New Home, New Challenges

My fiancé and I are currently looking to buy our first house, which is exciting and scary all at the same time. The homes in our ideal neighborhood were mostly built in the 50s, complete with tiny bathrooms and colorful tile. Our favorite house (so far) is a cozy traditional with hardwoods, big kitchen... and prison-like master bathroom. The master bath is even smaller than the master closet, and may not be big enough for two people to coexist peacefully. Not to mention, there's no counter space... where's a girl to put her straightener? Scary bathroom aside, we love the house. So I've been brainstorming ways to make it more spa-like and less prison cell. Here are some of my ideas.

If you have a bathroom horror story, leave me a comment - I'd love to hear about it!

The House:

The charming living room.

The no-so-charming master bath... cue the Psycho soundtrack.
(It's so small, this was the best photo I could get.)

The airplane lavatory sized shower

The Solution:

Smaller, streamlined toilet. Since it's the first thing you see when you walk in
the door, it needs to be fairly attractive... if you can call a toilet attractive.


Replace wall tile with beadboard wainscoating. Classy and clean-lined.
Painted white to make the room feel airy and open.


Add crown molding and decorative trim to window
to make the room feel more luxurious.


New Lighting is a must! Although I love the look of the chandelier,
I think recessed lighting will make the low ceilings appear higher.


Re-tile the shower and add a new shower door to show it off.


Replace scary, prison sink with new vanity - with counter space and storage.