Master Bathroom

When we bought this house the only room that really had me stumped was the master bathroom.  I couldn't possibly imagine what to do with a bathtub that was as odd as that one was.  We eventually named her Betty and I am happy to announce that Betty was never in working order and was never used by anyone in the Cutler house! :) 

Before we bought the house the bank made us put some sort of flooring down because all that was exposed was rotting sub floor.  While we were in the process of doing some temporary flooring, I made Drew replace that black toilet and we put on a new counter top and sink.  I am pretty good at going with the flow and making due with what I have, but i did have to draw the line somewhere!!!  

 In this picture I am standing in the doorway from the master bedroom.  To the right was a wall of closets and to the left is the giant bathtub.

Don't miss out on the silver wallpaper.  That was something else! :)  It took me a long time to figure out the design for this bathroom.  Our bedroom is a nice size, but the bathroom area isn't as spacious.  I didn't want to lose any bedroom sq footage and finally decided that a really nice walk in closet with a very nice bathroom was a better choice than a big bathroom with a tiny closet.  Unfortunately,  I didn't get pictures of the removal of Betty- but she was a beast!

 We had to tear almost everything down to the studs and build a few new walls.

 I bought our bathtub online and was VERY happy when we got it and I saw just how big and perfect it is! I didn't have the space or want a whirlpool tub so we got an oversized soaker tub.

 Drew is standing in the space that used to be the Betty.  It is now my walk in closet.

 A family tradition we have is to leave our mark on every house we live in.  This house is extra awesome because we actually tear walls down and leave our print before we put new drywall up.  I just imagine in 3o years someone tearing that wall down and seeing that there was a family here that lived and loved!  We have found lots of really funny things in the walls of this house.  My favorite was a 3o year old Salted Nut Roll :)

Because of the lay out of the bathroom its hard for me to get a great picture to show how it is all layed out so I hope you can use your imagination.  The Bathtub is straight ahead when looking into the bathroom where the sink once was.  We tore out the closet that is now the vanity and Betty is now the closet.  The toilet remained in the same location.

This is not the greatest picture into what is my closet- but it is amazingly big and spacious for all my clothes.  Drew is still working on shelves, but those will be finished soon.  :)

All in all, we love our bathroom! It is the perfect mix of functionality and beauty.  As I was thinking about all the work we've done on our home and all the work we have left to do- I was thinking about all the things I wish I knew when I started and what I have learned a long the way.  

1. Don't buy a house the needs to be completely remodeled :)

2. Decide on your budget and time frame.  Then immediately add several thousand more dollars and a few more weeks of time.  We budgeted fpr a frameless shower sliding door, but because the plumbing cost more than expected, I am enjoying my walmart curtain! You have to go with the flow and make changes as needed. 

3. Decide if this is your forever house or right now house.  It is easier to make decisions when you keep that in mind.

4.  Spend your money on the things that matter most - although it isn't anything you see and is beautiful to look at be sure to do your plumbing, electrical, framing correctly.  They may not be the fun things to do, but are most important.  

5. When buying materials, buy what you can afford.  It is very easy to WANT WANT WANT when you start looking on Pinterest and seeing all of the gorgeous fixtures and lighting and tile.  It might be gorgeous, but it might not be affordable.  I spent more on my vanity by having it custom made to my exact specs and in doing so, I spent less on my faucets.  They can always be changed down the road- the vanity can't. 

6. Teach yourself something new!  I taped and textured the entire bathroom all by myself.  It may not be professional, but I am really happy with how it turned out and also with the skill that I learned.  I also learned that when we do our main bathroom I WILL NOT BE DOING ANY DRYWALL or TEXTURING.  That is now being budgeted for someone else to do!!! 

7.  MOST IMPORTANT!!! Do what you love.  Don't worry about what other people say or what you see on Pinterest or on HGTV.  I was making myself crazy looking at everything under the sun trying to put this bathroom together.  It wasn't until I just decided what I liked and what we could live with that it all came together.  

There are a few things that I might have changed now that it is done, but I am one lucky lady to be able to do what I love in this crazy house that is

finally feeling like my own.