xc60 - sounds great - I know just enough to be dangerous. I love this forum. I learn more from it than going to the plumbing showrooms. katmomma, you will have to search this forum for air tubs. I can help you with selecting drop in tubs based on shape, size, quality. You basically want a good quality air tub without the price tag. Mirabelle tubs are well designed, deep and I see that folks on this forum have purchased them as air tubs. They are private label for Ferguson (made by Clarke). I like the feel of their acrylic better than Kohler. I don't see folks talking about Kohler air tubs but they make a solid whirlpool and are priced right. I do not know how the Jacuzzi air tubs are but I personally like their designs - they are priced right for you too. Jason, owned by the former Jacuzzi folks, can get pricey. Same with MTI, Hydrosystems, and Americh. Maax tubs are nice but I see on this forum that folks say that their air tubs are loud.

Thanks for the kind words. I call this bathroom "classic on the cheap." The subway tile is cheap american olean subway tile from lowes, $1.76/sf minus 10% coupon. The liners are the 1/2" x 6" gloss black liners also from lowes, as are the 6x6 tiles. The vine deco tiles are also from lowes. They are a slightly different color white (they are "ice white" instead of "gloss white") but you can't tell really especially with the black liner separating them. The only thing I couldn't get at Lowes was the black chair rail and I special ordered that from my local tile store. It actually cost less per piece than white chair rail from Lowes, so don't assume the big boxes always have the lowest price. It's the same exact American Olean black gloss as you find in the liners at Lowes. You can also special order the liners - for 3x the price, though I do admit that it took several trips to the store over the course of weeks/months to get enough of the liners for my project, but I used a LOT of them. They're like $1.18 a piece or something so using 150 of them is not a huge $$ outlay. The floor is once again cheap cheap cheap, it's white on white daltile octagon and dot from Home Depot, $2.29/sf minus 10% coupon. I made a border using the white and black octagon and dot. Here's a better shot of what that looked like before they covered it up: The paint is Ellen Kennon's Aqua. For more info on Ellen Kennon's paint check out the paint forum here. Her paint is NOT cheap but I used less than a gallon for the whole room so it was worth the splurge. It's gorgeous stuff.

You have all provided great information for to me consider. I've moved from absolutely wanting a claw foot tub to not wanting one! However, I still want a tub. I'm remembering that in a previous house I had a soaker-tub with a 12" tile surround that I could sit on and swing into the tub. And I was in my 30s but we also installed grab bars and it worked for me. I'm now looking at soaker-tub options. One is only 19" to step over (my current tub is a 24" step over). Might work. * I should have mentioned before that we're also installing a 42" x 42" shower with seat. The tub is just to satisfy my "I wanna be a tub woman" longing. auntthelma: "if I'm not a tub person, why would I invest in a nice tub?' lindsey: "Buy for the life you have, not the one you wish you had." In thinking about it ... I believe that if a person wants to paint, they should paint. If they want to travel, they should pack up and go. If I don't install the tub I'll wonder, what if ..." Too damn old to let opportunity pass by. All of your posts have been thoughtful and helpful and funny! Thank you all and keep um coming. I'll keep you posted on progress ...

We got a very good deal on a Victoria and Albert tub, but we had also been looking at "vintage tub" and they had some ones that looked nice. We had bought a Pfister faucet to go with it, but it was too low for our tub when they went to install it. Then we were stuck with having to get a faucet which had the same center distance on the pipes and there weren't a ton with the 7" centers so ordered the victoria and albert faucet but it was almost too high above the tub and so so expensive. In the end we got one I really like from vintage tub and looks wise the polished nickel finish and the porcelain on the handle as well as the feel/weight etc. looks just as good quality for 1/5 the price of the V&A one. Haven't really used it yet as it just went in on Friday so can't speak for long term use.