There were a few problems we were trying to solve with our reno but a big one was the bathroom. We only had one and it was tiny with a terrible layout. There was just one sink and the mirror was too low for either of us to see in stand up as we are both tall. There was plastic tile on the walls that was falling down in places and the tub looked like it was 100 years old. When standing in front of the sink with the door open there was less than a foot of space and the door would bump you in the back. My step-daughter lived with us while she was a teenager for a few years and it compounded the issues. When guests came to stay it was insufferable.
That epiphany of moving the bathroom allowed us to create a second bathroom in our floor plan. We now have an ensuite and a main bath. I was able to add a nice deep tub that is great for a soak. Despite the horrible old tile and vanity in the original bathroom we wanted to pay homage to the original design of the house with the main bath. Our house was built in the late 1950’s and aquamarine was the theme colour of our house. The original window trim was aqua, as were the countertops and the backsplash. Even the stucco had little bits of aqua glass in it. I love a great blue-green tile but the original colour was pretty garish and flat. Did I mention the tile 3 x 3 plastic squares?
When searching for tile one of the first things I found was this beautiful Italian aquamarine tile in 8x8 squares and I knew I could recreate the old bathroom but in a new and better way. The Italian tile is matched with a grey subway and dark hexagon on the floor. We have a custom fir wood vanity that is a play off the original one. We added polished nickel Riobel wall mounted fixtures. I did manage to salvage one thing from the original bathroom - the vanity hardware. I cleaned them up with a bit of Brasso and polish and I think they finished it off nicely.
Sometimes one small change or idea can lead to a whole new design. It’s important to try different things and experiment with moving walls or even whole rooms sometimes in the design phase. My experience renovating my own home has taught me some important lessons and I can’t wait to pass on that knowledge to my clients.