I realize you are seeking input from those who put in pedestal sinks, but . . .

For me, storage is too important to give up in a bathroom. I want uncluttered countertops, so storage within hand's reach is important. If I were budgeting this for my house, I would opt for a less costly countertop and get the cabinets.

A pedestal is great in a powder room, but not the master bath.

I have two small baths, both of which came with vanities. The hall bath however was too small to accommodate a 36" vanity so I had it taken out and replaced with a pedestal sink. Storage was the concern so I had a recessed medicine cabinet installed. The linen closet is two steps away in the hall so it worked. In addition, I chose a pedestal with exposed pipes for maintenance ease (and to give me the vintage look I was attempting). Saying that, I wouldn't want a pedestal in the master bath. I want a good deal of horizontal surface for the morning routine (make-up, hair stuff and just other stuff needed to get me ready to face the world).

I am a pedestal girl and for storage I use armoire type cabinets. And basket's for towels.

I am not a fan of vanity's, and I know I am not practical, but..

Vanities...with LOTS of drawers. We can't wait to get rid of our pedestal sink in the MB bath. And a med cabinet vs a mirror.

Pedestal for the powder room, but vanity a must for the main baths!

In a master or primary bath I would definitely do vanities. Pedestal sinks are great for small spaces or non primary bathrooms but can be a PIA in bathrooms that are used daily for dressing.

We have 4 bathrooms and 3 have pedestals. We chose the pedestals mainly for the look and in 2 cases for space issues.Living in the Northeast, you don't have large bathrooms in older homes. We do have recessed medicine cabinets to make up for the lack of storage room. One sink has a shelf under it. I guess it isn't really a pedestal but a console sink. The last bathroom is large and in there we have a vanity of sorts. It's a glass top with open cherry shelf underneath where I have baskets holding items. We also have a closet in that bathroom for more storage.

We have 4 baths, 3 vanities and one pedestal sink....vanities are great for storage but if you have sufficient storage, pedestals give a very clean traditional look....I like both but for storage purposes, I've chosen vanities in 3 of the 4 bathrooms.

If it's price that's an issue, I would look into something less expensive but go for function. Some of my friends IRL (but I think my3dogs has this, too?) have bought gorgeous antique dressers, had holes drilled in them, and then put in sink basins.

I would love to do this, but our 2 bathrooms are pretty small (esp. considering we are a family of 6), so when we remodeled one we put in a pedestal, and would do the same for the other. We do have extra storage along the wall in one (built-in drawers) so that helps. What I'll probably do for the downstairs one, when we put in a pedestal (someday!) is to make a skirt for it to hide needed items in containers. We have a vanity in there now, and while I love the storage, it is way too crowded looking.

Since space isn't an issue for you, I would strongly consider getting a vanity if storage is an issue.

It's your bathroom but I prefer vanities. Your prices seem high, though. Have you priced granite? And $200.00 each for the undermount sinks seem pricey, too.

I have used pedestals when staying at a friend's home and I can make it work. But I like on my counter, my hand soap, my toothbrush holder, my makeup brush holder, my night moisturizer, my morning moisturizer, my container with Qtips/cotton pads, my one and only bottle of perfume, and space for my blow-dryer--kept in a drawer.......and curling iron---kept in a drawer. Having the room to have my products out as I use them is a necessity for me. I don't take an hour to get ready for work, I do everything---makeup, hair-drying/styling, spritz of scent, teethbrushing, etc., in about 20 minutes. I need instant access and counter. When I finish, I replace brushes and styling tools in the bottom drawer, deodorant and cream in the middle and my eyeshadows, lipstick, etc., in the top drawer. Using a pedestal and having to step over to a cupboard would totally tick me off.

Red

Okay, this pretty much is what I expected everyone to say. Vanity wins for the MBR. Esp. you Red, I too would get pissed off if I had to step over to a cupboard to take everything out and then put it back. I'm mostly low-maintenance, moisturizer, eye liner, mascara and chapstick every day. But I do use a blow dryer and a curling iron to fix my hair every few days and I can't see balancing those items on the ledge of a pedestal. Resale is not on my mind that much, but I do think the MBR vanity is traditional here. I could probably make the pedestal work but as you said Red, it would be annoying, and if you're going to spend all the $$$ for the bath upgrade, it should work for you. Bummer. There are lots more ways I could see spending that money, not to mention the time I've invested in canvassing out cabinets and countertops. Thanks again for your feedback everyone!

I agree...Pedestal for Powder Room (you do need to keep cleaning supplies close by either in a hall closet or a small cabinet if there is room in the PR).

Definitely Vanity in the MBR. Needless to say, there is a plethora of clutter you need to coral out of site. I love the large counter space to decorate mostly.

I am in your camp. I plan a similar redo for my upstairs bath (only one on second floor). I have a alcove tub on one wall with a linen closet to its left. I plan to rip out the closet and install a pedestal soaking tub with a shower kit (haven't decided whether I want exposed or in-wall plimbing). On the opposite wall, from L to R I am planning, toilet, pedestal sink, and semi-custom cabinetry that is built to look like an armoire. I am confident that I will have more space for storage that my current closet. I say - go for it!

I am now a bathroom authority (cuz we have too many LOL) and I have to say no peds in the family bathrooms! There's just too much of life you don't want to not be handy. Because we have peds in our master bath you would see that our window sill is full of all of the stuff you want handy like meds, toothbrushes/paste, deodorant, creams, etc. Same in DS's room. Very annoying to not have things at hand easily in reach and with a ped you don't have room to have them out but still looking nice.

In my other house we have these wonderful spice drawers right at counter level where I keep all of the daily uglies (toothbrush etc) right at hand, but clean up just involves closing the drawers. I will incorporate that in some of these baths as well as it works wonderfully.

But in guest rooms and a powder room, they work fine. I do provide a little dresser in each bath though for guests to have a space right next to the sink to put a few things out and leave them handy.

I don't know what quality and style you're looking at, but $3K for a 9' run of cabinets sounds high. You can save $$ on the countertop by putting in granite or travertine tiles.

The money saved on the cabinets could go toward improving the ventilation in the room. Either add an exhaust fan or replace the window.

Why are they being cut down? I always use kitchen cabs in the BR but I've never adjusted the height.

Like you, I've found independent cabinet makers to have better prices than the big box. Plus, you have more choices of wood and stain.

I guess I split the difference because in my bath have a ped sink and on either side is a cabinet of 3 drawers. I love how it looks and functions - I have countertop and places to hide stuff away. My ped sink also has wide sides so there is room for soap & cups, etc.

In my DH's bath we used a kitchen height cabinet since he's tall. I don't know why you would need to cut down a cabinet for the bathroom.

annz, they're being reduced in depth, not in height. the bathroom is very narrow with only 36" passage (sort of like a galley kitchen w/vanity on one side and shower stall and bathtub on the other side. I'd have loved to use kitchen cabinets at regular 24" depth but I didn't feel I could spare the space, esp. onch you put counter on top and lost another inch and a half.

I love pedestal sinks -- but have to agree that vanities are more practical in a master bath.
The one thing I really don't like though is pedestal sinks surrounded by cabinetry -- IMO, that delivers a decidedly mixed message... A large freestanding cabinet is fine -- just not a bunch of small ones located where vanity drawers would be.

Good:

Just admit it and get a Vanity!:

Since you need the height and still need storage why not look for chest of drawers to use as vanities? They are both taller and not as deep as kitchen cabinets. Not to mention the cost if you find something used will be way less.
Either that or buy the vanity cabinets adding a trim around the toe kick area and add legs. Something like this cabinet bottom....
{{!gwi}}
{{!gwi}}

THE ABOVE PIX ARE CLICKABLE LINKS TO LARGER PHOTOS