Master Bath

This was originally a medium-sized hall bathroom and a small bedroom. The bathroom was the only full one in the house and the bedroom was smallish with no closet. After agonizing over how to fit two bathrooms (a master and a hall bath) and a closet into the space - which was made difficult by the proximity to the stairs and the existence of three windows - we decided to do one extra large bathroom and keep the door to the hall while adding a door to the master. 

The bathroom was gutted - no easy feat since it was COVERED in tile - and the wall between the rooms torn out. The carpet in the bedroom came up, as did the hardwood floor under that. We saved all of the hardwood and have used it to patch where necessary in the rest of the house, an unanticipated bonus. 

This room is over the kitchen, so while the ceiling was ripped out below, we sistered all of the joists, meaning we added another beam to all of the supports underneath the floor. Originally I wanted a claw-foot iron tub, which is why we had them done, even though after the fact a contractor told us that this house was so overbuilt (which is a good thing) that we could put the tub on the roof and there wouldn't be any problems. But still, you could teach an elephant to dance in here and it wouldn't hurt a thing.

This door we are looking through in this picture was originally a wall. 

This is the view from the bedroom. This is what you see when you are lying in bed and the door is open. The door on the left leads to the private WC.

I like that the WC has a window (that opens!). It makes the room feel less claustrophobic. It also has the typical high ceilings of the rest of the house and a transom over the door to allow light.

We put in laminate flooring because it would be impossible to match the hardwood, and we wanted it to be waterproof but aren't big fans of tile on the floor. (It's freezing cold and everything you drop on it breaks!) The floor was laid on an angle. The contractor said it makes it look fancier. ;)

I chose pedestals because my husband is messy. Yes, I like the sculptural element, yes, they are very pretty, but mostly, it's because if he has a flat surface available, he will cover it with something.  These have enough space to keep soap or set down a make-up bag, but not enough to hold clutter.

The mirrors pivot to accommodate any height, and there is a glass shelf beneath them to hold toothbrushes, moisturizer, etc. The basket between holds rolled up towels, which I'll admit I prefer to a closet (though there is a linen closet just outside the door).  I like using practical, usable elements in an artistic way.

The vent pictured is dead now, but I never closed up the hole entirely (it's closed inside the wall). The rerouted vent is just to the right behind the door. Added perk: if you hang towels on the back of the door or on a rack on the wall, the wall vent keeps them warm! 

Walls are Pike's Peak Grey by Benjamin Moore.

Here you can see the master bedroom through the open door and the transom window over the WC door. The wooden thing hanging over the tub is a printer's drawer I found in the attic of an old studio I worked at. 

The window behind the chair is new and not a perfect match, but it was here when we moved in and I couldn't justify replacing a new window just to get the color to match perfectly.

The tub is jetted and makes wicked high bubble baths. The base surround is beadboard, with tile around the tub. It is big enough to fit 2 adults comfortably, or 3 lanky children. The window over the tub overlooks the back yard but it doesn't open. Bummer. I want to put Roman shades on them, but I haven't found a fabric I like and since the house next door is vacant, it's not a huge issue right now.

If you're wondering why we have a chair in the bathroom, I'll tell you. 

Because it's pretty. 

Because it makes me feel frightfully decadent. 

And because it's nice to have somewhere to sit while you're talking to someone doing something in the bathroom while you do nothing. My kids sit here and talk to me while I put my make up on, I sit here and talk to my husband when he gets home late and goes through his flossing, brushing, shaving routine. I sit here and read while my three-year-old takes a bath - they can go for ages but if I left her alone, the house would be covered in bubbles. The match to this chair is in the master bedroom and both were in the study at our old house.

This is the best part. This is a double shower. Heads at either end, tiled ALL THE WAY TO THE CEILING, bench in the corner. This baby was built for tall people. Or for people who just hate bumping their hands into the showerhead when they wash their hair. 

The heads have removable centers so they can be handheld. You can also use the 'rain' portion, which encircles the removable bit, or turn on a combination of both. I like to turn on both sides and revel in the luxury of it all. 

(See comment about decadence above.)

This is the view from the shower. That's the door to the hall and the painting here is from Goodwill - I think it was $8 or somewhere around there. The little set of drawers (it's not really a dresser) has chalkboard on the front of the drawers, so they are labeled for easy organization: Hair, Make-up, Nails, etc. The jewelry box on top was purchased on our honeymoon in the Carpathian Mountains.

This is the wardrobe I had built in. It was supposed to go all the way to the ceiling, but there was a miscommunication with the contractor. And about the shaker cabinet doors that aren't shaker at all...
Don't even get me started on the light above that was supposed to be inside and that I now have no idea what to do with.

The best part is the shoe drawer on the bottom. Two individual drawers behind one giant cover. It holds 20 pairs of shoes!!! The out of season ones are stored. ;)