The Little Bath

Hi Christine,
Love your blog!
We recently bought our first house (yah!) and thru the help of Craig and his list, we have put together a collection of pieces that I love. I included those pictures so you can get a sense of things that I like. On to the thing that I don't like: our half bathroom. As the pictures show, it is located off a laundry room (that desperately needs a new light fixture... I was thinking a chandelier? Something a little more interesting than the awful plastic thing that is currently up there! I am also antique shopping some great laundry art. Does that even exist??! Or maybe I will create my own suds-y fabulosity! We started with some wainscoting on the ceiling and an olive color that coordinates with the drapes in the adjoining living/dining room. Added some interesting black/white storage boxes since people will actually pass thru there to use the facilities. I digress...) So the bathroom. I shudder at mention of that room. It is TINY. It has exposed plumbing. It has linoleum flooring. It has *brass* fixtures! And sadly, it is the main restroom that our guests use. The other two options are upstairs, one occupied by our two boys, the other is the master. Looking at the positive, the room is incredibly small so a great floor will not be that expensive! And aside from the tight quarters, it will be a quick paint job.
I am so overwhelmed by my hatred towards this bathroom, I do not even know where to begin!
Help!!
Carolyn

Dear Carolyn,

A note to you and everybody - could you please send your photos in a jpeg attachment format so that I can save them and use them in my blog? Thanks. However you sent them - my computer did not like it :). I will add your photos when I get them.

On to your wee little bath...

When you do not have a tub or shower- you do not need a large towel rack - or a medicine cabinet. Take them both down, add a towel ring close to the sink - so as to not be the big focal point on the wall.

Get a new TP holder in a matching series as your towel ring. You have silver on your sink - so let’s go with that. Replace the basket on the top of the commode with a cute box like the one at the top of the post from Global Views. This is all the storage a little bath like this needs.

Your pipes are dirty old things. I don’t mind the exposed pipe look at all - but I like them shiny. Research and see how you can clean them up.

Add some pizazz to this little room. Something that you might tire of in your kitchen could be totally fun in a small bath - like this wallpaper from Stacie Garcia. A small bathroom like this is not an enormous expense - so you can afford to switch it out in five years and totally change the look. This is the perfect place to be bold and trendy.

Add some softness with a relaxed sheer Roman Shade on the window.

Add some style with a beautiful white leather mirror. This mirror is from Global Views. In a little powder bath like this, I don’t worry as much about having a large mirror, like you would insist on in a Master Bath.

Put in a beautiful timeless floor - like this onyx mini-brick.

I liked this little soap holder - then you could find cute square soap...

On the large wall when you walk into the bath - that no longer has a towel rack on it - hang the ceramic carnations at the top of the post. (from Global Views)

Add crown molding (not too small!) and coordinating stone baseboard - nine inches high. The crown molding should be a crisp white and the ceiling should be a lighter shade of the green in the wallpaper.

There you go. Have fun with this little bath!

Wallpaper Wednesday- His and Hers

Phillip Jefferies is a leader in the wallpaper industry when it comes to natural textures. They have a beautiful woven leather that adds amazing richness in a sophisticated masculine way. To counteract that on a feminine side, they have what they refer to as Glam Grass, a collection that mixes woven textured with the sparkle of a metallic thread- resulting in a glamorous chic paper. To give your room a "mood" or specific "atmosphere"- add a beautiful, or handsome, texture to your wall.