Although bathroom remodeling might sound innocent enough, it is not. The bathroom is typically the smallest room in a house. Everyone will use it at least twice a day.
It must have water and electricity within a close proximity. It should be easy to clean. It is often moist. Wet objects – towels, toothbrushes, washcloths, shower curtains, etc. – need to dry in there.
It has to have outstanding lighting. It is best if it has an overall appearance of being sanitary. If you only have one, remodeling it is a nightmare for both the household and the construction workers. Do I have your attention now?
Playing it safe
Deciding to remodel in all beige is the safe option. The term “safe” here implies that the homeowner wants to protect the resale value of the house. If middle-of-the-road is your concern, go with beige. Make the wall and ceiling tile plain beige throughout.
Do not add any special tiles – like a fish or a muse – anything a new owner might dislike. For the toilet and sink choose either white or beige. Do not add a bidet – a personal hygiene fixture – or anything else unusual.
Stepping into the limelight
Should you plan to have a house party after all your remodeling is done, then consider a different approach. Hiring an interior designer is an option.
Anticipate what you want your friends to say or think about your investment in a new bathroom. Relay that information to the professional and see what suggestions he or she might have for your family.
Perhaps a few pieces of a tile you found on a trip to Italy would be a nice touch or a hand-painted ceramic sink from Mexico.
Your taste might like a matching hand-painted toilet. The shower will probably have an attachment with a hand-held wand.
A multi-range shower-head can be set to a multitude of different styles, timing, and/or forces of water pressure. The towel racks could be colors to match or compliment the sink, tile, or toilet.
One medicine cabinet option: a hand-worked tin frame around the mirror. Explain these thoughts to the designer.
Be open to their suggestions and see where their imagination leads for your bathroom remodeling adventure.
Going for the Gusto!
If you are the type of homeowner who likes to think of your home as an extension of your own unique personality, take a different approach.
If you could not care less if the house ever sells or what visitor’s think of the space – don’t hold back! Pick a theme, like the 1950’s and go for it. Use a Poodle Circle Skirt as the bathroom curtain.
Convert and old jukebox into a shower stall or walk through it as the door to the room. Perhaps tile the walls in 45RPM records.
Make the floor out of terrazzo alternating black-and-white linoleum. Imagine a sink of ceramic with a picture of Elvis in it.
The medicine cabinet a 45RPM record player cabinet hung on the wall. Instead of washcloths, hang up white Bobbie socks -since bathroom design is a way to express yourself the way you like!