If you’ve been missing my home remodeling posts, today is your lucky day! As I mentioned last month, I’ll be putting my home on the market in the next few months. Although most of this house has been redone, there are some spaces that haven’t been touched and would certainly be a deterrent to potential buyers.
A team of realtors came by for an assessment and they all agreed that the unfinished spaces need to be addressed to in order get top dollar. If I spend too much however, I won’t recoup my costs so I have to spend as little as possible to get the maximum impact. Fortunately that’s my specialty 🙂
I’ve started a list of to-do’s which is getting larger by the day and becoming slightly overwhelming given the time constraints. I’m aiming to hit the market early-mid March so I’ve been trying to ease back into DIY/renovation schedule mentality which is admittedly tough after taking a break for so long, especially since I was convinced this chapter of my life was over. C’est la vie.
The single biggest project is the master bathroom. I don’t have an exact dollar amount budget for this space, but I figure somewhere around the $$4-5k range will at least double, if not triple my ROI if done right (fun fact: many of my room renovations have ended up in that range so it must be my sweet spot!) I plan to track my sources and expenses as always, so it will be interesting to see how everything unfolds.
Now for the fun part—the renovation plan!
When taking on my guest bathroom in the One Room Challenge, I came up with two different design plans and ultimately decided to go with the “natural romantic vintage boho” style. My other plan was a serene spa-type feel (I’ll refine this description as I go) and I figured it would be better suited for the master bathroom.
Here’s how it’s looking now, still straight from the 70’s:
The room is adjacent to the walk in master closet off the bedroom. Here’s a super old photo demonstrating the layout:
And another from today, so you can see the linen closet:
![IMG_0103[2]](https://www.jennasuedesign.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/IMG_01032.jpg)
The original plan was to eliminate the linen closet, expand the back/shower wall into the old empty laundry room on the other side to gain a few linear feet, and remove the wall between the bathroom closet which would nearly double the space. However, this would also likely double the budget and extend the timeline which just doesn’t make sense in this situation. My spacious spa dreams will have to be put on hold until the next house, but I can still make an enormous improvement while (mostly) keeping the existing footprint.
If you follow me on Pinterest, you may have an idea of where this is going. Here’s my inspiration (click for sources)…
Sense a recurring theme here? The star of the show will be pebble tile, which I have been waiting for a very long time to use. It will be the focal point of the room, covering the floor and the back shower wall in subtle shades of soft white/cream/gray.
The linen closet will be removed for a few extra feet of shower space, and a pocket door will be installed for the entrance which will also make the room feel more spacious.
The existing shower, toilet and vanity location will remain unchanged but of course, every surface will be updated. The entire room will be gutted and built back up with affordable materials. Beadboard wainscoting will cover the lower half of the walls and the color palette will be kept neutral and light, with oil rubbed bronze/black fixtures for contrast.
I’ve sourced a lot of my materials which of course I’ll link to at a later date, but here’s a rough mockup of what I’m envisioning so far. The coloring isn’t very accurate so ignore the details, this is just the general idea…
See the vanity? That’s the actual piece I plan to use in its current state. It’s also my DIY project for this weekend. Remember the repurposed vintage buffet for my guest bathroom? I’m now hooked on this approach, so I sourced a vintage dresser at a local thrift shop and will be modifying it to work in the space. It’ll be topped with a white rectangular vessel sink which I can’t get enough of. I’ll explain my design decisions and rationale as I go, but this is enough for now to give you an idea of what to expect.
Because of the two month timeline, the fact that I’m now doing this solo and various other life happenings, there won’t be a lot of DIY. All of the demo, reconfiguration, tiling and electrical will be handled by my fantastic team who I’ve used in the past and trust to work their magic.
I’m looking forward to posting weekly check-ins to keep everyone up to date on the latest progress both in the bathroom and the rest of the house. Buckle up, it’s going to be a hectic ride!
Alyson B says
Long time blog follower. Glad to see this space come together. Repinned some of your guest bath over the holidays for an upcoming bathroom refresh. As I was going back over your blog, I noticed you have not added your laundry room and guest bath to your current home tour. Would love to see those added, as they are two of my favorite makeovers ever. I always send friends to your blog when they love my house. Good luck and best wishes. AB
jennasuedesign says
Thanks for catching that, I’ll make a note to update the page!
Sandra P says
So happy your back with decor projects!!! Can’t wait to see what you do!
Kara says
Hooray! I didn’t discover your blog until you had hit the road (where in the world have I been all these years?) so I am happy to be able to follow along on a renovation project. Looking forward to this, and all your non-renovation adventures too.
Candy says
Hi Jenna,
Can’t wait to see the bathroom come together – it will be as beautiful as the rest of
your house. I am sure you will meet your March deadline – you are ready to move one and it must be a great motivator.
I can’t wait to see what you find for a shower bench. I need one badly, but can only find ones I can’t afford and they are so small!!
Sherri says
Whatever you do, I know it will be awesome because that is how you roll. Best of luck in getting top dollar for your gorgeous home!!
Natalie S. says
Wow, I was totally thinking, “I thought she would maybe do a sliding barn door” before it was mentioned! Ha! Can’t remember what else you said you might re-do in this house, is there something else downstairs? Love the look!
jennasuedesign says
Downstairs needs painting, a barn door for the home theater room and some trim, and staging 🙂
Linda Grubbs says
Hi Jenna!
I’ve been missing you…and cheering you on…and am wishing you well.
I followed your travels, and will continue to keep up with you as long as you allow us.
Hugs from KS,
Linda
Anne says
I’m excited the home DIY portion of the blog is back for the time being and I can’t wait to follow along on this part of the journey! I’ve been noticing your guest bath is very popular among the Fixer Upper/Joanna Gaines crowd on Pinterest…if I owned a home I totally would be asking you to help me design spaces! You have such an eye for recreating a space and I appreciate you walking us through the process.
Gail says
Love your style glad your back doing this for a while. It happens to a lot of people. As usual you will go with what needs to get done so you can move on to your new life. Good luck I am excited to see it come together. The barn door idea is great. It solved my problem 15 years ago when I had a vision of turning a small closet into a half bath upstairs. The door was my biggest drawback.
Ashley says
Jenna- I am a new(ish) reader and I can’t wait to see how everything comes together! I need to redo my bathroom, but am scared as I have never tiled and it is the only bathroom in our condo. P.s. I am actually jealous that you can hire a team for the messy work! I think most people would do that if they could 🙂
Jenna says
I’m very excited to follow you on this makeover. You mention in the post that you thought your DIY/renovation chapter was over and am curious if you think you will do renovations in the future or if this house is it? I love your style and have followed you for a long time and have loved seeing your style and designs evolve.
jennasuedesign says
I’m sure at some point I’ll buy another house, but for now it’s not even on my radar! Unless I win the lottery (which I don’t play) I can’t imagine buying a move-in ready home, and even so I’d always want to personalize it, so it’s a very high probability there will always be renovations in my future 🙂
Erin says
I love it, can’t wait to see it come together! Have you given any thought to a sliding barn door instead of a pocket door? The would look really good with your MBR design. Just a thought! 🙂
jennasuedesign says
Ooh…. not sure why I didn’t consider that. It would certainly be the more economical option. I may go that route instead. Thanks Erin!
Whitney Shortt says
Love the idea of the barn door and that vanity is going to be so pretty!
Shauna says
Hang in there, little Jenna. Maybe you will begin to feel more comfortable with the project as you delve into it–I sense a “let’s get this over with” sort of vibe which I totally understand. If it’s any consolation, I get a ton of inspiration from all of your exquisite renovations, so you are really doing so much more good than simply fixing up a bathroom. You’re giving people beautiful ideas. Thanks!
jennasuedesign says
Thanks Shauna! 😉
Noel M says
Do you think your travels have influenced your design style now that you’re starting projects again? I always find that exposure to new things triggers different ideas for me!
jennasuedesign says
I fell in love with a lot of the architecture and patterns in Thailand especially, and can see incorporating more of that into my designs in the future. I already knew the direction I wanted to go with this bathroom before my trip so I’m sticking with the original plan, but I’d love to try a different style at some point 🙂
Shannon says
Looks like another show-stopper in the making!!