Coming up With a Game Plan

When you’re in the planning stages of your home renovation, there are key bathroom design mistakes that you want to avoid to make your efforts as strong as possible. One of the key mistakes people make is to simply fail to do the proper planning. To avoid this blunder, you must draft out your intentions as much as possible. Remember the old adage, “people don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan?” This is something that you should keep in mind to avoid some of the most common remodeling slip-ups.

First and foremost on the list of makeover boo boos is to fail to properly budget for the upgrade that you want. Bath fixtures, cabinets and flooring can quickly add up and if you’re not careful you can quickly run out of money. Set your washroom renovation funds accordingly and then shop for elements that fit within that range – not the other way around.

When planning your new bath space, don’t make the oversight of not having enough compartments to reduce the clutter. Inadequate storage space for all of your towels, toiletries, makeup, and paper products can create one of those inescapable gotchas when you actually start to use your new grooming space. Sure those pedestal sinks look great but where do you put everything? If you don’t have an attached linen closet in the room, then this is one of those unnecessary mistakes you’ll be kicking yourself for later.

You also want to avoid not having enough counter space; even if your powder room is fairly small. People like to lay their stuff out, and you want to avoid having a ready area that looks cluttered and messy all of the time. Another mistake to avoid is to make it difficult to get to the things like toilet paper or shampoo when you really, really need it.

Think Long Term

Another oversight people tend to make is going too trendy in their bath area with plumbing fixtures, light fixtures, colors, etc. It’s a big mistake to think these finicky design trends will last. And unless you have the budget to keep updating the room, then you want to avoid choosing the flavor of the month. Think about how much you’re spending on your lavatory renovation right now – when will you want or be able to spend that much on a redesign again. Avoid this trendy blunder and make your renovation stand the test of time, at least 10 – 20 years.

Busy looking and easily dated decor.

When planning your construction, one of design boo boo’s to avoid is a poor use of the available area. Most washrooms have limited space and you need to avoid putting items that are too bulky into the room. Big soaker tubs are all the rage, but a common mistake is to not take into account just how much floor area that great big tub will take up.

Another re-occurring washroom oversight is to not properly prepare for the flow of traffic. Improperly placed cabinets and toilets in a bathroom can create a faulty design and a zig-zag raceway that results in banged hips and shins. When planning your renovation, it’s a good idea to draw the placement of all major fixtures to scale on a grid sheet to help you visualize how everything will fit together and avoid a renovation disaster.

People who don’t yet have children, or whose kids are still small, sometimes do not plan for the long haul. Small children eventually grow into big teenagers and you need to ensure your home improvement project takes that into account and you don’t end up with inappropriate decor or an unusable layout down the road.

Calculate Usage and Tasks

Another aspect to consider is to avoid improper or inadequate lighting. A washroom that’s too bright is just as much a bad design decision as a bath area that’s too dark. A bright bathing space shows every spec of dirt and every flaw and a dark grooming area makes getting ready in the morning difficult. Another error that many people make is to get a dark, heavy shower curtain that won’t let in the light. If your bathroom plan doesn’t include lighting in the bathing and showe[...]

It's easy to overpower a small bathroom with too much color and pattern. It’s important to take into account the sizes of your arrangements in relation to the overall size of the room in which they are to be used. By following a theme, your entire bath will have a balanced feel without overcoming the viewer.

As Nature Intended

Modern bathrooms can sometimes feel clinical and detached. What is more natural than the lumber that comes from trees? Wood finishes have a natural warmth and texture that can be just the antidote you are looking for to once again make your bathing space sincere and inviting.

Now conventional wisdom will tell you that wood and excessive moisture in your washroom is not a good mix because once the lumber is wet, it will begin to decay but fortunately there are ways to make this work.

From simple paints and sealants to modern innovative building materials such as hardwood tongue-and-groove planks you can readily overcome this former predicament.

Absorbing and Releasing Moisture

Of course some types of timber resist moisture better than others, notably cedar, redwood and teak and each variety has its own unique characteristics and colors. Beautiful grain patterns can be used to highlight walls and floors, however in order to retain a rich finish, counters, walls and floors must be properly sealed and maintained.

Highlighting Grain Patterns

When styling your home, colors dictate the mood of a room and most woods can be enriched with stain to enhance the characteristics and grain of the material for interior design treatments.

For example, dark vintage planks not only add a welcomed optical texture to the bathing space but it’s also a beautiful counterpoint to sparkling chrome fixtures. Light-toned woods tend to emanate a contemporary flavor while the darker varieties works well in a more traditional styled washroom.

Making a Stunning Statement

For walls, tongue-and-groove paneling is a trendy addition to any lavatory. These 3-5 inch wide slats are a snap to fit together no matter whether your washroom is a luxury suite or a high-traffic family grooming space.

Beaded hemlock wainscoting with a simple chair rail and baseboard adds beautiful and stylish trim work to add classical or country charm to any washroom. A Wooden fir countertop and antique furniture not only enriches the space but also invites you to linger in a more familiar setting.

Underfoot, timber as compared to tile and stone is warmer and welcoming. Oak, maple and cherry are excellent choices given proper preparation and installation. Engineered wood products can also be used for floors and walls but be diligent in your search for the best brands because cheaper version can delaminate if exposed to excessive water.

As a design element, thinner floorboards approximately two-and-a-quarter inch wide seem to work better in the smaller space of a bathroom than do wider slats. Another benefit of the narrower boards is that they have a tendency of absorbing less moisture when the humidity swings and will thereby swell and shrink less than wider planks.

Preserving Surfaces

So how do you safeguard your investment? For walls, paint helps any wood stand up to the conditions of a bathroom. The most durable type to use is the exterior brands manufactured for porch floors.

One way to protect your bath floor from the damaging effects of water and humidity is to apply a number of coats of a clear polyurethane sealer or epoxy finish. Please note, while there are also watershed protectors which repel water much better than oiled or wax type finishes, for best results, a polyurethane coating applied several times over the surface and seams will make it almost impossible for water to penetrate.

Debunking Wet Zones

Applying a marine grade finish makes sense but remember while this barrier is designed to protect the surface, any water that gets through the seams or sides of your floor planks will invariable do damage so make sure all planes are properly sealed.

It’s also a good idea to mop up any standing water just in case it finds a crack and penetrates down to the timber. A bath mat is a simple way to absorb any excess water as you step from the shower or tub.

Making Smart Choices

Are there any areas that you should not put wood in your bathroom? The an[...]

Dress it up to Impress Your Guest

Small half-baths can create a big time impact on the guest that visits your residence. Most of us have them in our homes; these handy little spaces are normally furnished with only a sink and toilet and sometimes go by the name “Powder Room” because of the tendency of guest to go in there to freshen up. The problem with these pint-sized baths is that they are so small, so how do we make that small ugly bathroom usable and inviting?

Well the first and obvious solution is to place them in a convenient and accessible place on the first floor of your home near a public area. But remember that because some people are naturally shy when it comes to using the toilet, you want to place this prep room partially down the hall where the doors do not open directly onto your living room or dining room space.

The purpose of a powder room is to eliminate traffic that may congest the main washroom in your home. Since these grooming spaces are regularly used by guest, (sometimes called “guest -bathrooms” for obvious reasons) you want to make the space appealing to leave a memorable lasting impression of you and your home on your visitors. 

Does Size Really Matter?

So you have located your comfort station down the hall or around the corner away from curious or glaring eyes. For the most part these rooms don’t have to be more than 4×5 feet but the minimum space required should be no less than 3×6 feet in order to be usable and meet municipal lavatory standards.

The great thing about these pint-sized compartments is that because of their smaller size you won’t need as much building and surface materials so you can splurge on higher priced fixtures and finishes to impress and wow your house guest. Spacing saving methods abound everywhere , however because of the size of the chamber, the consideration of door clearance is very important.

Incorporate Space Saving Elements

When refining your washroom space, in order to eliminate the inconvenience of an inward swinging door that makes entering the small chamber awkward, a sliding or pocket door offers a convenient way to deal with the linear enclosure. If your powder-room is long and narrow, placing the sink and toilet on opposite ends of the modest space will free up the middle of the room so that a swinging door can be easily accommodated.

Another plus of having an additional den for grooming is if the main bathroom in your home is very busy in the morning, a smaller chamber with a room length vanity is the perfect place for getting ready on those extra busy days. Improving upon your existing bathing space by installing a wall length mirror is one way to add impact, alleviate any sense of claustrophobia and open up the space. To make the most of this tiny bath one trick is to locate the sink and the toilet on the same side of the bath to better utilize and conserve floor space.

Square vs Oblong

Alternatively, to create a small half-bath with big-time impact, having a vanity corner unit that crawls along two sides of your wall, not only acts as a design element but also provides amble counter space for display, toiletries and grooming supplies.

The shape and size of the room will impact not only what you can put in your bath but also how effectively you can use the space. Long and narrow chambers are the most difficult to use whereas a square powder-room will give you the most layout options to help eliminate most design challenges.

To get the most of the limited square footage in your home, the purchase of smaller fixtures will help to conserve space. Pedestal sinks are the obvious choice but not the only option for the sink area. Remember that because the space is small, you can let your creativity loose without influencing the overall style of your house too much.

Let Your Creative Juices Flow

A converted bedroom chest drawer o[...]