Design: Free Standing Bathtubs

I’m far off from my next bathroom renovation, but that won’t stop me from scouring the interweb in search of inspiration. Of late, I’ve had my eye on free-standing tubs, and this round-up – and their surroundings – are simply beautiful.

Gachot-Studios-bathtub

photo by Brittany Ambridge, interior design by Gachot Studios

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via Stylowl

terri-shannons-bathroom

designed by Jatana Interiors

tub-chatelaine

via Chatelaine

free-standing-tub

via Laura Quattro

bathrooms-modern-glamour

via Style at Home

victora-albert-free-standing-tub

The Crawford Hotel via Victoria & Albert

Real Estate: Multi-Million Dollar Canadian Homes

The latest issue of Toronto Life published another article about Toronto’s crazy real estate game. This time, the article was focused on a section of Forest Hill where home owners/developers/architects are basically one-upping neighbours/competitors and building monstrosities that may or may not fit in with the Forest Hill aesthetic (I guess it depends on who’s judging). The article honestly made me laugh out loud. Toronto real estate is ridiculous, and it blows my mind that a $3.25 million house comes with only 1 garage (for example). It also seems unbelievable that $1.5 million houses are torn down for new builds. Or, even when they’re not torn down, they require unbelievable amounts of money to bring them up-to-date.

The article – and my ongoing fascination with real estate – pushed me to browse the Toronto real estate listings. Here are some of the pricey properties that caught my attention.

500 Wellingston-Toronto 500 Wellingston-Toronto-2

500 Wellington St. PH1001, Toronto, $7.9 million

88 Davenport-Toronto-1 88 Davenport-Toronto-4 88 Davenport-Toronto-3 88 Davenport-Toronto-2 88 Davenport-Toronto-5

88 Davenport Rd. #2401, Toronto, $8.988 million

Glen Rd Toronto -4 Glen Rd Toronto -2 Glen Rd Toronto -5 Glen Rd Toronto -3 Glen Rd Toronto -1

100 Glen Rd., Toronto, $9.5 million

50 Yorkville-Toronto-3 50 Yorkville-Toronto-5 50 Yorkville-Toronto-1 50 Yorkville-Toronto-2 50 Yorkville-Toronto-4 50 Yorkville-Toronto-6

50 Yorkville Ave., Toronto SP 1, $11.9 million

50 Yorkville-2402-4 50 Yorkville-2402-3 50 Yorkville-2402-1 50 Yorkville-2402-2

50 Yorkville Ave., Toronto #2402, $12.995 million

118 Yorkville-901-5 118 Yorkville-901-3 118 Yorkville-901-2 118 Yorkville-901-1

118 Yorkville Ave., Toronto, PH901, $18.9 million

I also expanded my search to all of Canada to see what $10+ million dollar properties looked like elsewhere. Here’s a sample:

650 lowry Lane-N Vancouver-1 650 lowry Lane-N Vancouver-2

650 Lowry Ln., North Vancouver, $10,988,800

2156 marine Drive - Vancouver-1 2156 marine Drive - Vancouver-2 2156 marine Drive - Vancouver-3 2156 marine Drive - Vancouver-4

2156 SW Marine Dr., Vancouver, $11.9 million

13283 56th ave-surrey-5 13283 56th ave-surrey-6 13283 56th ave-surrey-7 13283 56th ave-surrey-3 13283 56th ave-surrey-1 13283 56th ave-surrey-2 13283 56th ave-surrey-4

13283 56th Ave., Surrey, $12.888 million

1116 Highland place West Vancouver 3 1116 Highland place West Vancouver 2 1116 Highland place West Vancouver 1

1116 Highland Place, West Vancouver, $19.7 million

Image2

Magog, Quebec, $25 million (click the link – it’s basically a castle)

And, now, for something a little closer to home…this gem in Kitchener, Ontario is full of white, and it seems like a major deal at only $2.5 million!

12 Westgate-Kitchener-1 12 Westgate-Kitchener-2 12 Westgate-Kitchener-4 12 Westgate-Kitchener-7 12 Westgate-Kitchener-5 12 Westgate-Kitchener-8 12 Westgate-Kitchener-6

12 Westgate Walk, Kitchener, $2.5 million

What was that about “if I had a million dollars”? Seems like it can’t buy a whole heck of a lot in Toronto (besides Kraft Dinner, naturally).

Design: Big Bathrooms

I’m curious – do you prefer a small, cozy, and efficient bathroom, or one that is spacious enough for a dance party?

I am lucky to have 3 bathrooms in my house (1 full size bath and 2 half-baths). When my water mysteriously (or because of the Polar Vortex) stopped working in my big bathroom and powder room last week, I felt really fortunate to have a third bathroom in working order. My powder room is a sweet little space that I love. I put thought into every element of the small space and the result makes me proud. My second half-bath is a mess of pink rosy wallpaper that I’m too scared to touch at the moment. My third bath – The Big Bath – is big. And grey.  It used to be grey and shiny on account of the 80s wallpaper and the smoky grey mirror. What a mess. If I win the lottery, I’ll certainly rip the bathroom out and start from scratch, but in the meantime, I have to make do. Here’s what the room used to look like:

big bath-before Since moving in, I tore the wallpaper to shreds (did I really have a choice?), patched the heck out of the walls, primed & painted (Chantilly Lace, of course), removed all the heavy mirrors, took down/replaced the lighting fixtures, painted the wood trim on the vanity, removed old towel bars (I think there were about 6 mismatched bars around the room), and installed new towel bars (this set). The vanity and toilet are white/cream, the floor is grey/cream, and the rest of the space (including the massive jacuzzi tub) is grey. A new white counter top, sink, and faucet will be going in soon and the combo is sure to brighten up the space. But there’s still a problem.

My bathroom echoes. And I don’t like it.

Does anyone else have this issue? Some friends have suggested I load up the space with towels, but how many “just for show” towels do I really need? Others have suggested that I put some furniture in the space. I had a bookcase in there at one point but it got moved during the painting process. I thought about putting in a chaise lounge or a desk just for laughs. Perhaps artwork and a gorgeous rug will help with the echo issue while prettying up the space at the same time. All this to say that, because of The Big Bath situation, today’s post is all about massive bathrooms.

The space in this big bath allows for a stand alone tub and gorgeous faucet. The extra-long vanity ensures that nobody is stepping on anyone else’s toes while in the process of teeth-brushing. I am pretty sure that the three towels on the heater do not reduce the echoes in this full marble bathroom.

marble5via

There’s a decent chance that the grey tufted bench in this marble bathroom might reduce the noise and the bathmat looks to be extra long at the entry way of the double-shower head shower.

shower2via

I could easily put a vintage hutch in my bathroom as in the photo below. I see that this one is filled with towels, blankets, and maybe even a pillow or two. The rug and various pieces of furniture really camouflage the fact that this space is actually a bathroom and not a living room. I hate that there are no mirrors over the sinks though.

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via

The mirror that used to be in the Big Bath reminds me of the one below. The view looks to be lovely. An upholstered chair and some flowers and tables at the end of this room might help the sound travel in this expansive room.

large-bathroomvia

Similar to some of the other bathrooms, the one below has included several pieces of furniture and art which fills up the space. The fireplace and TV are okay additions, I guess, but I would never put a TV in my bathroom.

070622Kalen013 comprsesvia

I think I’m more of a luxurious kitchen kind of person rather than a luxurious bathroom kind of person. Maybe I’ll change my mind after I make some more changes in the Big Bath. If you have any advice, I’d love to hear it.

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