Our bathroom has been a sore spot since we moved in 10 months ago. It was the only hesitation we had when taking the space mainly because there is no bathtub, it was so tiny and in horrible condition. The bathroom was hacked together and never adjusted to look nice or function in an efficient way. Our water heater used to be in the bathroom above the sink, but thankfully it broke (cause I thought about it breaking every second, of every day). We had an extra door that lead to the common hallway. This is a design element left over from the original purpose of the building, an industrial work space with a shared bathroom for each floor. There has been two floods from the neighbors upstairs, the second causing a horrible black mold problem. Overall, it has been a real headache.

Now onto the fixes! Our new water heater is just outside the bathroom in the washing machine closet, out of sight. Did I mention it works and we can take hot showers? Ahh, the drama of loft living. We had the bathroom retiled, the shower knocked out, new sink and medicine cabinet installed. There was a wall moved too, now there is only one bathroom door!  We did a this project on a budget using Ikea, antiques and handmade items. My mom and I made the shower curtain by making button holes for the hooks on top. I searched and searched for a towel ladder, and found an antique one for $30. I found an old cereal box display and we are using it as a shelf for my collection of vintage make up bottles. Overall, it is really coming together. It is nice to have all our stuff organized and in its home.

 We followed our decorating rules. Here are a few of them:

– dark walls to hide the uneven, 80 year old paster

– penny tiles to keep the budget down and stick with the small scale of the bathroom

– Ikea sink and medicine cabinet to introduce a modern element

– towel ladder to display towels, introduce some vintage, and stay away from residential towel racks

– unconventional, vintage shelving that shows off a collection and also provides easy access to storage items

– custom fit items, like the shower curtain to make the space feel polished

We hope you enjoy these images and it inspires you in your own home!