I Design, You Decide: The Kids Bath Materials Vote

Green marble isn’t where I thought my life would go. Emerald is generally a color that I have let Dorothy and the Wizard monopolize. But I went safe with both master bathroom options, at least colorwise. I knew it. I wanted something neutral. But the kids’ bath is somewhere that can go more playful with our materials and even bring in COLOR. The full design isn’t done yet, but we are choosing materials today (and by “we” I mean me and you, folks, so sit up, look alive and get ready to vote).

As a reminder, the kids’ bath looked like this:

Across the hall from the kids’ bunk room, it’s a decent size, and oh man do I think it’s ready for some new stone, tile, fixtures and my children. As you can probably tell from the “before” photos and the final floor plan below, we moved a few things around to set up the space in a way I thought would work better for us.

Option #1 – Playful But Not Kiddish

The first material option I’m presenting to you is warm and playful, but not too “kid.”

Blue Mosaic Tile: This tile was the real jumping off point for this design option. It’s handmade and so beautiful with a lot of reflection. The finish makes it feel kinda rustic but the pattern keeps it modern. I’m thinking of this for the shower surround, so when you walk in, you’ll see this beautiful vertical wall of that color and tile. I’m SO EXCITED. If you guys don’t choose this here, you will likely see it in another bathroom option because I’m determined to use it somehow.

Honed Carrara Marble: My best friend requested that I not use Carrara in this house. I suppose we (society) may have hit our peak on this particular stone (white with light stone veining) but when honed or leathered, it just feels classic and grounded to me. #sorrynotsorry. Bedrosians has a few slab options that felt really organic and more interesting than what you can buy mass market. With everything else going on, a quiet stone will be nice in here with the pebble floor and that mosaic tile. It will be the tub surround, the top of the tub (treating it almost like an under-mount sink) and the countertop/backsplash, similar to these photos below:

Pebble Tile: Listen, you voted for us to bring it into the house and try to make it work. I think it’s playful and fun in here and works with the honed Carrara and the blue mosaic tile so well. We will do a medium-colored grout and seal it really well, I promise.

In case you need a refresher on the look and feel of that floor, here are some inspirations I’ve shared in previous posts that feel pretty good to me:

Here is Option 1 again so you don’t have to keep scrolling (don’t worry though, we’ll also put it side-by-side with Option 2 at the end of the post so you can do a quick comparison):

The faucets and trim will be polished gold, in a VERY modern shape. Because the window is in the shower, it’ll be in a black fiberglass. There will also be hits of darker wood, blackened brass and leather (maybe).

I love this version. I know it can and will look good. The main risk is the pebble tile but I’m liking it so much with that blue mosaic tile and the honed (or even leathered) Carrara marble.

Option #2 – Shine Bright Like a Diamond an Emerald

This one is dedicated to my girl Dorothy because we found some emerald quartzite that only belongs either in Oz or this bathroom.

Emerald Quartzite: The quartzite is so stunning in person, guys. All of us gravitated toward it and did one of those things where you suck in your breath really quickly. Creating fun editorial content is what we really try to do so if we can do it in a way that isn’t a terrifying risk, then we will. I BELIEVE in this quartzite. I’m incredibly excited. It will be on the tup front and top, but that’s it. The rest of the room will be white with some wood, brass and black peppered in.

This showy stone needs to be honed to be humbled, so we will combine it with honed Thassos on the countertop and a light gray/white zellige square tile on the floor, as well as on the backsplash and shower surround but in a less expected pattern.

I realize that I used this tile in my current house (kitchen and master bath) but I LOVE it and it’s the perfect way to ground that green quartzite. We’ll play with the orientation and put the smaller 2″x2″ on the floor with a light gray grout.

The window will be black as I mentioned previously, so we’ll add a couple other sprinklings of black and wood in there via the hardware, lighting and mirror.

I honestly REALLY want both and in so many ways I wish that you gave me permission to stop this insanity and do whatever you don’t choose for the kids’ bath in the other guest bathroom. If it’s a tie (or close), I just might do that…it often feels crazy to totally nix a plan, just because it barely lost the poll. But if it’s not close—if there is a clear winner—then we’ll scrap those materials completely. 

So which is it? The blue mosaic statement or the emerald green quartzite??? VOTE NOW.

[SBEH_POLLS poll_id=”156425″][SBEH_GIVEAWAY_ENTRY id=”156425″]

Pssst…don’t forget to share your vote on your social channels to enter to win five days at the cabin next year. You can share on all your platforms (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, email, Pinterest and yes, comments will count, too). Every time you share, you get another entry and have that much greater of a chance to win (so if I were you I would have all your friends do it as well so that even if you don’t win, they do and you can go). For Instagram, use the hashtag #EHDmountainfixer so we can track that (the rest can be tracked through email).

Update: Want to see how it turned out? Head here to see the full reveal and check out the rest of The Mountain House REVEALS here: The Kids’ Bedroom | The Kitchen Organization | The Kitchen Appliances | The Powder Bath | The Living Room | The Downstairs Guest Suite | The Loft | The Kitchen | The Upstairs Guest Bath | The Dining Room | The Family Room