I have a small house. Small baths. You don't like housecleaning nor wiping down after kids. One thing I did was I got rid of the ceramic tile tub surround and had white swanstone panels installed. I never want to clean mildewed grout again. I love tile and put it above the panels. Yes, I prefer, way prefer the look of tile but not at the cost of cleaning it. The swanstone looks pretty good. Sorry no pics. I have two Americast tubs and I think they are acrylic..I love them. Had cast iron before. They are shiny, sparkly, fresh and white. I think my cleaners use a spray to clean them. I am glad you are thinking this thru before you do extreme drastic measures. 1000s f is not going to be better with the addition of windows. Editing, building up, and up going storage will help, not windows. Natural light is overrated. Look at small space solutions and not at glam or cliched luxury sites. We built closets onto our bedroom walls instead of new dressers. Up to the ceiling. Think California closets. With drawers and cabinets. Not pretty but functional. We have ikea Brimnes headboards with under bed storage drawers in our new house. I am an ikea slave. Your family is always going to take a lot of time and energy and that's just the way it is. A 1000sf house will not be easy but it's home. And I love love your kitchen. Think about the life you live for now. Think first before acting.

A vote for NO beadboard. Originally, bb was an early 1900s kind of thing - there's nothing remotely midcentury about it. Now its totally overused and usually in the form of DIY paneling from the big box store. Not that I think we have to be historical purists - just have all the design components relate well and complement each other. In my mind the country-ish flavor of bb doesn't relate well to the more suburban sophisticated style of your tile floor and of the typical 60s ranch house. Unless you've already reworked the rest of the house to be more traditionally styled and beadboard friendly - in that case just pls disregard! Agree that the sprayed on epoxy finish (in any color) can be a good affordable alternative to ripping out the tile and re-installing some other kind of wall. The tub will probably peel so maybe you could just replace that - the money and effort you save not ripping out the tile wall (believe me that is a beast of a job) can go to the cost of replacing the tub.

The only reason why I watch HGTV any more is if I'm channel surfing and need a breather for a couple of minutes. I don't need to watch anything for long because I know exactly what people will say ("needs updating," "stainless," "granite," "open concept") and because the end product is so predictible - and so predictibly soulless. Like someone said, it's the Target look. Plus, like some have mentioned, it's the lack of respect for perfectly good rooms. Oh, excuse me, perfectly good "spaces." I have seen a few shows in which original details, usually done in good materials and that have a certain amount of interest (not to mention, fit the style and period of the house) are ripped out in order to "update." I've seen it on both Love It or List It and on Property Brothers. What's both amusing and sad is that viewers are being spoonfed a bill of unpalatable goods. First, they're led to believe that every house they buy or live in needs "updating." That of course, costs money, money that they might not (probably do not) have to spend. I know - we all realize the whole point of these shows is to get people into stores for expensive things like countertops, cabinets, stainless steel whatevers; to get them to redo entire rooms, especially kitchens and bathrooms. My opinion: Closely related is that the shows lead people to believe there's no other way to decorate their houses. Like decordummy says, what about antiques? The irony is that if you flip through Architectural Digest, World of Interiors, Antiques & Fine Art, and other magazines like those, you'll see both antiques and ornamentation/anti-Target look. That's not to say there's nothing contemporary, but houses in those magazines show individuality, creativity, they reflect a personality and point of view - even when the look has been 100% created by the designer. The other amusing but not-really-funny aspect of the HGTV philosophy is the whole "open concept" thing. I sure hope first-time home buyers, particularly people who buy new houses, understand what's going on with that. What a scam, if you ask me. What a gift to home builders, and with the buyers paying the bill! Same square footage, but what's missing with those "open concept" houses? Doors, walls, moldings, hardware, trim, and all the other things that define actual rooms. Instead, people are paying the same amount per square foot for "spaces." I've wandered a little OT, but not entirely, I hope. Oh, and will someone please mail those property brothers a decent shaver?

I love the lighting. the shower curtain was in one color but of course it’s hard to know if a fabric color online will be the same. the seatch does come in the lighter color you saw, Design Interior South, but it looks so washed out. mom wondering if it was a bad sample and I thought of calling them ...the shower curtain isn’t the best for the spot and I haven’t used it so I may pack it up and send it back. I had just hung it for photos. Plus the linen material isn’t practical for that bathroom .. but the style is so cute. no I did not price that out yet but plan to.!!! i like your taste Design Intetior South!! Thank you Home Chef!! I am going to try that product....I had tried baking soda (my fave “go to”!)but it didn’t work...