Painting over the once popular antiqued paint look on the door and window frame, yellow and gold in our case, seemed easy enough. Shapes in a highly coded space, such as required distance in front of and beside a toilet as well as shower door out swings and other like issues, were challenging.
I use the word 'shape' in my post as it is more common than the word 'form' and is typically used in place of 'form.' Technically, shape is a two dimensional element of design such as the shape of the showers on a floor plan. Form is its 3D equivalent.
The bath renovation mission was to: increase the size of the master bath; provide a separate and smaller private bath for the 2nd bedroom; include two separate vanities in master, each with adequate lighting; provide as open and spacious a feeling as possible in both baths; include decent sized well lighted showers; install quiet exhaust fans; use materials that do not overpower the architecture yet are appropriate to the scale of window, door trim and ceiling height as well as the age of the home.
The small original back to back closets adjacent to the existing bathroom and between the two bedrooms were the best places to find more space. The 2nd bedroom already had another closet built in and the master bedroom was large enough to create a walk-in closet within its own existing space. 
First, demolition. Then, reframing the walls and new plumbing. Next, new electrical.
Sometimes it is not a matter of spending up for nice tile or the like, but spending wisely to get the best overall result.
This project called for specific shower shapes and form. There are various ways to get shapes and form, we chose custom made solid surface shower pans and solid surface walls.
The shower shapes and sizes we needed were not standard ones we could purchase in a solid material. Tile was more of a risk for leaks in this 110 or so year old house.
Keeping within the design concept for the entire house (see previous post) we went for a neutral pan color and simple design solid surface quartz shower wall.
Glass panels and or shower doors seemed appropriate to the age of the house and we updated the look by going frameless. Marble was readily available when the house was built so we used it on the master floor in a pattern reminiscent of a Victorian design.
A small round tile, a size and shape that would have been available when the house was built, is used on the small guest bath floor.
The thick quartz shower walls fit down into a lip of the shower pans and are sealed well at the corners and bottom. We decided to forgo any niches or extra holes in showers walls as this was one area were leaks had previously occurred.
We used an exterior mixer that has a shelf top in the smaller guest bath.The master shower shape allows room for an exterior garden stool to be placed inside for seating or shower products.
As for scale: the shower walls and glass are 84" high; the master vanities are deeper than most; the mirrors are 3' and 4' high; the vanity lights are each double with a substantial feel; and, the master faucets are large scale in an updated single hole style in an aged brass. Brass is a common historic metal used throughout this house, all door knobs and window hardware are brass.
The guest bath is tall and small but the 84" shower height helped bridge the gap between these.
Toilet shape and size as well as the shape of the sink for the guest bath were as important to the spacious feel of the baths as the shape of the showers.
The guest bath required a rounded sink and toilet to allow easy access around and to the shower. We used a one piece rounded front toilet at a standard height. A higher toilet would have infringed on the spacious feel especially on entering the bathroom as the toilet is literally beside the door opening. A large mirror is above the pedestal sink to give it more prominence.
Storage was another challenge where shape and size made a difference. The 10" deep cabinet opposite the toilet is angled at both ends. This shape helped the spacious feel of the bathroom because of its proximity to the bathroom door. The cabinet height is low enough to do the same thing. A rule of thumb is to keep large items below the elbow when the space is tight.
We left room in the master bath for a tall storage piece opposite the bathroom door. There is a 14" deep 32" wide niche here on the exterior wall of the shower area. We are still looking for the perfect storage piece. This is another area where shape will be worth paying up for.
The frameless glass doors on both showers play an important part in the spacious feel of both bathrooms. The guest bath shower door allows you to look deeper into the space making the bathroom feel bigger. The small light with exhaust fan above both showers keep the ceilings clean allowing unobstructed ceiling space and a larger feel to the rooms. The shower light in the guest bath helps increase the feel of the entire space by lighting the furthest corners. Wall sconces are used in both bathrooms to accent the walls. A center ceiling fixture would have pulled attention to the middle of the room making them seem smaller.
The shape of the shower and glass panel and door in the master bath were designed to house a larger shower while maintaining the open feel of the bathroom. You can see through to one of the vanities.
The white quartz simple shower walls and vanity tops also help to keep this bathroom open and spacious.
The existing entry door from the master bedroom swung out and we left it this way allowing more room inside the bath. The existing closet door from the guest bedroom also swung out and was left in place. The out swing doors are an important part of the design.
These bath spaces were designed in many different ways to find the best shapes that met the bath renovation mission.
We even used the church theory and let the height and vertical lines of the shower spaces as well as reflected light from the high ceilings lift us up, so to speak, into a larger brighter unobstructed feeling space.
We still have a bit of antiqued yellow paint to change and sconce light bulbs to cover with the glass shades. A few touch ups here and there in both baths and we can check this project off the list!
Many thanks goes out to Buddy and Rob for believing in my design and tackling old plaster, concrete, and petrified old growth wood flooring and studs. They worked effortlessly to maintain the design with minimal adjustment for plumbing and the like. John, the plumber, completed his tasks effortlessly, connecting old to new and new to old while ensuring all was to current code and water tight. Ed's guys pulled out old wires, threaded new ones and made sure all was up to code and GFI safety protected. Chris and William found a way to house the exhaust fans in the attic and to vent out soffits so as not to disturb the new roof structure. Dean has been the plaster guy from heaven repairing plaster everywhere and putting the bathroom walls and ceilings back together. Scott the handy man put towel bars into concrete backed walls and hung stuff on old metal over lathe thick plaster walls without a complaint. My assistant, Penny, has contributed to the effort in countless ways. The local historic society president, Pamela, checked in often and inspired me to keep going. Gus, the local city liaison for the historic district answered question after question and made us feel that the city is appreciative of efforts to save the old houses as functional modern living spaces. Neighbors and those who walk down or drive down our street have been amazingly supportive of all our efforts on this house, inside and out. The mailman, FED EX guy, UPS guy, pizza deliverers and so on have no idea how much their comments keep us going.
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