Lluvia De Oro | Bathroom Remodel
Initially, I was called by the owners of this Santa Fe home with a question about swapping their bathroom mirrors and lights for an all-in-one lighted mirror solution. I drove out to take a look and meet with them directly—and I’m glad I did!
After seeing both the primary and guest bathrooms in person, and hearing more from the homeowners about what they disliked in the bathroom spaces, two things became very clear:
1. The desire to adjust the bathroom mirrors and lighting actually had more to do with the overall lighting (or lack thereof) in the bathrooms.
2. Just replacing the existing vanity mirrors and lights with an integrated solution wasn’t going to resolve their problem—and it wasn’t even possible due to the way tile had originally been installed in the bathroom.
Dealing With the Dark and Dated
More than anything, my clients didn’t like how dark the bathrooms were. Both rooms were covered floor-to-ceiling with two different types of tile from the 1980s, and the runs of dark pink upper tiles were absorbing a huge amount of natural light. The light fixtures they wanted to replace were cheap, mismatched chrome fixtures likely installed by a previous owner as a quick fix. Some of them weren’t even functional, and none were worth preserving.
In truth, all the fixtures and hardware in the bathroom needed updating, and for the room to be truly functional, it needed more basics like towel racks. After discussing it all together, my clients and I agreed it was going to be a bigger project than first thought. However, I committed to finding them solutions that would work within their budget.
From Pink to Palladio for Maximum Impact
Fortunately, the sink and counters were still in good condition, as was the bath surround in the primary bath, so we decided to work around them when updating the bathrooms. After looking at various tile options, it became evident that a large format Palladio tile could replace the dark upper pink tiles. This change would brighten up the room and allow it to feel larger and more contemporary. My clients loved the 24x48 tile size compared to the smaller repeating squares and numerous grout lines of the old tile. Not only would the room look vastly brighter, but the new tiles would also be much easier to clean.
Seeking Unity of Upgrades
Once the new tiles were installed, the window casings and vanity cabinetry looked tired in the bathrooms, so I had my painters apply a faux finish texture to them. This finish was selected to match an existing piece of furniture in another part of the house, resulting in a rich and deep color. As the house was located in a very private natural area, we removed the valance and window shade, allowing much more of the gorgeous high desert light to fill the rooms.
With the walls and cabinetry addressed, I turned my attention to the fixtures. All chrome fixtures were replaced with oil-rubbed bronze finishes, and we changed out the existing lighting while also adding new ceiling-mounted lights. We replaced the mirrors with framed mirrors in the same warm bronze finish, changed all drawer hardware, upgraded the shower and tub fixtures, and added a grab bar in each shower for safety.
The glass shower surround in the primary bathroom received an oil-rubbed bronze trim, and we installed taller glass walls to retain the heat in the shower. Since the rooms had a notable shortage of places for towels, I also added a hand rod on the shower door to hang a towel.
Other improvements included adding a Toto Washlet toilet in the primary bath and a lighted magnifying makeup mirror, which we hardwired after removing the old pink tile.
The wall tile above the bullnose in the guest bathroom shower was replaced with a tile similar to the flooring in that room, but we only swapped the upper tiles in the shower area. On the vanity walls we just opted to remove the tile and replace it with drywall to allow for future artwork to be installed more easily.
The toilet was also changed in the guest bath, as was the trim on the shower panel (although we managed to successfully reuse the shower glass). All hardware and lighting were changed to match the primary bathroom, and the linen closet door and vanity cabinet were given a faux painting treatment.
Dealing With the Unexpected
One common challenge you can face in any remodel involves the integrity of the walls you uncover during demolition—especially when attempting to use large format tiles or other heavier materials. One wall in this project required additional framing to ensure it was plumb and level. The guest bath window frame required new framing, as the supporting framing under the original tile was rotted. The old bath and shower fixtures had aged out, requiring new diverters and controls to fit the new fixtures. There was no access panel on the bathtub surround in the primary bath, so we crafted an access panel that would blend in with the surrounding tile. Finally, the existing tub fixture spout was too short for the original tub and would spray water on the rim during filling. I selected a new spout that performed correctly, eliminating standing water outside the tub.
Overall, the remodel of these bathrooms preserved far more material than was replaced, making it an eco-friendly remodel that kept a lot out of the landfill while still creating a whole new look and feel for the bathrooms. Yes, it was a bigger project than the owners had originally conceived, but the results increased the beauty and function of the spaces to such a great degree that the remodel costs would be easy to recoup if they ever decided to sell.
