Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Bathroom Tour...Attic Renovation


Here is a tour of what I call a miracle bathroom.  
Renovating in an old home presents many obstacles.  

If you have an endless budget,
 anything could be done, 
but we were trying to work 
around the old house/attic obstacles in a 
natural way to keep cost down.  


One obvious challenge is the 
slanted attic ceiling.  
I had to do smaller double doors to 
get in just so we would not hit the ceiling.  

Then we had to "rehearse" standing at the 
toilet for head clearance.

We were also limited on toilet placement to keep it close
to the house plumbing stack.

In this case, we also had to order a special toilet that
is wall mounted rather than the floor.  
We had to have a cavity behind
the toilet to hide the plumbing. 

We did this because my 
contractor did not want to drill
into the floor joists, making the 
floor structure not as solid, so the plumbing 
sits on top of the floor behind the wall.

From a design standpoint, I added the 
granite ledge to make 
this feature feel like it was on purpose
...a feature and not hiding something. 


 Good lighting is so important and added this 
sconce that had a 
glass shade originally to the toilet side of the bathroom.  
I changed to a regular lamp shade...
also was happy.....got this from a 
lighting store tent sale for $30
 and the shade was $18.


 Next we wrap around to a built in bench...
was thinking it could be storage, 
but set it up this way and 
have kept it like this.  
I still have a preschooler 
so having a place to 
sit rather than the 
toilet is nice to have.

I added a bench cushion
...wrapped the foam with fabric 
like a present
using safety pins on 
the back side
(I can't sew) and some 
accent pillows.
You can use duct tape to cover 
safety pins if you are 
worried they will open 
or scratch the surface
Want to replace with a 
longer/thicker cushion, 
but had this one so using it for now.


 Then I had this little cubbie area for storage.
...so added some shelving.
I want to add a little 
piece of trim
to the front to hide the little ledge. 


 Added  a cute towel hook from World Market....

 For the tub area, I wanted to do a classic feature found in 
bungalows, so did a simple white subway tile
accented by little marble subway tiles.

I had the tiler space the tile so the grout lines would really show up and 
then used a darker grout 
color found in marble.

(I washed the tub before this photo was taken,
 so some of the grout 
looking darker in some spots 
where the grout is still wet.)
 Added a little shampoo niche...


 Another obstacle...had to order this jointed shower rod that is 
paintable hardware from Germany. 
Only thing that would work for a 
shower rod with going 
into a slanted ceiling.
Less expensive than custom glass shower door which I was thinking I would have to do.  
The piece was $12.


Added some sconces on either side of mirror....

 Carved mirror from Home Goods....from India

The vanity was from Home Depot
...came in a dark finish
but I painted it white.  
Could not find a white finish I liked in my price range.

I always tell my clients to look past the finish if the 
size and style is right, 
because it is the easiest thing to alter.

Also added different hardware.

Had a custom one priced like this for $900
...paid $325 for this one.

 Tried to be subtle but repeated the rectangle
 shape in sink, tile, and the 
wall sconce near toilet.


.....Big splurge ....and so worth it was.... 
this skylight.


 You can see how it reflects natural light in the mirror here. 


 This shows you how I had to use the 
double doors to clear the ceiling.
My husband added the stop hinge that 
keeps the door from hitting the vanity.




 Added this area rug for color and comfort...
 Had the tiler put the tiles on a 
running bond/brick pattern on floor.
Love this marble!
Found it at The Tile Shop

 The walls are a linen color...with all the 
in and out of walls and ceiling 
being slanted I wanted to 
blanket the walls and 
ceiling with the same color to keep it simple.

I pulled the color from the tile by 
using my paint fan on top of it.

 Fell in love with this granite
...a remnant from a fabricator.

Loved how it complimented the tile.








Besides the lighting near mirror and toilet, 
I also added a can light to shower area.

 Another obstacle was the bath/shower plumbing
...we added a drop in tub
 because.... once again..... we have the 
plumbing on top of the floor. 

Makes the tub a little higher to 
get into but still comfortable.

I thought this was a better way to do it rather 
than putting the tub on a little platform.



I hope you enjoyed the tour!