House tour - master bath

Our master bath is one of my favorite rooms in the house.  It's a bright, functional space that blends just the right amount of formality with rustic and coastal charm.  

When we designed our master bath, we knew that we wanted to put in a shower with a bench.  Our architect told us that we would be stupid not to (shout out to our awesome architect, if you're reading this!) and he was right.  It's been really nice to have a bench to put my legs on while shaving, and I've also spent a few minutes sitting on it after a long day at work.  The only thing that I would change about the bench, is I would consider lowering it by an inch or two.  Carrara marble is slippery when wet, and if you work 12 hour shifts in a very busy emergency room and come home exhausted, you might find yourself sliding off of said bench if you're not paying attention.  By lowering the bench just an inch or so, I could more comfortably put my feet on the ground.

The tile that we used for our master shower is a 4x12" gloss white subway tile by Pental.  We used Laticrete's Bright White epoxy grout, which I've been pleased with so far.  The tile wipes clean with a damp sponge and the epoxy grout has required minimal scrubbing.  I've even stained the grout with a very pigmented purple shampoo, and it's scrubbed clean with a gentle cleaner and a bit of elbow grease.  

Our master shower also has a built in shampoo shelf, and two shower heads - one is mounted to the wall and the other is in the ceiling.  We have the Kohler Flipside mounted on an adjustable bar, on the wall.  So far I have no complaints about the Kohler Flipside.  It has plenty of settings to choose from, and has excellent water pressure.  I also love having the detachable head so that I can rinse shave gel off of my legs and rinse cleaning solution from all 4 walls when I'm scrubbing the shower.  

The fixture that you see in the ceiling is a rain shower head by Kohler.  This has also been a great fixture, with excellent water pressure - enough pressure to rinse out shampoo and conditioner with ease.  We installed a diverter valve so that we can have either one or both shower heads functioning at the same time.  

Pental 4x12" glossy subway tiles with Kohler Flipside and Kohler rain head showers.  Carrara marble slab bench and tub deck.

Pental 4x12" gloss white subway tile with Laticrete Spectralock Bright White grout, Carrara marble bench.

You might remember when I professed my love for our master tub.  I still adore our Maax Slimline Oval tub and the Kohler Bancroft tub faucet and hand shower.  No complaints or regrets with either of these products.

Maax Slimline Oval tub with Kohler Bancroft tub faucet and hand shower

Built in bookshelves adjacent to the master bath.  Carrara marble slab tub deck, Maax Slimline Oval tub and Kohler Bancroft tub faucet and hand shower.

Our master bath flooring is my favorite flooring in the house - made by sTile, this is a porcelain floor that is meant to look like wood.  I can honestly say that I adore the sTile Tabula Moka flooring, and we get more compliments on it than any other flooring in the house.  When the tile guys installed the Laticrete Light Pewter expoxy grout, I had a bit of a freakout moment.  I think I had envisioned the grout blending in a bit more with the tile, but our designer assured me that a contrast between the tile and grout was a good thing.  Now that we've been living with the tile/grout combination for about 4 months, I've come to love the look.

The sTile Tabula Moka floor is a dream to clean.  I use a dry Swiffer to sweep debris to the crumb sweeper* and then use a wet Swiffer to clean up the rest.  One of the best things about this flooring is that it hides dirt and hair (two of the things that I hate the most in bathrooms).

sTile Tabula Moka flooring with Laticrete Spectralock grout in Light Pewter.  Walls are Benjamin Moore 1551 La Paloma Gray.

Another part of the bathroom that I love is the dual vanity.  We carried the same Carrara marble slab on to the vanity top, and used a simple undermount sink by Kohler.  The faucets are the Kohler Bancroft monoblock lavatory faucet with ceramic handles.  I love the formality of the marble, contrasted with the old world monoblock faucet.  The blacksplash is a simple 3x6" matte subway tile by Pental, which was leftover from the kitchen.

Carrara marble vanity slab, Kohler undermount sink, Kohler Bancroft monoblock lavatory faucet, 3x6" matte subway tile by Pental with Laticrete Spectralock epoxy grout in Bright White.  Benjamin Moore 1551 La Paloma Gray on the walls.

Benjamin Moore 1551 La Paloma Gray with Pental 3x6" matte white subway tile and Carrara marble slab vanity top

 Despite the protests from our builder, cabinet maker and finish carpenter, one of the best decisions that I made was to install a medicine hutch on top of the dual vanity in the master bath.  I like to call it "Separation of church and state."  Not only does this hutch give us an enormous amount of storage, but is also keeps my side separate from my husband's.  I don't want to look at his toothpaste splatter on the mirror, and this hutch is the perfect divider.  For the record: I love him, but I do not love toothpaste splatter on the mirror.

You may notice a little notch/panel at the very bottom of the cabinetry in the center.  That's the crumb sweeper*.

Dual master bath vanity.  Cabinets are painted Sherwin Williams Alabaster, cabinet knobs and pulls from Overstock, Carrara marble slab top, Kohler Bancroft monoblock lavatory faucets with ceramic handles, 3x6" matte white subway tile backsplash by Pental with Laticrete Spectralock grout in Bright White.

*Shout out to Dr. D.C.!  If you're reading this, thank you for your suggestion to put a crumb sweeper in the bathroom.  Brilliant!  I think of you every time I use it.  Is that weird...?