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.

Hi, we are remodeling our master bathroom / walk in closet and are looking for ideas and opinions. I have attached the layout of the bathroom as well as a blank one. The curved shower wall is glass block and does protrude into the bedroom. We are thinking of a glass shower and stand alone tub. The closet has the standard pole and shelf design. It does not work terribly well. We are thinking of a wooden shelf/drawer design. We would also like to add a double sided, sealed, gas fireplace between the bath and bed rooms. If we can't make it work we will do a single sided in the bedroom. We can move the doorways but would like to keep the walls in the same locations. We would love to hear your ideas.

Oh. Like magic. :o) For sanitary reasons, I’m not sure what you could put there. How about a couple of floating shelves on the wall up above? If you don’t need the storage/display space, I still think just an art print would do it. It is a bit of an awkward spot but its location right next to the toilet kind of gives it an ick factor. Sorry I’m not more help.

My opinion will be biased because I have very similar tile in my master we redid 12 years ago. 4" squares on the diagonal for the shower floor and 12" squares on main floor and up the shower walls. Coincidentally we are in process of redoing my kids' bath the past few weeks (it was also redone 12 years ago) because a hard-to-find leak in the tub prompted us to consider replacing it....which then brought about the issue of replacing the tiled tub-surround that would be damaged...and we would also have to try to retile some spots on the floor because a new tub would be a smaller footprint leaving some bare spots once old tub was pulled out. My point is that we also had to figure out the whole, "do we do an updated 'patch job' to save a lot of money, or do we just gut it and accept the cost as the price of being at peace with it/enjoying a new look and improved function. Right or wrong...which is always a very subjective thing....we gutted it and I'm thrilled. I was not interested in painting my cabinets just to have them have peel-issues due to steam, and we also got rid of the tub altogether and opted for a stand-up/walk-in shower for my older kids. Resale was considered on this issue...but by the time we move, someone can either love it as we've made it, or we will price the house with an "allowance" in mind. The old space had hot-chocolate colored walls and 'slate' porcelain floor and tub surround...an overall warm and cozy feel but also tired and dated. The new space is a porcelain 'marble' hex with white subway walk-in shower that is awaiting glass doors...an overall calming feeling that is also bright and fresh. I now actually wish SO BADLY that I was able to redo/retile MY whole bathroom (tile similar to yours). And there's nothing wrong with my bathroom, and a planned paint job on the walls will help me like it even more...... In my kids' bathroom, however, even unfinished with the floor and shower tile installed just waiting for the rest to come together (waiting on backordered tile base moulding) ......... I walk in and just smile and breathe deeply because of the way the space now makes me feel :) So my very biased vote is to gut it ;) ;)