We have installed a Kohler waterfall spout and a hand spray shower in a guest bathroom that will be used by young children mainly. We haven't had a chance to see it in operation because we are about 3 weeks away from having the house done and water, etc. turned on. However, it looks great and I can't wait to see how it works. We installed the waterfall mainly because I thought it would be fun for young visitors and encourage them to get in the tub. Secondly, when my children were very active toddlers I hated the low placement of a typical tub faucet because I was always worried about bumped heads and what is worse broken teeth. Maybe this sounds extreme to worry about things like this but I had two wild ones out of the three and I felt I was the tub life guard whenever they were bathing. The waterfall spout eliminates this worry for me if it turns out I have grandchildren who take after their parents. I'll post a review when we finally get the water turned on in the house.

My husband and I like different temp showers, but with the thermo knob it's just a quick 1/4 turn one way or the other to the differrent settings we prefer. It's worth a million bucks more than another type of shower!!! I say this, locked in my beautiful victorian home with no thermostatic shower in any of the bathrooms (and there are a lot). If someone brushes their teeth in the morning you can hear me scream F**** (and I'm a lovely lady normally) because I like really hot showers and one degree more is a death scald LOL I will have thermo in every one of these bathrooms eventually. I'd NEVER Do anything else. Worth every penny!!!

I would like to chime in again in response to hollysprings' post. I do appreciate her insight, and others who are way more knowledgeable about this stuff than I. I agree that there are often circumstances that we may not be aware of that drive costs up, but let's face it, for many of us the construction industry is an enigma and it is already so hard to sift the wheat from the chaff. It only makes it harder for us when they don't let us know what goes into an estimate and we are left in the dark. Not only trying to find someone upstanding, but also someone who you get along with and understands your goals in the project. And I do think we should know the separation of labor and materials at least in some basic context. Obviously there is some range of cost that they have taken into account in order to come up with a lump sum estimate in the first place. Not to mention their own magic number that they need in order to make a decent living. And yes, there is a difference between nit-picking and getting a range of expected customer's choice driven costs. Shouldn't there be some responsibility on the contractor to let us know what types of allowances they are taking into consideration? I am new to remodeling, much like the OP. Unfortunately there are not many good resources for us noobs to educate ourselves about the construction process, how contractors work, good design, and product knowledge. Which is why I and so many others are on online forums such as this. I have been burned a few times attempting to learn and ask those same questions, like what the driving force is behind estimates and it is very frustrating because many contractors are not able to really articulate these things. What I have experienced is either a well organized design/ hold firm that does high quality work but only wants to work with luxury finishes or small time guys who come recommended by friends and neighbors that don't have a broad range of knowledge of products/design. And then those who do really great jobs for their friends and families but slack off for those who aren't on their Christmas list. No one I have met as a potential or actual client has been particularly interested in answering my questions, except with a short answer and a 'trust me I know what I'm doing'. I do know you get what you pay for and I am able to pay for what I want, but I also want to gain an understanding in what those driving forces are behind the costs. And in my expensive area of the country, it is very easy for me to feel and actually be price gouged.

@nosoccermom - I was originally going to do only recessed lighting in the bathroom because I still have five nice ones left over from renovating another area but came across [this past discussion that made me rethink the whole thing. [(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/recessed-lights-above-vanity-dsvw-vd~709037) Recessing the mirror would be difficult since it's on an exterior wall framed with 2x4s; it may require reframing with 2x6s? I did look into the lighted ones at first but our mirror might be bigger than what they make? They're really cool though, I really like them! Both of us agreed that we wanted to have a larger mirror instead of two smaller ones. She moves around a lot while and I sort of wander too. Will ask her thoughts about the makeup mirror to the right... @olychick - I wish our bathroom was that nice and open :/ Ours is pretty much a 'design around this' challenge and between the bathroom and closet we've rearranged every wall in the entire space. Pendants sound nice (especially narrow ones), maybe coupled with recessed lighting? Is an 8' ceiling too low though? It's not rational but to me pendants seem less overpowering than sconces would be. It's starting to look like we'll need at least a couple of recessed lights anyway in the area where people enter/exit the room. I don't think there's any vanity area lighting that would be bright enough to work as general illumination for the whole room without being too bright for someone standing at a sink. There will also be a large built in hamper immediately to the right upon entry and we'll need to be able to see in. Lighting over the shower and tub are on separate switches so no worries there. I can post a picture of the actual room if it would help any.