Pepper Design Blog

Building a Bathroom: Initial Inspiration

Our new guest bath design was originally inspired by the latest Decor & Trends project videos that were recently released by the Lowe’s PR team (not available on the website so be sure to check them out here). After hopping out to the Lowe’s website to explore additional how-to ideas (listed under Home Ideas and Projects on the site), I was surprised at how many great diy suggestions, articles and videos that they share online as well.

One particular video from the Decor & Trends section happened to feature a bathroom that rang very similar to what we had envisioned for our new guest bath and it was quickly added to the ‘inspiration folder’ on my desktop. Here’s a sneak peek:

What we loved about the bathroom decor was the simple integration of old-world style melded with modern furnishings and details. The white subway tile (a favorite of ours as we used a glass version in our kitchen remodel) brought in an original, traditional element that will stand the test of time, while the vanity, eco-friendly touches and rich colors keep the bathroom modern.

Having several visual images to work off of is so helpful for Kevin and me when remodeling – it helps to keep us on track with the overall look we’re trying to achieve (it’s easy to get distracted when you start shopping and there are so many choices out there) and since we’ve already decided on a plan it keeps us from mid-aisle disagreements about the shade of this paint over that. When the decisions get tough, we can pull out our handy inspirational images to see what color grout might be best or how various tile & paint colors work together in a final room.

The diy sections and videos are totally worth a look!

Building a Bathroom: PDB + Lowe’s = LOVE

A while back we received a surprise email from one of our favorite stores. Hint: it starts with ‘L’ and rhymes with ‘toes’.

And when I say we’re huge fans, I mean we’re huge fans.

Liv makes the cutest project cheerleader.

So here we are minding our remodeling business and working away on project after project when out of the blue we were offered a helping hand. As in, Lowe’s casually emailed, “would you like to review several Lowe’s products while building that future bathroom?” and we fell out of our chairs in speechless awe/excitement. Yes please!

Best email ever, no?

We are building this bath from scratch – the current location is three adjoining closets that sit plop in the middle of our hallway. The goal is to create a new full bathroom that compliments the Spanish style of the home all while being both eco-friendly and tastefully modern at the same time.

As you can see, access to the bath will be through our hallway (off of the kitchen) and through Liv’s room.

If we could throw any visual out there for what’s playing around in our minds, this might be closest:

Here’s a first look at the materials we have in mind for the space (we built this little inspiration board right on the Lowe’s shelf):

I was soooo excited that I offered a little sneak peek of the layout back in February, but we really weren’t ready to act on it until all of our research was complete, with the goal to begin slated for the end of March. And drumroll…. it’s nearly the end of March! I’ve been counting down the days.

Over the month of April we’ll be revealing all of the how-to’s on the design, tiling (heated floors, anyone?), installation and even our decision making process (on how to choose the best toilet, for example – you laugh, but there’s more to it than meets the eye ), all while covering the rest of the home that we’re slowing working on (such as the new guestroom/office, decorating the nursery and updating the living room).

Now back to pinching ourselves!

Master Bedroom: A Good Place to Pause

Hope you had a wonderful New Year’s Eve! I can’t believe 2011 has found us and is already underway… it seemed like 2010 just flew by. We’re up to our eyebrows in projects over here and working to wrap up bigger undertakings such as the new kitchen, office and nursery. Before we jump into those, a quick update on our bedroom.

Our master bedroom is not complete but I’m happy to say that we’ve pulled it together to a place that Kevin and I are both happy with and both enjoy.

Since we are on baby watch and expecting any day now, the room will have to stay as is until the storm that is about to be our crazy lives settles down… but we did manage to pull the new rug, new mirror and diy curtains together to create a space that is relaxing and comfortable – especially after a busy day!

Up next for this little room includes a light fixture update, wall artwork and photos, a new nightstand (currently hunting down a small one to fit that narrow space!) and incorporating more color to add that ‘pop’.

A run down of resources so far: the sunburst mirror is a Michael’s find, the rug is from Overstock.com, the bed from Pottery Barn (but found by us on Craigslist), the duvet and sheets from Garnet Hill, the pillow cases by Calvin Klein, the knit throw pillow from West Elm on sale, the bamboo shades were found at Lowe’s, the over-sized mirror from the clearance section at Lowe’s, and the reading light and curtains are from Ikea.

The opposite side of the room is waiting for its big reveal… but there are a few missing puzzle pieces here and there that should fill in shortly. We did salvage a very neat occasional chair for the corner next to the tall mirror that I’ll share about as soon as it gets some more diy love (you can see it poking its boxy frame out above).

Here’s the before we moved in shot:

Gotta love that maroon carpet and the bars on the outside windows. We originally had the room in a configuration close to the above, with the bed against the right wall and the dresser under the window, but by switching it up we gained a large amount of space unexpectedly. Sometimes all it takes is moving around furniture to create a fresh, new feel.

We’ve made a minor modification for Baby S as well, he/she will be joining us at night and for naps in a new co-sleeper that slips just beside our bed.

Makes it easy for momma and baby to ‘co-sleep’ without actually sharing bed space. I love the idea behind co-sleeping but know that I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep worrying about the safety of little one in our bed (and I love the idea of not having to get up out of bed in the wee hours to retrieve a hungry baby from a bassinet or crib).

And about that missing side table… do let me know if you spot anything on the narrow side out there (it’s tempting to say we can survive without night stands but the pile of books, etc at the head of the bed is getting pretty bad!). I’m thinking a skinnier pedestal table like this one might be neat?