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It’s time to officially reveal our half bathroom remodel. This post has been a long time coming. Four years in fact. But today is finally the day!
Four years ago my husband and I participated in the 2021 Spring One Room Challenge. I had a blast and learned a lot along the way but we weren’t able to complete the room at the end of the 8 weeks. I landed a new job and life got in the way. You can read all about it here in week 8.
It took us until mid-September of 21′ to complete the space and there are still a few tweaks we’d like to make. But, I’m finally ready to share our half bathroom remodel with you!
Missed a post and want to see where we started and the steps we took to get here? Catch up by clicking on the links below:
WE’RE FINALLY DOING IT | SPRING ONE ROOM CHALLENGE
WEEK 1 | WEEK 2 | WEEK 3 | WEEK 4 | WEEK 5 | WEEK 6 | WEEK 7 | WEEK 8
DIY Medicine Cabinet with Sliding Mirror Part 2 | One Room Challenge
One Room Challenge | The Reveal of Our Half Bathroom Remodel
The Design Plans
From the start, I wanted our bathroom to have a traditional feel to it. I wanted classic and timeless finishes that wouldn’t go out of style anytime soon. Also, I wanted to give this small space some character so incorporating wall moulding was a must. Wall moulding can totally change the feel of a room and is one of my favorite ways to create interest in a space.
As much as I love the color blue, I wanted to try a different color palette in this room. After searching through Pinterest and all my saved images for inspiration, I landed on a design I was excited about. I put together a mood board to collect my thoughts and help keep me on track with the design.
Updating the Layout
Our bathroom is tiny. Just 38″ x 68″ and the old layout, while fine, drove Mike insane. The toilet originally faced the wall making it a bit tight to sit down and do your business.
We had gotten quotes before to turn the toilet. And even though it felt like we were only moving it 90 degrees, the insane cost implied it wasn’t that easy. I thought we had decided NOT to move forward with this layout change but when it came time to start the remodel on our half bathroom, Mike decided it was worth it. And honestly, I’m glad we did too.
Selecting the Finishes
The toilet
One of the first decisions I made was the selection of the toilet. I wanted something “pretty” and classic looking. Something very different from the original blue toilet that was there previously. I love the design of the Miseno Santi Two-Piece toilet we selected but if I had to do it again I would probably select something else.
The lid and seat that come with it feel cheap. It’s an easy fix though and one I’ve been meaning to make. Something similar to this mahogany seat would not only look and function better but would help elevate the space even more. Also, I wouldn’t say it always lives up to its “high efficiency” claim if you know what I mean.
The Sink
Along with the blue toilet, our small little bathroom also had a matching blue sink. Super stylish I know. The sink sat on a small white cabinet with a louvered door. The cabinet offered a little bit of storage but the plumbing also ran through there and took up a decent amount of space. To visually increase the footprint of the space, I opted to ditch the cabinet and selected the Vitreous China 19″ Wall Mount Bathroom Sink instead.
We originally found a different sink we liked at one of our favorite salvage yards. It ended up being too big and bulky feeling though for the space. The Vitreous Wall Mount Sink has really pretty feminine lines making it a perfect fit for this small space.
Plumbing Fixtures
I knew I wanted to use brass plumbing fixtures to add a bit of warmth to the space. I originally pulled the Kingston Brass Restoration 4-inch Centerset Lavatory Faucet in Polished Brass to use in our bathroom. It’s a classic style that won’t go out of date.
I ended up going with the Kingston Brass Heritage 4-Inch Centerset Lavatory Faucet in Polished Brass though. I liked the higher neck style on this one for a change.
Typically when I’m selecting a faucet for a bathroom, I look for ones with a lower spout height and shorter reach. This makes it easier when performing tasks like bending over to wash your face or brush your teeth. The spout doesn’t get in your way and you won’t hit your head.
One of the things we do want to tweak is our plumbing below the sink. Since we installed a wall-mounted sink and our plumbing is exposed, we worked with our plumbers to source brass fittings to match our faucet.
They did try to an extent to find pieces that would work but Mike and I are both unhappy with the end result. They didn’t address the area where the pipe meets the plumbing behind the wall. We have an exposed PVC pipe and no trim or cap around the opening in the wall. There was some back and forth between us to try and get it corrected to look like how we envisioned. After a couple of tries though they kind of dropped us and left us hanging. We also have a small leak when the hot water is turned on that they said they fixed but did not.
The Lighting
Our bathroom has always had 2 light sources but we really only used 1 of them. The one on the ceiling had a missing bulb that we never replaced because we got plenty of light from the sconce above our medicine cabinet.
So, when we updated our light fixtures, I decided to put a dimmer switch in so we could control the amount of light in the space. I selected the Eglo Lighting – Flush Mount, 12-Inch in Gold for the overhead lighting.
For above the medicine cabinet, I originally wanted to go with the Kichler Azores 2 Light 16″ Wide Bath Bar. It was out of stock though with no eta on when it might return so I decided to go with my second option which was the Cailum 2 Light Dimmable Vanity Light in satin brass.
The Flooring
We had some hiccups when selecting our floor tile for the bathroom. I knew I wanted something that felt timeless and classic. With it being a small space I also felt like we could splurge a little without spending a ton of money.
I loved the Greecian White Basketweave tile the moment I saw it. It’s a honed marble (not polished) and I thought it would look stunning in our bathroom. We placed our order in mid-May and it was ready for pickup just a few days later.
When we brought it home though, I didn’t love it in the space. The colors were reading a little more pink and beige than I wanted. I decided to return it and instead, we went with another honed white marble tile called Tellaro from Lowes. We placed the order at the end of May and waited for it to arrive.
We waited and waited and the tile never showed up. Finally, we went to Lowes at the beginning of July and were told they were not able to locate it. It had been lost in transit. They cancelled the order for us and refunded our money and we were back to square one.
Honestly, I think it was meant to be though. Looking back, I don’t think I would have been happy with that tile in the long run. Even though it was a timeless material, the pattern would have been too busy for the space. I’m not sure what I was thinking when I selected it but I’m glad it never showed up.
We ended up going back to Home Depot and purchased a white octagonal tile with a black dot by Daltile. It ended up being the perfect floor tile for our bathroom and has the classic timeless feel that I wanted from the beginning.
Replacing the Window and Pocket Door
Our original pocket door wasn’t anything special. It was a hollow core door in an orangy wood tone.
We decided to purchase a 24 in. x 80 in. Unfinished 6-panel Solid Core Red Oak Interior Door Slab to use instead. I painted the side facing into the bathroom the same color as the walls. Mistletoe by Benjamin Moore. I’ll paint the other side Secret Garden by Sherwin Williams to match the family room it faces.
Since we completely gutted the bathroom, Mike thought it was a good idea to replace the window at the same time. It made sense but if we had known we were going to replace the windows in our home in just a few short years, I think we would have waited. The window we purchased was just a basic builder-grade window from Home Depot. It wasn’t super expensive or hard to install. When the guys came to install our new windows last month, they ended up needing to remove some of the trim around our window. When they did this we lost our windowsill. I wish we would have known so we could have planned to fix it. Not a big deal just a smaller detail I’ll know to think through for the next time.
Accessories
This small space didn’t need a ton of accessorizing but we did need a few things. I ordered our toilet paper holder from Anthropologie. It doesn’t look like they carry it anymore but the Sylvie and the Floral Imprint toilet paper holders were also options I looked at and would work great in the space as well. A simple small brass hook holds the hand towel.
Our mirror is vintage found at a local thrift store. Last week I revealed part two of our DIY Bathroom Mirror Medicine cabinet. If you haven’t checked it out you should! It’s a really cool and easy DIY.
I thrifted a medium crock to store extra rolls of toilet paper in the corner. I also found a pair of small moody florals at a charity shop to use stacked above the toilet. My favorite place to source baskets for trash bins is HomeGoods or T.J. Maxx. I usually avoid the ones in the bathroom section and go straight to the basket section. The ones in the bathroom section tend to be a bit small in scale for my liking.
A vintage rug found at an estate sale in a variety of warm colors adds warmth and softness to the space. I recently spotted a beautiful soap dispenser when I was browsing HomeGoods a few weeks ago. The deep green trim around the edges works perfectly in the bathroom and the beautiful floral and bird motif adds a bit of color and whimsy.
I change out our guest paper towels with each season. It’s fun to swap in a new pattern or color for a little change.
Our Half Bathroom Remodel
I hope you enjoyed this peek into our little space. I absolutely love how it turned out! Out of all of the rooms in our home, this is one of the first spaces to be completed that really felt like me design-wise. From plan to execution, our half bathroom remodel all came together just as I envisioned it! Tell me in the comments below, what’s your favorite element? Do you have any questions about the design of the space?
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