Here are some bad pictures of the current bath. The main issue I want to address is that the shower is the size and shape of a phone booth. (And it currently leaks--broken drain)

I do like the blue tile, and a 3 x 3 shower is not tiny, but that extra 12" will feel luxurious. If you are going to re-do it all I would seriously consider making the shower barrier free, or at least making that barrier smaller (shorter and narrower) so its easier to get in and out.

Sounds like you may have to pull it all up to fix the leak problem so makes sense to re-do it if you don't like what you have. Probably couldn't get the same tile for the extra long shower even if you wanted to.

For your gray, I shouldn't really comment on it because its not my favorite choice in colors. I like neutrals that have more warm brown tones.

You should talk to a someone before you do much else. There could be hidden costs involved, or water damage you can't even see due to the leak. You already purchased a lav, but I would hate to see you spend more money on tile before you have a contractor/handyman/plumber take a look and give you an estimate on everything that needs to be done.

Your budget isn't high enough. Tearouts of lathe and mud walls like that are $$$$$$. That will be $1k of your budget. Why? Because they are BEASTS. I tore out two. (Sophie, don't hunt me down--not only was my master bathroom a lot smaller than this one, but the shower pan had completely failed due to a crack. The floor in the other failed, too.)

If this is a second floor, address the leak from the ceiling below. Drywall is cheap.

Switching out the door to a clear glass will make the shower feel less like a coffin. (My husband fondly called it the "gas chamber.). That and a really great Speakman shower head would change a lot.

My budget can be changed. I knew it might not be realistic, though i was hopeful. However, it helps that my husband was a contractor and will do plumbing and electrical and we plan to do our own demo. FIL is a contractor as well and will help but is not local, so can't do everything.

The shower interior is 2'10" by 2'10" by 6'10". The opening is 19 inches. Even with a glass door and a light it's dark. I'm pretty tiny and I feel constrained in there. If not for that, I'd be more than happy to work with the bathroom. But tiny shower plus leaking drain, plus degrading/crumbling grout, plus multiple holes in the tile from prior shower doors tells me it doesn't make sense to keep the shower.

I'm a little sad to lose the floor, it's charming, but this bathroom and house are not some midcentury gem, I promise!

Not to sound defensive, but I've delayed this and thought about it for 3 years now. The shower just doesn't cut it.

So, I'm trying to do an affordable remodel, but a quality one. I want to do the layout and tile right, because those are permanent. My Ikea vanity and lights and such can be easily swapped out (though the Ikea vanity is better materials and construction than the existing one!) I thought the smaller hex or square tiles echoed the older style (I know it's not one inch, but I can't handle that much grout!). I'm aiming for a neutral look, remnicent of a period appropriate look, but not glaringly dated.

If you can't talk me out of it, will you help me do it well?

Sophie--sorry to disappoint, but not much in the way of fabulous details here! Its a pretty neutral 70s house. Beautiful oak floors everywhere are the best thing! Light fixtures were either very ornate (and not my style--i sold the crystal chandelier to someone who will love it) or cheap new brass junk.

The mustard color hall bath and the olive downstairs bath will stay at least, so don't worry, there is still plenty of colored tile in the house!

I'm respectful of the original style and materials, but I want it to work well for me too!

Jeyne--thanks for your thoughts. I am worried about hidden water damage, in part because the floor of the shower was missing big chunks of grout when we moved in, but I'd rather find it and address it if it's there (and it wouldn't affect the bathroom budget). I love the idea of a curbless shower, but I thought it needed to be bigger than this to work. I'll have to research more.

Put your entire budget and then some into the shower only. That by itself will be over 10K with dealing with the mud bed and expansion issue. Finding the right contractor that can talk (and do) the right waterproofing will be the big challenge. You don’t have enough room for curbless, but you could go low curb.

Put the rest on the back burner. Or learn to DIY it. The shower is the most difficult and expensive part of the whole thing.

Okay! You're fine then. You guys can DIY everything. Got to John Bridge forums to learn to do tile. $5k will get you materials, easily. May I see a layout of the surrounding area? If you're going to do this, make it a big improvement, not a little one. :). That means right layout for toilet and vanity, too.

Oh, and do epoxy grout. It's horrible to do but so worth it later.

The 60s modern and all 70s bathrooms are really hard to update but keep looking sorta 60s or 70s because so much 70s design is foul still to modern tastes and most modernist house 60s bathrooms are identical to colonial 60s bathrooms, etc.

Also, grout isn't waterproofing. :)

This is the option that is the best balance of cheap/easy/foolproof: http://www.hydroblok.com/

Could you concentrate on enlarging and repairing the existing shower in coordinating tile?

In my drawing in the original post, to the left/window wall is outdoors, above/door wall is the master bedroom, and to the right is stairwell/hallway--no changes can be made in any of those. Below the shower, where I planned to expand is a hall closet--can expand 18 inches max. On the other side of the toilet wall is a walk in closet--i could expand about 18 inches there, but the changes would have to be a substantial improvement to make it worth the added expense and trouble.

But, I want to do it right, so I'm willing to up my budget considerably if need be!

Sophie and palimpsest--i agree that the most money and effort should go into the shower! Unfortunately, with the full tiled walls in the bathroom, I don't think there's a good way to just do the shower, though I'll see what my husband thinks.

If you remodel, you will need to bring bathroom up to the current uniform building code. Your drawing shows that the entry into the bathroom is only 24 inches wide. The entry must be at least 32 inches wide to bring it up to code. Also, will need to add a fan. May be other issues as well to meet local code requirements.

Porcelain tiles are more commonly used instead of ceramic tiles on shower walls. Porcelain is less porous than ceramic and allow for tighter grout lines. Also, porcelain tiles generally come in larger sizes than ceramic.

I have seen a number of vintage showers that have been retiled, leaving the rest of the bathroom intact. My parents did this in one of their showers and it was traditional mud bed as yours probably is. The change in tile could start over or right inside the curb. And depending upon where you are located you could get a custom Corian or Onyx shower pan. I had a custom Corian pan made and it was not all that expensive.

Your drawing shows that the entry into the bathroom is only 24 inches wide. The entry must be at least 32 inches wide to bring it up to code.

This will vary by location

24" is still allowable for entry to a bath in my location and 30" is allowable for bedroom entry doors. International Residential Code says nothing about minimum interior door widths. If you are complying with ADA, that requires a 32" clear doorway opening width, which means a 34" door, which is not standard, so you might as well go to 36.

But if a house built in 1971 has the typical 36" front door and 30" interior doors, possibly 28" to bedrooms and 24" to the other baths there is absolutely no point in making one door 32". Either the house is accessible or it isn't, and that starts at the front entry all the way to the bathroom (and if it's upstairs how is that accessed).

So yes, some locations may require if you touch anything the entire room has to be brought up to some mimimum local code, but IRB does not require a 32" bathroom door.

Several other options.

1). Flip toilet under window. Leave vent stack--it's fine. Now you can just rotate the shower so it comes up about to the end of the vanity. No footprint change, shower is about 21" bigger--not too much bigger because need 24" to front edge of toilet

2. Toilet where vanity is now. Bump out 1'3" into walkin closet and into hall closet. Add 21"-deep vanity along the back walk, into the window and to the edge of the shower. Now you have room for a 72" substantial double vanity and a 1'3" bigger shower.

3). Toilet next to door--get away with ignoring minimum door width, if there is one--neoangle shower where toilet was--vanity in old sink space. (Last one is pretty dumb. Lol.)

I have some 28" doors. They're fine by code.

You said your DH can do the tear out and a lot of the work. Doing the work yourself your saving a ton!

$5k is a huge budget. I generally spend $1200 or under for a bathroom.

I'm a cheapskate, but even the kid tubs were over $400....

My house was built in 1971 and both bathroom doors came with 24 inch openings that I just loathe. You can't go into the bathroom holding a load of towels in both hands unless you walk in sideways or don't mind banging your elbows into the door, door knob, and jambs.

I just finished the hallway bath, where the space for the door is limited, but my wonderful contractor managed to reframe the opening and gave me a 26 inch door. Still small, but it feels luxurious to me.

We're about to embark on the master bathroom where I have a little more space to work with. There, we're going to put in a pocket door (there are still space issues, but they are addressed with the pocket) that will be about 30 inches wide. I'm giving up counter depth and will have a 17-18 inch vanity, but it'll be so worth it. I'll bump out the counter (not a look I love) at the other to make room for the sink, but I want to be able to walk into my own bathroom without mapping out my route ahead of time.

This may be your tile or a close match, it's Daltile Semi-Gloss in Waterfall, and also comes in the Modern Dimensions size which is 4-1/4" x 8-1/2" or 12-3/4" if you wanted to acknowledge the new work and have less grout lines.

Here is where I had my shower base fabricated. I don't know where you are located, but maybe you have something similar in your area or they would ship. In this way you may be able to concentrate on improving the shower and spending your money there rather than spreading yourself thin:

http://www.kramershowerbases.com/Home-Page.aspx

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Merola-Tile-Hudson-Penny-Round-Marine-12-in-x-12-5-8-in-x-5-mm-Porcelain-Mosaic-Tile-10-2-sq-ft-case-FKOMPR33/202038502 

With budget in mind, I'd leave the sink and door just where they are.

I'd turn the toilet (that is a small window recess, right?) 90 degrees ... even though this isn't a large move, it may be expensive ... depends upon whether it requires moving the stack.

I'd bring the shower "forward" to match the edge of the sink. This actually leaves you still showering in the same old - same old amount of space, but it gets rid of that odd shower-tucked-back arrangement, and it gives you kind of an "entry room" to the shower. Though the shower head itself wouldn't move (well, it could move, but with budget in mind, I wouldn't move it), this would feel more spacious. Don't go with one little niche inside the shower ... build at least two, or go with one big niche.

Depending upon your tile choices, I'd consider a shower curtain instead of glass doors. I note that your current towel bar is placed oh-so-wisely BEHIND the glass door ... a shower curtain would eliminate this problem ... what were the original builders thinking?

I agree with the above posters who say, Your bathroom looks nice now -- yeah, I remember those tiles from my childhood, but they're not "out" these days. I suppose matching those tiles is impossible -- and with a leak in the shower, you're going to destroy tile -- but I wonder if it'd be possible to coordinate something similar.

As for gray, like an above poster, I have no love for the color. It's cold, and I don't see it pairing well with that dark vanity. My personal preference for bathrooms is blue -- though that thought is purely opinion and has no basis in fact or function; still, I think most people like (or are at least neutral on) blues in the bathroom. I would jump at the chance to have your current tile (in good condition) in my bathroom.

Last thought: I don't know how prices run in your area, but we had a leak under the tub in our hall bathroom (as a result, the tub was slowly making its way into the crawl space). I had a local handyman rip out the tub and the floor ... replaced it with a tub-sized walk-in, all-tile shower plus glass doors ... and we paid about $2800. That was 3-4 years ago. LOVE his work.

Or skip the excavation in to the nearby closet ... you can still have an enlarged shower ... and this would be a cheaper option:

I wouldn't care to have a spiffy new shower ... and that same small, worn vanity with its metal-rimmed sink and too-high mirror. The vanity is the first thing you see; it "sets the tone" for the bathroom. No, it needs replacing.

I have some 28" doors. They're fine by code.

We are talking door-doors, right? Not shower doors? I have a 28" door leading into my bathroom. It's enough. If I were in your remodeling shoes, I'd stick with it; however, if I were building new and had the option for a larger door, I'd go larger from the start.

You said your DH can do the tear out and a lot of the work. Doing the work yourself your saving a ton!

Yes, my husband likes to say, "I can destroy things."

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Merola-Tile-Hudson-Penny-Round-Marine-12-in-x-12-5-8-in-x-5-mm-Porcelain-Mosaic-Tile-10-2-sq-ft-case-FKOMPR33/202038502 

I adore penny rounds. They're affordable, and they could give you a similar "feel" to your current tile.

Door-doors. I think I have one or two that size.

Thanks, Mrs Pete. That was my first idea and favorite bi would really want to turn that toilet.

Thanks for all the suggestions! I'll definitely look into a Dorian shower base!

I think I'll like the idea of turning the toilet (the second drawing by mrs pete, as suggested by milly). It's a little weird in the current configuration beside the window, so centering it in that niche might look better! I'll have to check into the feasibility of that change!

From what I can tell from my read of the building code, I wouldn't have to change the door. However, I agree with other posters that 2 feet is narrow. There should be space to widen it, I'll have to check on the added cost to increase it.

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions!

Reframing the door should be 3 hours labor plus new prehung door cost, max. Unless it is a load bearing wall. Which is incredibly unlikely.

Plus moving the light switches next to the door, most likely. I enlarged my bathroom door and the switches did not have enough extra wire to move them. Everything involved in enlarging my bathroom door (which was part of a larger project) probably cost close to 20% of elohbee's entire budget. It was not cheap or easy, in particular. Everyone's existing condition will be different, and it could take a large part of the budget.

Moving the toilet means jackhammering the floor and redoing all the floors too. Totally not worth blowing up your budget on that when the shower by itself is already going to be over your budget.

Same with the door width. 24” is more than fine for my big behind to access my vintage master. There’s a 20” shower door that’s fine for what it is too.

Dont bite off more than you have money to deal with. It adds up incredibly quickly.

She said the budget is flexible, and they can do some of the work, and in a 1971 colonial, it's probably upstairs. Even if it weren't, jackhammering is NOT expensive at all except on a slab foundation. It would only be slightly more expensive than moving the empty wall out here.

Yes, if the wires are too short to move, it could definitely cause problems. I have always been able to work around them pretty easily. (Well, I have been wanting a wired smoke detector, and if we go HERE, it's a perfect place to put a box...) But sometimes you can't.

You do have to look at the cost benefit analysis of moving a toilet closet bend what appears to be a matter of inches. It will cost as much to move it a small amount as it would 5 feet. It may not be worth it on a lower budget remodel .

But it can preserve the hall linen closet, and it will likely be no more than $200 more than moving the wall once you factor in drywall and paint on the reverse side. :)

Calculate $80-100 per finished sq ft of shower alone and then add 1-3K for glass

We remodeled our small master bath & spent $7000, but $2800 went towards the glass enclosure. (We went for the ShowerGuard & worth every penny) We kept our existing vanity & toilet. We did not take down any walls, but we did have to drywall where we tore out the old garden tub. The shower ran us about $2500 installed. It's a 4'x4' corner shower.

Thanks for the budget estimates--its useful to get some rough ideas.

Id love a glass shower door, but what i want and what I'm willing to pay for are not the same thing, so I'll stick with a shower curtain--i can always change that down the road!

I'm going to tape out the possible toilet move and the shower ideas and see what seems to work best. My husband was interested by the toilet idea, so we'll see what he thinks when he gets the chance to think about it more.

I'm leaning towards leaving the door--i've realized that all the bathrooms and most of the closets have 2 ft doors, so it doesn't seem worth changing this one.

As far as style goes, I like the idea of things that are reminiscent of the original style but still updated. You don't have to keep things "period appropriate" if that's not what you like, but design often works better when you keep the original in mind. I think that your ideas are fine but could be a little more unique, have a little more interest to them. What do you like about the original design, or about 70's-esque design in general? Or what do you hate?

I really like how this bathroom reads as retro but not outdated. The little vintage accents - especially that owl - add a cool touch, too.

I don't really like the idea of a gray floor tile in this bathroom, unless you're wanting to go a lot more modern with it all. What about something like this if you wanted to reference back to the blue?

Or go with 70's inspired neutrals, more brown/gold than gray.

Good luck!

Get a STANDARD opening and the shower doors are much cheaper: https://www.faucetdirect.com/dreamline-shdr-3234721-linea-72-high-x-34-wide-frameless-shower-door-with-clear-glass/p2769891

You
do have to look at the cost benefit analysis of moving a toilet closet bend what appears to be a matter of inches. It will cost as much to move it a small amount as it would 5 feet. It may not be worth it on a lower budget remodel .

Usually I'd agree with you, but in this case the toilet's blocking the new shower ... I'd be willing to pay.

Id love a glass shower door, but what i want and what I'm willing to pay for are not the same thing, so I'll stick with a shower curtain--i can always change that down the road!

I have two glass shower doors, and I'm going back to a shower curtain in the new house. I just have no great love of those shower doors.

Santa Rosa Tile -- I love your selections! Except that puffy ottoman chair ... that I'd kick right out of the bathroom.

Mrs Pete - I agree. No soft furnishings in a bathroom!

Wow ... your bathroom looks like the bathroom I remodeled in my 1950's ranch outside Buffalo, NY. I spent just under $10,000, most of the things I got from Lowes except for the concrete countertop and Turkish feature tile in the shower. I took part of a closet in the Master bedroom, to be able to expand my casket-sized shower.

Original, with casket-sized shower that leaked into basement, and teeny vanity!

This works so much better for me. Good luck!