If you can extend the bathroom wall out 18" so that you have 5.5 x9.5 you can fit in a Kohler Greek soaking tub which is 4 feet long but very deep. You would create a wet room where the shower is now which is 4 feet wide by the present 5.5 feet. The tub would run along the bottom wall, the shower above it. The resulting shower would be 4 feet deep by 33" wide. (5.5 less the 32" for the tub) Although that seems really tight since the tub area is open above knee height it will feel very spacious. I would run the shower fixtures on the outside wall- not ideal but then when the door opens easy to reach in and turn on and off. At the head of the tub build a pony wall seperating it from the toilet. (3" wide) The tub filler would be on the pony wall- again making it easy to reach in through the opening of the shower to turn on. You would enter the tub through the shower. The wall would make a nice shelf for a candle or vase etc. Since the "wet" room is 4 feet, the pony wall 3" and you've added 1.5 feet but only used up 1 foot 3 inches more you'll have an extra 3" for the vanity area.

Christy, either because I'm a congenital dunce, or I've lost brain cells painting all day (probably both), I couldn't come up with any pics when I searched "cburch". Did I do that right? Without seeing it...first off, I love the idea of the suede finish on the walls. I've never used it, but I like it a lot. Does it handle moisture and drips well, and is it scrubbable? I think I can picture your lay-out. I had a hall bath like that in a previous house. Hubby used the MBR bath, I used the one in the hall, and it was closest to the public spaces, so guests used it, too. I chose to paint it one or two (don't remember) "chips" lighter than the predominant color in our living room, so the house seem tied together for guests, etc. So, I like your idea of choosing either one of the other colors you've used, or one of the colors from a color card you've used. That feels cohesive, to me. It sounds like you have some really pretty colors in the house to work from. Of them...This is just my own opinion, but I would personally avoid the taupe family in a small room without windows. Taupe is beautiful in the right setting, but (again, JMO) can get muddy if natural light is low. The yellow/gold tones will be warm and cozy on dreary or cold (if you live in the North) winter mornings. That's nice, but remember they'll make the walls advance. Something related to the sage you've used elsewhere will make the walls recede, green being a cool color, so you may like that since the room seems small to you. Something sagey will also look nice with the silver/nickel tone fixtures you're thinking of and the off-white ceramics. I would just go lighter on the sage color card, rather than darker (again, only my personal preference). If you want something different, another family I think would go nicely with your yellow/gold/sages would be something in a terra cotta. But maybe, since you're having a hard time deciding, you would do better to approach this from the other direction. Pick out either a shower curtain first, one that makes you swoon, or towels and a bath rug in delicious colors, or pretty ceramic or pottery accessories that you just love. Take the paint cards with the colors that appear in your house and go shopping for one or more of those things first. Find something that works with the rest of your house palette. If you do it that way, you should then be able to find something among your house colors (or one or two steps up or down) that you'll just know is right. I know what you mean re not replacing the towel bars. First of all, once they have the towels on them, they don't show much, anyway. Plus...it's always a bear to find the studs ;-). Be sure to let us know what you decide! redbazel--Smiling sympathetically at your hubby's little "goof", which I think in this case turned out to be fortuitous. :-D I really like the "feel" of that bath; seems welcoming and cocoon-y, yet...

The "regular" bath layout that jensbride posted first is very similar to what our DD & DS shared for years and worked very well. The door, however, was a pocket style and placed directly across from the toilet. This allowed the vanity to be scooted around the corner to take up the whole wall. It leaves the toilet close to the tub, but with lots of elbow room. Our kids just learned to keep the door partially closed when the bath wasn't in use due to the "view".

As I understand the size requirement, you need 900 square inches and fit a 30 x 30 circular disc but some codes have an exception for standard tub replacements. Opinions vary, but you maybe able to get permission for a smaller shower than the 30 minimum by requesting permission to update for safety and energy efficiency, replacing existing with antiscald valve, low flow showerhead and toilet. If you are in an area of older homes, this is a common issue and code enforcement has seen many houses with this issue. While the rules may state one requirement, different authorities and even different individuals wirhin the same office may apply them differently. Nothing substitutes for asking the authority before expensive decisions are made.