"Will you need a fan and or light in the enclosed area?" We actually have one unit in the ceiling above the toilet that has a fan and light built in...we might get a new nicer-looking unit to replace the old one but that should be an easy upgrade. "I like that last setup you showed." Me too, but I'm still not sure whether to go with a barn door or pocket door. I think barn door has the advantage of an easier installation, but a pocket door probably could be installed leaving more room in the toilet closet. A barn door would probably look cleaner from outside the toilet closet, since you wouldn't see the hardware or the door when opened. "It would be nice to have the toilet centered in that space, but if you can keep the center of the toilet 18 inches from the sliding glass door on the wall, you should be fine." That's my worry...the toilet is currently offset slightly closer to the closet...it is about 19" from the center of the toilet to that wall, and 22" to the other wall. With a barn door installed there I imagine we wouldn't keep 18" unless we shift over the toilet. I don't know yet how expensive that would be. A smoked glass insert across from the toilet as in that pic might be the way to go. Then I still have the question of whether that wall should be flush with the window recess or set in a little. I'm thinking maybe flush with the window would be best to leave as much depth as possible for the toilet closet, and fewer edges/angles on the other side of the wall outside of the toilet closet. This post was edited by Phaedrus29 on Wed, Nov 5, 14 at 16:33

Personally, I don’t see any problem with having a walk in closet off of master bath. In fact, I like the idea... super convenient. As long as it is within your area’s building code guidelines, I don’t see why it would be an issue, or why you would feel you need validation for this idea (?). People take entire rooms of their existing houses to convert to custom closets, and most folks don’t view that as being odd. I don’t view it as being odd either, btw; and even if I did view it as being odd, it wouldn’t really be my business - since it’s not my house. As far as ‘’making things easier‘’ for your husband goes, though - I hope these extra modifications do work the way you intend, and that he doesn't just forego the closet - and throw his stuff on the bathroom floor!

Its not about needing to exit the house through the bathroom. Its really about the kids and their friends being able to use the bathroom/shower/change upon entry without getting water everywhere. There already is a sliding door off the kitchen to the back patio so the bathroom is not the only exit to the yard. The mudroom doesent have to change… we still have the 5ish feet on that garage side of the mudroom. Im just suggesting removing the side door and bench to make room for a shower and a closet. Wouldnt the jack and jill layout I posted work for my space? It looks to be 10 feet by 12 feet. So should put us right at the edge of the kitchen counter. Am I missing something? Any other more efficient/ compact options? tankless toilet? shower outside? i dunno…. looking for creative solutions

I don’t see why that plan couldn’t work, if that’s what you want to do and your contractor OKs the reorienting of your plumbing. I’m a person that likes a little more intimate bedroom (and hotel room) spaces, so I don’t see anything wrong with an 11 x 14 space plus reading alcove, etc.— but this would be on smaller side of an en suite which might be a resale consideration. I’m guessing your bath is a standard 5’ x 8’? My proposal was to flip that on its axis, keeping a 5x8 but orienting it (and walk-in) vertically on the plan, which theoretically would eat up 3 feet from existing bedroom. The ‘vestibule’ entry on my quick sketch was to give the room some more privacy from a public area, but it could allow you to also carve out a foyer closet there if desired (not shown on my sketch). But to your point, this is not necessary to achieve what you’re going for and potentially more $$ than it’s worth (but if crown molding is your only concern, that could likely be easily bypassed by having an arched doorway leading into ‘vestibule’ area). FWIW- I’m a serial home renovator with a number of projects done for myself, friends and family— but I’m not a ‘pro’. Your project doesn’t seem overly complicated but you’ll want a knowledgeable contractor with some in-house design chops.