tobik5 asked: "is it true, that :"the manufacturers of Wonderboard and Hardiebacker require a vapour barrier behind the substrate, whereas the makers of Durock and Permabase do not"? Manufacturers will often tell you simply how to best install their product. They'll tell you that a certain framing schedule is needed to back the boards, they'll tell you haw many fasteners should be used to attach the boards. What they often don't tell you is how to use their material within a certain system, in a shower, for example. There are a couple of reasons. One is liability. With national, state, and local codes, building code may vary throughout the country, even from town-to-town. So often times the manufacturers will write nothing specific and only write installation generalities. Or they might wrote "consult your local building code" or "consult a knowledgeable professional". The other is that there are so many variables in shower systems out there. A manufacturer can't reprint their literature for every permutation that can be thought up. Example, before topical membranes became common, pretty much every manufacturer wrote to "install 6-mil poly or lapped tar paper behind the cement board in a shower", because that's how showers were built. When topical membranes became popular, people followed the 6-mil poly advice because the installation instructions said to do so. But then they installed a topical membrane on the face of the cement board too. So things change. And with the rapid rate of change manufacturers have responded by simplifying. A lot of them will tell you just how to install their product, but not how to incorporate their product with installation options "A", "B", or "C".

Monicakm, that beaded one WAS one I briefly looked at, but my bathroom is more traditional. If I had contemporary that would definitely be one on my short list...I loved it. I saw it in one of the wallpaper books from an Interior Designer (ID). Thought it could be used almost like a backsplash. It was really gorgeous. The wallpaper I am considering is from the Candice Olson Dimensional Surfaces Book. The glass bead design is called Script Geo $130/roll. You can't tell by the picture, but the background has a beautiful sheen and the glass bead design is raised off the paper. The one with a faint scroll design with a grasscloth type weave is called Filigree on Sisal $140/roll. Those are retail prices, but the Interior Designer can get it for much less.

weedyacres, thanks for all the advice! :) I don't know why everybody thinks I'm jumping into this tomorrow but this is something I don't plan on doing for another 3+ months, maybe not even for another year. Who knows. But by nature I'm very proactive and like to start planning so I can prepare. The kitchen is a different story because I am literally moving into a house with ZERO appliances - I don't want to live off take-out every night, and not even be able to take home leftovers! I appreciate everybody looking out for me in terms of budget and experience, I really do, but there's a lot of (personal) details I haven't added in my original posts. My mom updated her bathroom all by herself, and has done MANY other bathrooms for other people. This bathroom is much bigger than mine (the photo doesn't show it all). All new flooring, wall tile, mirror, faucet, shower fixtures, etc. She did this bathroom for $600, so I think my 2k tile budget is conservative. Oh and she is a house wife (no job), so she just spends all day doing this type of stuff. My budget outlined above was meant to include everything that is required (additional materials and tools if I don't have them already - I also haven't mentioned that I worked for SB&Decker for 3 years and have literally a closet FULL of Dewalt hand and power tools). I also have other friends who have just completely renovated their entire home by themselves (and were in my shoes less than a year ago). They had help from their plumber uncle but other than that they basically gutted and re-did their whole house themselves. We're all Engineers too, so we have a sense of structures. I might not understand house terms but I have a good sense of math and physics and have done a lot of research, calculations, and budgeting that I'm confident in. My GC is also a great guy, and has even offered to lend me his tools if I want to DIY things myself. I don't get into these details though in my original posts because I'm just looking for design guidance, not necessarily how-to's. You're right about my lack of knowledge with home DIY and construction, I'm a total newb! But I've been reading, researching, and watching a lot, so I'm learning every day. Houzz has just been another great outlet for me to learn, especially coming from people with firsthand experience! Fori is not pleased, I definitely plan to now. That's great advice. I'll look into what current code is and how my bathroom (now) meets it, and what would need to bring it up to code. My GC called out a few things during the initial walk-thru and he seems very familiar with the codes in the area, so he can help. I'll do all this before I start any renovating. When I say "new layout" I don't necessarily mean moving stuff around. Maybe I should re-phrase and ask how to design the bathroom. Mostly I just don't know what to do with the inset wall. Do I put cabinets all the way from the (current) sink to the door or do I leave empty space underneath and put a bench? What's practical? What would look nice? etc etc.

This should have all been handled in the prep. Was completely avoidable with the proper prep. But what we don't know (or understand) is why the shower walls were built out so far. One common approach would be to build jambs. Again, this is all part of the planning. Doubt the walls were that far out of plumb that you couldn't achieve a better result than you have. You should have been given your options before anything was done as what you have is not standard. There are so many ways to rectify this in planning. This stuff hurts my head.