Posts Tagged ‘Powder Room’

And by “too sexy” I mean “too old”.  One of the things I want to do in my ugly powder room is replace the toilet.  I really want one of those new-fangled “comfort height” toilets!  I don’t have kids, so I don’t worry about it being too tall for anyone.  My aging joints demand some comfort when using the toilet, damn it!  Secondly, it seems like I’m replacing one part or another on my existing toilet every year.  It wants to leak all the time.  Finally, it has horrible hard water stains that won’t budge no matter what I do.  I have tried everything: CLR, pumice stones, etc.  The stains are from the time prior to us installing a whole-house water treatment system and repairing our well. So, I’m ogling new toilets these days.  I know: sexy!

Kohler Toilet - Square Base

I’m kinda digging the square base and lines of this toilet.  In addition to being “comfort height”, it’s a one-piece unit.  I don’t know why, but I imagine one-piece units being less likely to malfunction than a two-piece tank-and-bowl toilet.

I also like this rounded base toilet:

Kohler Toilet - Rounded Base

It would meld nicely with the rounded console sink I like.  Oh!  I found that particular sink in white too.  Check it out.

Console Sink - White

I don’t know why, but I like white stuff in a bathroom.  I just think white = clean, assuming you actually take the time to keep everything clean.  If you aren’t a tidy housekeeper, you might think a brown bathroom is awesome. 

I also need to consider the flooring.  Right now I have an off-white, fake-marble linoleum flooring.  It’s not too hideous, but I would like something different.  I’m trying to decide whether or not to extend the engineered hardwood flooring into the powder room.  I like the look of it and think it would tie in seamlessly with the rest of the house, but I’m worried about water issues even though it’s engineered wood.  Thus, I’m also considering some classic penny tile or basketweave tile:

Basketweave Tile - Marble

Gorgeous!  It reminds me of something you would see in an older home.  Here are some more bathroom pictures for inspiration:

White Bathroom - Basketweave Tile

I’m not crazy about the tile on the walls in that photo.  I will probably do beadboard or board-and-batten wainscoting.  However, I am in love with that marble basketweave tile floor!

Hexagonal Tile Bathroom Floor

This flooring consists of hexagonal marble penny tile.  That’s also high on my list of potential flooring candidates.  I think it looks old-timey, which fits with the architecture of my home, but it also looks a bit modern and updated.  I supposed penny tile is making a comeback.

Here are some more inspiring bathrooms.

Courtesy of House Beautiful

Courtesy of House Beautiful

Obviously, I’m not renovating a full bathroom (yet!), but I would like a similar look for my ugly little powder room.

The powder room on the main living floor is in desperate need of a makeover. Everyone who visits my house and sees what we’ve done with the rest of it says, “You really need to do something about that powder room!”  I couldn’t agree more.   Currently, everything in it is original to the house, which was constructed in 1993.  Was this hideous floral wallpaper ever trendy?!

Hideous Powder Room circa 1993

As you can see, the previous owners of my home really loved the awful honey oak cabinetry.  It is in every room which requires cabinetry.  I could paint it like I did in the kitchen, but I really want a different vanity/sink in the powder room.  For starters, it’s quite small.  I’m thinking of replacing it with a pedestal sink:

Pedestal Sink

I love the wainscoting in that photo.  Whatever I do, some type of wainscoting is a must in the half bath.  Have you ever decided to change the wall color in your bathroom only to realize you must remove your toilet tank in order to paint behind it?  Yeah – it sucks.  I think a nice, classic, white wainscoting treatment is the solution.  It will probably only need touch-ups, and I can easily change the wall color above the wainscoting on a whim.

Let’s get back to the sink.  While I like a pedestal sink, I confess that I really use the storage in that crappy oak vanity.  Pedestal sinks don’t even allow you to place baskets for storage.  Thus, I’m also leaning heavily towards a console sink.  How about something in classic Carrara marble?

Carrara Marble Sink

It’s understated and timeless, but I’m not sure how I feel about exposed plumbing.  Am I being too picky?  What about another type of console sink:

Console Sink

That one is cute, and it has a place for storage baskets to hide toilet paper and stuff.  I also love the built-in towel bar on the front of it.

Rounded Console Sink

I just love the rounded shape of this one, and it also has some storage space.  It’s also about the right size at 22″ wide.  I can’t go any wider than 24″ in the bathroom unless everyone wants to bang themselves on the sink while using the toilet.

Decisions, decisions!  Half the battle of starting a new project is deciding what you want to do.  *sigh*