Jaynes 123, Thanks. I agree with your comments. My dilemma is over the conflict between privacy and functionality. It all comes down to the dual-vanity concept. I have two basic layout choices: 1) one sink each in the "public" and "private" areas (attached layout) or 2) make the entire master bathroom "private." For example, use the layout below but remove walls and door separating one vanity from the rest of the bathroom. Note in the layout there's a column between the toilet and shower that houses the central vacuum cleaning duct - unlikely it can be moved. The downside of separate vanities means having to partition the bathroom into two parts, with two doors to open to get to the toilet. Architectural features, such as skylight and window, dictate only a couple choices for partitioning. I like the concept of having everything in one private bathroom - will make the room more open and spacious, especially if I take out a wall. But it means I can't brush my teeth or use the bathroom for putting on makeup until my son is out of my bathroom.

golddust, I've heard of that too, I'm not sure if one can do that with these really old toilets, or if they would still work well with less water. Maybe worthy will weigh in? If there's a way to keep it, I'd love to. It's really neat in the old Cadillac vs. Honda idea that Kasha Kat mentioned earlier. I know the Honda is much more efficient, but those old caddys are just so cool! Fuzzywuzzer (love the name)- I hadn't much thought of painting the floor because we aren't going to be taking the tile off of the walls right away (and maybe never) and I don't like the look of painted floor with tile. Somehow it makes the floor look cheap to me. I know this makes no sense, I love a painted floor everywhere else and in fact plan to paint the floor in our den, but for some unknowable reason, I don't like it in a bath. After we do the kitchen, and get a real look at the floor, we'll see what direction we need to go in. If the floor is in good shape, then I think we'll finish it and make the walls beadboard wainscoting. If it's not, then we'll probably tie it to match the tiled walls. I'm hoping for the Octagon and dot style, but maybe hex with random daisy design. I've been posting our kitchen renovation in this forum, more to push me to save photos of the process, I know I'll forget. I've been keeping "polish" somewhere in the title. It's a great house that just needs a nice polish. Katie,as much as I love the O & D it's not worth a toilet! I'll be adding a coat of white paint to most woodwork in my house because I don't have the time to strip it right now, that's an activity that is definitely back burner when there's so much else to do. I love the purple- I bet your bath is amazing, will you post photos? I put in a reply on your earlier thread asking about color choices, did you make any others? I'm still hemming and hawing over them. I'm going now for just some plain white for the woodwork- Thanks for the input! Ginnie

I don't have a slide bar, but I do have a shower with the valve placed on one end. Mine is a bizarre setup because the pipes run along the inside of the shower instead of in the wall. I'm not sure why the PO did it this way, but it actually looks kind of cool in an industrial kind of way. It ends up looking kind of like a slide bar, I suppose. The shower head is on a hose at the other end. I like it because I can easily reach in and turn on the shower before I step in. I don't know if my scenario is close enough to be helpful for you, but I'll try to get some pics if I can get my new camera working. Bottom line is that the plumber shouldn't dictate where it goes. It's your bathroom and you should get it wherever you want it.

Photos would help. Have you considered using the glass tiles as accents with the 12x24" tiles that are in the shower, or just as a backspash for the vanity? Check out the links below and look at the bathrooms. You can see how they used accent tiles in the BR. House #2: http://blog.houseoffifty.com/2013/08/street-of-dreams-portland-style-house-2.html Here is a link that might be useful: House #6