I think most contractors are by nature imaginative, creative and think outside the box, but they won't do things for clients because of liability issues. If we do it and it doesn't work out, we own it. If they do it and it doesn't work out, they might face lawsuits. To me it's a lot easier to do it myself or work with a handyman when I have an idea that is out of the norm. If it doesn't work, I'll tear it out, but it usually hasn't cost a lot and is worth the venture a try to achieve a different look. With all the new glues, water resistant membranes & waterproofing, finishes, raw materials, etc., I think you're limited only by imagination and money. A shower is an important area because of the potential water damage to surrounding walls and rooms. However, I think the tendency nowadays is to be too cautious and you end up with the same boring and expensive choices in materials. My sister did a bathtub surround--not a shower surround. That's a whole different project to tackle and I'd be really fanatical on how the shower pan and drains are put together, or perhaps use a prefab acrylic pan with the slatted teak floor rack above it. A prefab pan in brown or black with the rack would sure simplify installation and still meld nicely with wood walls. And you could easily clean the underfloor base of bacteria and replace the rack if it starts looking bad or weakens. Sometimes you find the acrylic shower bases on sale for cheap. I really wouldn't worry at all about wood walls using marine grade finishes on the wood. It might require an occasional recoat, but I doubt all that often if it's not abraded with Ajax or similar cleaners. Teak is naturally water resistant I think, which is why it is used so often in boat building. My parents had a teak boat built in the 1940's, but they refinished all the teak in I believe spar varnish. I don't remember how they handled the hull when they pulled it to clean. I don't know how teak holds up if left raw. I know many modern teak products have some kind of wax finish and it's pleasant to touch. I personally would have no problem buying a house with a wood shower if it appeared to be properly and well done. I'd think it was neat. I'd love having it and using it. My sister's bathroom was mid-size, and between that shower surround and the wallpaper she used, it was quite stunning and unexpected for a middle class suburban home.

You speak of guests - is this the only bathroom in the house? Maybe I'm "speshul" ;-) but I have never dried off in the tub/shower enclosure in my entire life. I step out onto a bathmat or rug and dry off there. There is some drippage but not that much and that's what the mat is for anyway. I tub-bathe at least once daily and I very rarely splash in any quantity, though - perhaps you should install grab bars around your tub so you can get in and out without drowning the bathroom. At the very least, use Kerdi waterproofing membrane on the floor as well as in the tub/shower area! Mold and mildew issues can be mostly mitigated by installing a GOOD ventilation fan and USING it. Put it on a pushbutton timer (Leviton makes a very nice one), that's easiest, since you can just push the button and forget about it. Caulks have also improved in recent years, with anti-mildew agents in the formula to help prevent the growth of the "creeping crud". Polyseamseal makes a "mildew-proof" (I put that in quotation marks because it's really just mildew resistant, but you want to look for the "mildew-proof" label) caulk in several colors. You don't want to hear Bill's lecture about showers and drop-in tubs. Suffice it to say it's a bad idea. I also think it's a poor idea to have a drop-in tub and a tiled deck because of the sloshing and splashing you were emphasizing - that's a lot of places for potential leaks. Because of that, there is a type that is a lot smarter for you to have, sometimes called an "oval in rectangle" because of the integral deck. I think would make the most sense would be to use something like the Kohler Lakewood tub, installing it at one end of the bath (since, after all, you have the perfect 5' wide space) as an alcove installation. The Lakewood is an oval whirlpool tub with an integral deck and tile flange, and attached apron for ease in getting in and out, as well as circumventing another potential place for water infiltration. The Lakewood's pump can be placed away from the tub to reduce the noise problem. Tile the walls to the ceiling in the tub area and think about a high-ish tiled wainscot (with Kerdi behind it) in the rest of the room. Seriously consider, if this is the only bath, using a standard tub/shower faucet setup; you can replace a conventional showerhead with a handshower mounted on a sliding bar. A shower curtain to go on a tension rod can be stashed in a linen closet for when guests will be visiting. A few other tubs that also fit this installation (once I started really hunting, I was surprised at how many whirlpools were appropriate for this installation method): Kohler Pristine; a three-wall alcove installation with tile flange, but no apron front so would need to have a tiled apron. Kohler Dockside, ditto, with inline heater Kohler Terracina, which is probably the most practical possible setup although not necessarily the most aesthetically pleasing. Kohler Windward, oval alcove with tile flange and apron Maax Oxford, optional apron & tile flange Maax M 4260O IFS-TO Aquatic Carmel; optional factory-installed tile flange and optional skirt Americh Bel Air, ditto Americh Beverly, ditto MTI models Mirage (a pretty awesome setup, and nice looking), Sumter 2, Sinclair 2, Charleston 1 Jacuzzi Nova and Luxura (not as nice an oval) OK, that's enough shopping for you, you're on your own after this. :-)

I too would be VERY interested in the real-world skinny on these, both the kind you can tile-on-directly, and the kind that are finished, ready to go. Either way, the PRE-SLOPE and CURB are built-in! And no "membrane" required. BRAVO! I've "heard" good things about the Swanstone bases (~$300), and for ~$600, the nicer Corian bases, both ready to go, in MANY color choices. You bring your cement-board + tile right down over their side-flanges, caulk the seam, fit the drain spud--DONE. NEXT. (I've heard there are also Corian wall panels, which obviate tile altogether.) Basically they are bathtubs, with very low sides. You never have leaks from bathtubs, sign me UP!... lol. I am totally turned off by the time and labor involved in "mudding in" a custom shower base, Kerdi or "traditional"... friggin' membranes, weep holes, which "religion" to follow on curb construction, what kind of whiz-bang grout to use... on and on... I RESPECT the skill involved, but who needs it?

Nuts to those who say you have to demolish the pan. On several occasions (including in my own house) I have repaired leaking mud-bed pans (after tiles have been removed and the surrounding walls demolished and re-drywalled) simply by applying a waterproofing membrane (e.g. Schluter Ditra) over the existing pan and up the shower walls - exactly as one would do with a brand-new Schluter installation with its proprietary styrofoam shower pan. If applied according to the manual, it will be absolutely 100% leakproof forever. (And by the way, Schluter membranes can be applied over plain drywall - no need to even use cement board. Look at the Schluter Systems FAQ if you have doubts). You can also easily deal with the corner bench you took out: Prior to applying the membrane, just cut a chunk of blue styrofoam to fit, use a Surfoam tool to contour it to the slope of the adjacent shower plan, and apply the membrane over it. (I've done this several times to enlarge or reconfigure an existing mud-bed pan). I know this will offend the "gotta rip it out and start over" purists out there, but believe me, this technique works.