What can I say about our old master bathroom? The beige laminate vanity was horrendous and the lack of drawers made it useless in terms of storage space. The tiles were icky and cold, the unlit and narrow walk-in shower was like a coffin. The chipped sinks were depressing and one of the sinks leaked so we only had one usable sink. It was just a depressing way to start our day.

Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda

  • We have many of the same regrets as in our guest bathroom.
  • We would have put more thought into the tub placement. Even though they correctly placed the tub faucet according to plans, our tub has a curved end and a straight end. The faucet is supposed to go at the straight end since the curved end is where your head should lie when you’re reclining in the tub, and the straight end has the drain which would be uncomfortable to sit on. Fortunately, the tub faucet is placed at an angle so there is some room to rest your head.
  • We would have been better off doing recessed medicine cabinets as opposed to mirrors. We assumed that having the extra storage with the vanity drawers would be enough. But for some things like our electric toothbrushes, it would have been nice to have a medicine cabinet with an electric outlet in it to hide the ugly toothbrushes
  • Again, the biggest lesson learned was not to rush our bathroom renovations. We had to make some quick decisions and ended up regretting them later on. We mistakenly assumed that the bathroom renovations would be much easier than the kitchen renovation because the rooms are smaller. Since there are so many elements involved – from plumbing to electrical to tiling to furniture – I would actually say that the two bathroom renovations were about as complex as our kitchen reno.

What Worked For Us

  • We went with the longest vanity possible – it’s longer than seven feet. It allows plenty of room for storage.
  • The vanity has a lot of details that I love and make it a focal point in the room; a dark brown stain, a mix of drawers and doors, oil-rubbed bronze hardware which matches the dark stain and turned legs.
  • There are several sparkly elements that make the master ensuite feel luxurious; the chandelier over the tub, the crystal levers on the faucets, and the lucite columns on the sconces.
  • Doing hooks rather than towel bars are great. It’s easy to just throw your towel on the hook and not worry about keeping the towels straight.