Our Upstairs Bathroom Addition
This is the second instance in my short 26 years of life where we are adding a bathroom to our upstairs. Also happens to be our first project since moving in… again! Project number one after closing on our 1890 victorian was making a dead space more alive. There was an awkward landing in the middle of the second floor, a floor that has four bedrooms and one bathroom. In deep desire for a master suite, we knew we had to make sense of that empty square. As we see this bathroom come to life, it’s as if this is how the space should have been all along.
Disclosure : This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I make a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links at no cost to you. This is made for full transparency.
In this blog post you will happily find…
The design board for the bathroom addition.
Resources & why we chose our products.
My vision for this space & the hopes I have for it.
Bathroom Addition Design Board
The weight this project carries is grand. Not only is it our first big renovation to this forever home, it is the first project in a while we are doing. Sure, we touched up the RV a bit, but that’s different. We were blessed with a new rig, this is a game changer here. I felt like starting this bathroom addition carried a lot of pressure, almost as if I am proving myself here.
A big challenge that people ask me is how do I make the decisions. How do I choose what style the room would be. Although this is very hard, being as there are so many amazing ideas out there, this house speaks to me. I know that sounds odd. Hear me out. This is the house we prayed for, dreamed for since we got married. A house that we know we could spend so many memory filled years. A house that we can make ours, not someone else’s. With that said, I know what style feels like home to us & this house offers its own character. That has to be fed into whatever project we do. Mixing old & new, simple & ornate, neutral & victorian. That’s the style! If that even is one.
We chose what elements we wanted to have an old vibe & which ones we thought would look best being more sleek. The vanity, bead board & tile inspiration we wanted to hold a historic essence. This home is quite large for the era it was built in, we know that the original owners had to have some extra cash in their pockets. Although it is very different today, we wanted to bring the history of the home to life. Choosing a marble tub surround was not only a simpler installation decision, it also brings a more timeless & high end feel from the victorian age.
The tile we chose is a mosaic which is also an inspiration from this era. Since the walls & vanity give off a heavy old feel, we wanted a mosaic tile that also felt a bit more modern. The pattern & colors we chose are both neutral yet spunky. I couldn’t love it more.
Let me tell you a funny story about this flooring though quick. We found this on Amazon after searching high & low, online & in store, literally anywhere & everywhere for a flooring that fit my vision. This mosaic tile was the only thing I could find that was also semi in budget & it was from AMAZON. They only had a few in stock so we bought all that was available. Thinking they would restock soon, right? Wrong. Oh so very wrong. Luke stalked their amazon account every day hoping it would show in stock. Randomly a box appeared & we snatched it up. Okay only 2 more needed. I emailed the company. $130+ to have it shipped from the manufacturer. Nope. For 2 boxes? No way. So we waited. They have 2 styles of mosaic & each style comes in 2 different color options. The only differences between the two is one has black and one has another shade of gray. SOOOOO we bought the only other box they had in stock which was the same color options but different style. You can see in the images below! So Luke hand pulled EVERY.TILE & placed them in the pattern we needed. That still wasn’t enough… To our luck the same pattern but different color came in stock so we grabbed that & Luke only had to replace the other gray shade with the left over black tiles we had. We were so held up on this project from this darn floor that we just had to do it. Luke rocked it & I learned my lesson. Only buy a product that has ample stock… oops.
They only had this in stock so we purchased it & Luke hand picked each tile individually to place in the layout we needed. I felt so bad & for sure learned my lesson.
But then we still ran out of the gray color but to our luck they had our correct layout in, just the wrong color. HOWEVER, we had some black tile left over from the other layout so Luke replaced the extra gray with the black & TA DA!
Anyways.. back to the bathroom. Bringing the gray tones into the bead board & trim was a fun choice too. I always knew I wanted contrasting trim in this home. It helps bring the charm back into the home & keeps our white walls from feeling too stiff. I talk more about the paint colors below, so keep reading! Ending with the bead board, I was a little more nervous that this would make the space feel tacky (I think because the other bathroom has it & it just doesn’t do much for me there… it needs some work). However, Luke did an amazing job installing it & when we have our shaker pegs added to the top trim, it will give the most perfect simple, yet old fashion charm.
What We Chose For This Space & Why We Chose It
Although you will not be able to see the finished project just yet… ( The date is March 2021 - find future posts for the finished product ) … here are all the links & information of what we chose for this space! It made me a little nervous hitting “purchase” for each of these, but it is all coming together so well. Present me is telling future me to trust my gut!
Walls + Flooring
Wall Paint Color : SW Alabaster
Trim Paint Color : SW Into the Gloaming
Tile : The tile we chose sells out quickly, but here is the link to see all their options they have : https://rstyle.me/+0b_J6t4bNF0_b4I-AmPhSw
Tub + Shower
Tub : Oasis
Surround : https://www.carstinbrands.com/bathrooms we chose the Carrera Frost #250 Marble
Fixtures : https://rstyle.me/+UBaf4IA7J_qN8eukrGwmyA
Vanity
Dresser : from a local artisan at Antiques on Main in Crown Point, IN
Vessel Sink : https://rstyle.me/+It982VpnrxYjBGvJ4GrIMQ
Faucet : https://rstyle.me/+u0kVX2mhY5YLToJEZPUhYA
Mirror : If you follow us on Instagram then you know we purchased a different mirror originally. With the ornate details spread throughout the small space, I knew I wanted to go a more simple route. Both mirrors will be linked here though! Don’t worry - I already know where the original mirror will be going.
Original - https://rstyle.me/+sxa3Y4VmS59agQkCo5QkxQ
Final Choice - https://rstyle.me/+1c8Y87N-rXxnA9pvbgQoSw
Light Fixtures : https://rstyle.me/+cX_twFGbkcUWkxgz2GvznA
If you have any questions on sources or our choices for this space, comment below!
Making a Bathroom Sentimental, Why This Room Matters
I am hesitant to even write this section because it seems so silly. A bathroom is a bathroom. It is a necessity & not always glamorous… lol. But this bathroom is so special to me. We designed it knowing that it will be the “kid’s bathroom” one day. It will be the bathroom I will curl my little girl’s hair before church or the bathroom that has smelly socks shoved behind the door from soccer practice. Tears will be shed in this bathroom over a scraped knee or a fight with friends. We will share a “first bathtub bath” here, learn to put on makeup for the first time, paint tiny toes nails, be consoled while sick. This is the bathroom our kids will fight over using too long. Set aside its future purpose of being the kid’s bathroom, it will be the bathroom our guests use to decompress after stressful travels while the stay in our home. This bathroom is a representation of the memories & people this home will hold & I just can’t wait for it.
Increasing Efficiency, Value & Flow
There you have it, a sentimental bathroom that didn’t exist a couple of months ago. It’s so odd because now when we are up there, it’s as if this space was meant to be a bathroom all along. So cheers to breaking in our forever home, diving into home renovations again, hopes for our future & shedding a tear over a toilet room.
I will do an updated post once we are complete complete! From when these photos were taken, we still had pegs to install & paint to do & we had a little mishap with our wall support…. so more stories to come! THEN I get to decorate!
