I know I’ve been promising to share pictures of our remodel for nearly three years, but well, it’s been a long three years. Our renovations took over six months to complete the major work just so we could move in, and then Covid hit and we had to wait months to finish the smaller, lingering projects and to get all the furnishing etc. done. I don’t know that I’d ever be done decorating and furnishing our home (or any home). I have changed up the look of our spaces probably a million times and would do it a million more. I’m learning as I go and well, I’m not an expert even though I really enjoy the process and experimenting. But as I’ve mentioned, we’re on the hunt for our next project, so I wanted to share at least some of our renovations before we move. I am going to start with this bathroom before and after remodel because the before was so crazy. I’m talking about mirrored walls and ceilings, crazy wallpaper, and oh yeah, nothing that worked. Literally, you couldn’t use the shower/bath, and the toilet and sink were questionable. Even the lighting was pretty subpar.
We did a gut renovation of the bathroom, taking it down to the studs and pipes, which of course revealed a lot of plumbing and electrical issues. Funnily enough (though not at the time), the toilet posed a particular challenge. We actually had to go with a very specific type of toilet to make it work and it has a very dramatic flush, which always makes me chuckle when I use it thinking about the crazy conversations and back and forth we had over how to make it work. But upon fixing all the not so fun issues, we also did a complete cosmetic overhaul. We brought in a new window, new shower and tub, new toilet as mentioned, new vanity, new lighting, new flooring retiled everything — redid it all. This was one of the first projects we started with, so I thought it felt appropriate to share first. I did the whole design, and while it’s not a big bathroom, I found it really overwhelming. I knew the general look I wanted, which was very simple and clean, as you’ll see in the bathroom before and after remodel pics. But picking out every detail from tile to grout to fixtures was far more challenging than I realized. There are just so many options out there. I knew I wanted simple subway tile in the shower, and was blown away when I went to the tile warehouse to discover just how many types of simple white subway tile there are. The space also posed a challenge. When working with a small space, you need to figure out how to maximize storage and make the space appear larger, and it’s not very easy. Hence, why there are professionals who do this for a living. With that said, I’m really happy with how our bathroom before and after remodel turned out, and I’m excited to share with you the pics and details.
In retrospect, I would recommend hiring a designer even for a small bathroom remodel where you’re not changing the footprint a ton. They just know so much more and there are a lot of rules and regulations not to mention things you probably wouldn’t think about but are key to a functional bathroom. With that said, if you want to try it on your own like me, it’s certainly doable. I recommend starting with inspiration pics and nailing down the look you want. I found it easier to go off of looks I liked than to try to figure out from scratch what would look good with what. As I’ve learned, what you think will work together may look different in reality. I then scoured stores (many to the trade that my contractor hooked us up with) and the internet as well as the Home Depots and Loewes of the world to find all the elements of that design within our budget, from the tub to the fixtures to the vanity. Check out our bathroom room before and after remodel — and how to get the look.
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