It is a little overwhelming to start. You have the functionality aspect of planning the bathroom and then the fixtures/look aspect. I definitely find it less exciting to research the functionality options but that usually ends up being where I wished I spent more time. For the functional - some of the things I think I remember is making a decision - do you want your vanity standard at I think 30 inches (this is our hall bath) our taller at 34 1/2 (our masterbath), or even taller at 36". The 34 1/2 is definitely more comfortable for me than when I use the 30" tall vanity in the hall. Someone else made the point of working around the pipes with the drawer so you can gain more storage. I wasn't able to get that in the cabinet line and every time I see the false drawers I think of what can't be stored there. You may also want to think, where else can you get more storage. In one case - had a niche build in the wall and added a glass shelf - this it the side wall that is next to the vanity. With the fan - someone mentioned making sure it vents properly thru the roof. In addition to that, you may want to see if a skylight is possible and how much it would cost. I wasn't a big skylight person (worried it would leak), but now I love having the extra light in the bathroom and extra ventilation. Not sure if you decided on a grab bar for the shower. Also if you are going with a shower niche (they have the plastic molds that can be tiled into the shower - I think that is easier for contractors to work with, but it is defined sizes) For the fixtures - I used faucetdirect with no problem and did a lot of online shopping. Where I had problems was with the valves and drains and I am not sure if that was because I didn't utilize the sales people enough or that you had to be familiar with my setup specifically to know which product. In one case, the drain wasn't quite right even though it was recommended to go with the tub. The contractor made it work. In another, luckily my contractor told me to order the pop-up drain for the sink. That's another one that doesn't necessarily match for me online. Since my faucet controls were in the wall, I needed the popup drain in the sink. With the valves, in a custom shower, I didn't do my homework on the 1/2 inch versus 3/4 inch and that I needed a transfer valve to switch between the handheld and the main shower. Last thing - I think the tile from HD or Lowes is fine. Tile can get pricey and that is where I wish I had found something that looked nice but was less expensive. If you do want to splurge on something - maybe look into the Benjamin Moore Bath and Spa line paint. It is made for bathrooms and has a matte finish.

Hi Jersey girl The rule of thumb for drapery is twice the width of the window. Personally I don't take the rod that far out on each side, usually 4 to 5". The way I do it is; when the drapes are closed the rod is covered from side to side. If you want full length the bottom should be about 1" off the floor. Since you window is 72" wide and the fabric is 54" you need to use one and a half panels on each side. This will give you the right fullness. So you need the finished length plus a double 4" hem (8") plus double 4" top (8") plus any match if there is a pattern to the fabric. If you are lining them the width should be 2" less then the finished width. The front of the panel should rap around 1" to the back side. The lining hem should be one fold of 4" and be about 3" shorter in length then the drapery. I hope this makes sense to you. You can also find lots of different patterns on how to make drapes at Joanne's. McCalls or Simplicity have lots to pick from. They even have a "Sewing for Dummies" series. Good luck Bonnie

Deb are you talking about just the return bars being only an inch long or the whole depth including the long bar only sticking out one inch?

Older houses are a lot more air- leaky. Air flows around much more easily in an older home. Most newer construction tries to be as air-tight as possible. Plus I believe newer construction with cement as the foundation is going to add humidity to the air for awhile too - my new home ran high on humidity as the concrete continued to dry out for the first few months or so we were in there. It's a combination of issues I think. I don't necessarily think every newer home is going to fall over in a brief power outage. :-) The original poster said this has been going on for over 2 months, and that they were well above 80% humidity for awhile. That's tropical rainforest level! Plus they had a flooded crawlspace and needed mold remediation on top of that. There are some serious water issues at play here.