It has been months since I have been living in my newly-renovated apartment, and I decided to do an update.

You can see all the photos here: http://s767.photobucket.com/albums/xx311/Newyorking_ny/

The photos really don't do the bathrooms justice.

Powder room

Sandstone tile Pietra Bedonia - The tile is very gray for my tiny NYC bathroom. In hindsight I would have gone for a lighter tile. The edges look harsh as well, and the same-color grout looks too dark when compared with the tile.

Countertop = Marble Calacatta honed. Looks decent and the counter space is so small that I have no fear of getting stains on it.

Toilet = Toto Drake (love it!)

Sink = Lacava 5455 - Looks good. Only complaint is that it would probably not work if used daily since it is square and the water does not drain easily. On a positive note, it is large enough that the water does not spill while using.

Sink faucet = Dornbracht wall-mounted- LOVE it!!! It looks awesome. I think wall-mounted faucets are difficult because all of them don't extend far enough and may cause splashing. This one works because the Lacava sink is vessel and large.

Tub and shower set = Kohler Rite-Temp. This is fine - it doesn't look as sleek as I would like it to, but is fine.

Bath accessories = Smedbo. I love Smedbo and used it in all my bathrooms. It looks sleek and amazing.

I like the toilet paper holder with a lid - I have one without the lid as well, but the lid looks good and keeps the paper out of sight.

Mirror = Robern Candre. I need to have this installed since arriving took 3-4 months.

Lighting = Nobi wall light. I don't like this light at all. It is not enough to light the entire bathroom and gets very hot. I am hoping that putting the mirror below it will help.

I am very happy with all my choices except for the tile and light.

Guest/kids bathroom

I LOVE this bathroom! I wanted a practical bath for the kids, and this is perfect.

Wall tile = Walker Zanger Xilo white. This tile looks modern and simple, and is perfect because it has a bullnose as well.

Floor tile = Walker Zanger Groove tile brown (in hindsight a Xilo darker tile would have worked better on the floor)

Countertop = Marble Calacatta honed. Counter space is so small that I don't worry about stains.

Sink = Lacava 5485 undermount - I love this sink. It has enough of a slope inside that water drains easily, looks good, and is large enough to prevent spilling.

Sink faucet = Lacava 1586 - perfect and simple.

Toilet = Toto Drake with washlet S300. I LOVE the washlet!!!

Accessories = Smedbo.

Bath and shower set = Grohe Movario, which I HATE! I will never buy Grohe again. The first day I used it, a tiny part came off and fell in the drain and is gone. Now the shower keeps slipping on the bar, and I need to find a new part. Poor poor quality. Looks good, but will never buy one again.

Light = Elf2 bath light. Love it.

Master bathroom

Tile = Walker Zanger Travertine Palatino for the wall, and Jerusalem Gold for the floor (not from Walker Zanger, got it directly from my contractor), all honed. The tiles are high maintenance. Travertine grout is already seeing cracks at one end, and there are areas that are darkening. After the initial excitement, I am used to the tiles and don't feel the "warmth" as much as before. But I am happy with my choice because the bathroom looks really pretty and inviting. I take care and don't use strong products such as cleaning agents, hair color, etc.

Sink = Duravit Vero undermount. This is a little bit of a misfit because the water from the faucet comes directly on the drain and so splashes. There was no way out because of the internal edge of the Vero. Next time will not use both together. The sink itself does not slope much so water takes a while to drain.

Sink faucet = Dornbracht Tara. Again the faucet does not fit the sink well, but looks good.

Medicine cabinet = Robern MP series - LOVE them!!!

Shower set = Hansgrohe Starck set. This looks and works perfectly, I love it. I purchased the Unica wallbar but my contractor recommended against it, so I bought a steel rope for the handshower. I have a Quattro diverter so I can turn the bodyvettes, handshower, and shower on at the same time. The bodyvettes are completely useless, and I never use them. Also, the bodyvettes should have been placed below the showerhead because with the current placement they hit the door hinges and water leaks from the hinges.

Shower door = I used Starphire glass so there is no greenish tinge and you can see the tiles clearly.

Toilet = Duravit Starck 2 wall-mounted. The toilet looks good but does not flush too well. I used a round bolero flush plate. The dual-function is useless - when I use the smaller one that saves water, I need to flush longer since it doesn't flush too well. Not sure if this is the toilet or plumbing.

Accessories = Smedbo

Light = Elf 1. I used 3 recessed lights, 3 Elf 1 on each side of the medicine cabinets, and 2 recessed in the shower.

Overall I am very happy with the master bathroom and have no complaints at all!

Here is a link that might be useful: All photos