90’s to Timeless Master Bathroom Remodel: Before and After

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Have you ever had a dream change your whole way of thinking about something?

A few days after we toured this rundown disaster of a house, I had a dream that I was sitting at the master bathroom vanity next to the French doors, putting on makeup. And when I woke up, I couldn’t get it out of my head. All of a sudden I considered living in the crazy house. That very same house that I’d talked so much trash about after seeing the inside.

Before we bought this home, if you asked me to picture the perfect way to wind down from a tiring, stressful, chilly day I might have said something like this:

Soaking in a scalding hot tub of bathwater, while watching one of my favorite shows, with the massaging jacuzzi jets wafting some smell-good spa scent up through the steam.

And if I really got on a roll picturing my bucket list dream bathroom, that TV would be hanging over a fireplace. And heck, I might even be sitting under a pretty chandelier dripping with some sparkly crystals, making me feel extra pampered.

So you might not be surprised to hear that one of the rooms that sold me on this disaster of a house was the master bathroom.

Catch up on the story of how we came to buy our fixer-upper.

Why a Timeless Design Bathroom Makeover is Easier on the Budget.

With everything we were planning to do to the rest of the house, a complete gut job for this bathroom renovation was not in the plan. So instead of going with a trendy or more contemporary bathroom, we stuck with a timeless design—one we won’t have to change every few years.

What We Loved and What We Left.

We kept the rustic travertine stone bathroom floor. It had been recently replaced, so we chose new countertop marble and bathroom tile based on this existing floor tile. From the records, we think the toilet overflowed, causing the owners to replace all of the flooring in the bathroom and master bedroom. I’m grateful to have one big item we didn’t have to change because I have a bad feeling the original flooring was the boring 90’s ceramic tile from the shower, or even worse, the dingy carpet that was in the closets.

We kept the focal point— the jetted bathtub accented with wooden arch millwork that matched the bedroom and formal areas. Even though a freestanding tub is trendy right now, this wasn’t a small bathroom and there was plenty of space without losing the tub surround area. Plus I know it’s not popular, but I actually like having all that area around the bathtub to place things I’m using in the bath.

And finally, we kept the furniture vanity and the wall mirror with the beveled frame which were still in good shape. So with the only demo being a change of tile and counters, everything else was cosmetic. All we had to decide on were materials.

Now, let’s see what we did change with a little before and after show and tell!

The Before and After Primary Bathroom Features.

I wish I had better “before” pictures, but between being overwhelmed with everything that was wrong and weird with the whole house, and not knowing I’d want pictures for a blog that didn’t exist yet, I didn’t take the time. So all I have are the few shots I took to use while shopping for new materials and to show other people the house we were buying.

The primary bath is still open to the bedroom, which is something budget forced us to keep that I don’t love. I’d rather have the bathroom be its own separate room, but the walls don’t line up, so putting a door in would have required a pretty involved change to one of the walls. And the small convenience of having a door wasn’t worth the cost.

A fresh paint job that matched the primary bedroom was a great way to make the adjoining bath look clean, updated, and spa-like. We used the same soft green on the walls (SW Ancient Marble at 150%) and warm white (Swiss Coffee) in a satin finish on the trim and millwork, replacing the glossy enamel.

You can see the adjoining master bedroom transformation in the post “How to Make Your Bedroom into a Dreamy Spa-Like Sanctuary“.

As part of our timeless design, we wanted to use all natural materials throughout the bathroom, so we stayed away from ceramic and porcelain tile that would become dated more quickly.

The Bathtub Before and After.

The bathtub had a beige ceramic tile surround with an ivy border accent tile. And this is a pretty good pic of those columns when they had glossy paint:

We chose a natural travertine stone tile in the same color as the floor and retiled just the top of the tub surround. And instead of bringing the tile all the way to the floor, we added more pretty wood millwork to break up the expanse of tile with this timeless, traditional touch.

On the end, we added a large applique for another classic detail. And had the sides framed out in wood wainscoting that matched the fireplace mantel:

The shower tiles were ceramic (and not too clean for showing your house, just saying). And the same ivy tile border accented the shower walls.

The new master bathroom shower is now outfitted with more up-to-date frameless glass panels. And has a glass door fit for a normal size human.

We replaced the ceramic with the same travertine in large format tiles on the wall. And took them all the way to the ceiling, making the shower feel larger.

Instead of the carved ivy leaf, we added some interest to the plain stone wall with a metallic tile accent and a travertine border:

In the existing shower we’d gotten one of the shower seats we’d always wanted, but it’s so much nicer with new natural stone tile.

We moved the towel rings from the sides of the vanity to the walls for easier access. And I replaced the 90’s brass knobs on the vanity drawers with crystal pulls:

We replaced the old ceramic tiles with solid classic Light Emperador marble countertops to blend with the travertine.

And put in some regular sized undermount sinks:

The New Classic Plumbing and Bathroom Fixtures.

We chose new polished chrome faucets with a vintage-inspired design from the Delta Cassidy product line to match our classic style bath.

We used this same faucet line in brushed nickel in our French country kitchen remodel.

We already know my dream bathroom is all about the bathtub. But my husband’s bucket list bathroom was all about the spa-worthy shower.

So we not only outfitted the shower with a regular shower head, but also a rainshower head and four body sprays.

We went with shiny polished chrome for the bathroom accessories as well. A double towel rack to help multiple towels dry faster:

As well as the matching toilet tissue hook and towel rings. And we came up with the perfect solution for hanging a towel outside the shower where there was no room for a towel rack, with a robe hook:

Wondering where to hang towel bars, towel rings, hooks, vanity mirrors, showerheads, and all the things in a bathroom? Find the guidelines in the post “Where to Hang Bathroom Fixtures: Towel Bars, Toilet Paper Holders, Faucets, and More“.

The Light Fixtures Before and After.

The old vanity lights were the brass Hollywood style bars, so popular in ’90s bathrooms. And the granny look chandelier matched the one in the primary bedroom and was really a bit too small for this size area. There was also no light above the shower enclosure which made it feel cave-like and dreary.

We put in new vanity lights and a larger chandelier in a classic style.

I love these fixtures because they bridge the gap between gold and silver. I believe the finish was called Mystic (the Montclaire line from Capital Lighting is now discontinued).

And we added a couple of recessed lights above the shower—darkness always makes things seem more outdated!