for the time being, I had placed a chair in our bathroom and turned it into a vanity.
I’m not one to spend hours putting on makeup or doing my hair though. Anything over 20 minutes every day, for both, is just not my cup of tea.
Skincare, on the other hand, is a different story. (And another blog post).
So a vanity with double sinks and more storage just made more sense to us. In order to achieve this though, we would need to get rid of the L shape and shift the vanity location.
The wishlist
Big wish list items for me included a double vanity with storage, a gorgeous new floor, new tile in the shower, and a sexy little item known as an exhaust fan. All Mike wanted was a bigger tub that he could bathe in. (which happens twice a year)
a functional vanity
I talk more
gorgeous Tile and Flooring
On top of the pink tile and crumbling grout in the shower, we had the worst floor. It was a “lovely” sheet of linoleum vinyl and the pattern was simply squares of off white with a border of pink. You know, to tie in with the pink tile.
Yellowing and pulling up in places, it was not the easiest to clean or keep clean. Dirt and hair seemed to stick to it for dear life, making it hard to vacuum or mop up. It never felt clean in there and needed to go for sure.
a sexy exhaust fan
The wallpaper I mentioned in the beginning? It was cream WITH PINK AND PURPLE BUTTERFLIES. I mean, I love a good wallpaper, but this wallpaper didn’t make it past day 2 of us owning our home. (Sorry, it came down so quick I don’t even have a pic!)
We couldn’t wait for the remodel to pull this down. In a bathroom with no exhaust fan, it basically fell off and we painted the walls white to tide us over.
I didn’t want moisture ruining our gorgeous new space so an exhaust fan was a must on my list. Enough said. I mean really, what more is there to say about an exhaust fan?
A spacious tub
For Mike, it was important that we purchase a larger tub.
Since we were not able to move the tub from its current location, going much bigger wasn’t really in the cards. There is a partial wall that separates the tub/shower from the toilet and the plumbing for the shower runs through that wall.
Gaining extra length wasn’t really something we could do very easily (or cheaply). We were, however, able to extend the width of our tub by about 4inches, which surprisingly made a big difference.
Head to my next post to see the design for the space and to hear about the life event that allowed us to DIY most of the project!
What are the must-have items for your dream bathroom remodel?
Leave a Reply