Our master bathroom, currently

Let me start by saying, I love this bathroom—I love the way the light pours in and bounces off the glass in the shower for a few hours in the early afternoon, I love its old character with the square window that opens from the top and hangs by a chain and the original medicine cabinet. I love all the stone and tile in it and all the different shades of white. It has come a seriously long way from where it was when we bought our house and began renovating it. I wish I had a before photo! It only contained a toilet and a shower—no sink!—and hadn’t really been touched in decades. So, we added a little bit of square footage to make room for a vanity and sink, expanded the shower space, and updated all the finishes. This did cut into our bedroom’s square footage, of course, but we’re not really big “master bedroom” people, so that didn’t bother us.

But this is the thing—this bathroom isn’t finished, per se, and there’s a bunch of things I’d still love to change or improve (more on that later). Are you familiar with @chrislovesjulia on Instagram, by any chance? They’ve become a favorite follow of mine. Julia and her husband are a home design/reno team who are currently focused on renovating the big, beautiful but outdated house they bought this past summer. They are relatable, price conscious, and transparent, and they go room by room and show lots of behind-the-scenes, decision-making, and progress footage. One thing I recently learned from them is to take on more of a “don’t wait / why wait” attitude about showing your home in the state it currently is; regardless of whether it’s finished or not—otherwise you will likely spend the rest of your life feeling like nothing is ever finished. We’ve renovated and redone almost every room of our house since moving into our beloved fixer upper, and Jon and I both sort of love a home design/furnishing project—it’s part hobby, part psychosis of boredom and wanting change—so I usually don’t think to show different rooms on here as “finished projects.”

SO, anyway, in the spirit of ‘why wait’—I recently gave our master bath a deep clean, and for the four minutes it stayed that way, I decided to take some quick pictures of it. In case, like me, you’re a voyeur and would love to see anything and everything about other people’s houses, here you go!

In terms of what I’d still love to change—I’d really love to add more antique elements in there. I can picture an antique wood piece in place of the current vanity. The problem is that it’s a limited space, so the size would have to be just right. Perhaps a good first step would be to change out all of the vanity hardware for a more custom, less big-box look. I’d also love a more substantial, antique mirror in either brass or wood. Smaller, easier changes include putting an effing plant in the hanging planter that’s been empty for months and improving the look of the “black hole” heat vent on the wall. I could also see adding a tiny painting above the toilet—I can picture a thick, ornate gold frame looking great.

Sources

Paint color: Healing Aloe by Benjamin Moore, same as in Grace’s nursery!
Rattan cabinet
Elizabeth & James Nirvana White Candle (bestttt)
Towels (old, from HomeGoods)
Brass towel bar
S hooks on towel bar
”Their First Quarrel” art is vintage
Vanity (old, from Wayfair)
Light over vanity (old, from Restoration Hardware, most similar)
Hand towel
Towel hook (old, from Anthropologie)
Soap dispenser
Soap dish on vanity
Mirror
Amber bottles (here’s my simple DIY)
Soap dish in shower
Yellow planter (boutique)
Light over toilet
Toilet paper ring