I’m so excited to finally get this post up with all of the links to the materials and sources we used for our bathroom renovation. More importantly, I wanted to share all of the lessons I learned during my first-ever renovation project. It was a beast of a project, and in the grand scheme of everything I hope to eventually do in our home, it was a smaller project. I literally cannot imagine managing something larger, like the kitchen renovation we want to do in a couple years. I will 10,000% hire a designer for that because, quite frankly, I have no idea what I’m doing.

When we first moved, we initially thought about just changing out the lighting, mirrors and hardware in our master bathroom to make the old floor plan work, but I’m so happy we went for a full renovation. We removed the triangle tub (bye, Hugh Hefner vibes!) and swapped the separate vanities for a double vanity. It’s such a better use of the space, and I learned so much along the way about managing a renovation project (and all the ways it can go wrong!). I wanted to share a few lessons I learned along the way, because I figured these pointers would probably come in handy if you’re a rookie homeowner or first-time renovator like me.

1. Include hiring a designer in the budget

Here’s the thing—there are SO many ways that a renovation project can go sideways, and the mistakes are expensive and time-consuming to fix. Mirrors are hung in the wrong spot, toilets you wanted to keep are thrown in the trash and hand towel rings are hung too high…not that I’m speaking from experience or anything, wink wink. My advice is to hire a designer who can manage all of the different people that are required to make a renovation happen (contractor, handyman, plumber, painter, etc). I was so lucky that my best friend, Laura Kay, was very generous with advice throughout the process. For example, I’m so happy that she convinced me to go with a classic aesthetic. I originally wanted to do a crazy emerald green marble wall in the shower, but going simpler route will be a selling point for the house when we put it back on the market one day.

2. Order all of your hardware from the same place 

Learned this the hard way! I ordered my tub hardware from Vintage Tub & Bath and my faucets and shower hardware from Restoration Hardware. I was trying to cut costs on the tub filler, but in the end, they didn’t match at all and I had to send back the filler and order from RH. Make your life simple and select everything from the same line in the same finish.  

3. Check the weight of your tub before you order it 

If you follow along on my Instagram Stories, you may have seen that I had to hire a team of movers to get our tub into our house, because it was literally 800 pounds. I also had to have the floor reinforced to hold the extra weight. This is actually more common than I thought according to our contractor, but it would have been a lot easier to plan for this in advance rather than scramble to sort it out. Nonetheless, I thought passing this along might help some of you in your renovation process! 

4. Clarify, clarify, clarify

I have had several instances where I wasn’t watching the handyman or the contractor closely enough, and, as wonderful as they are, we had to move mirrors and lights or redo projects. I highly recommend overseeing the project closely (or better yet hiring a designer to do so!), so everyone knows exactly what to do. An easy way to do this is to map out where things need to be hung with painter’s tape. This alleviates room for error and will give you peace of mind!

5. Order drapery asap (like yesterday!) 

Curtains and drapery are a finishing touch in my mind, but they actually take the longest time to create. Who knew?! We wanted to do custom drapery because we have tall windows in our spaces, and I wanted to use fun fabrics from Schumaker. We finished our renovation and had to wait 6 more weeks for the curtains to come for the window by the tub. Sorry to our neighbors who undoubtedly saw me lounging in the tub!

source list

Restoration Hardware: Mirrors, sink hardware, tub hardware, shower hardware, towel bar, towel hooks, gold countertop accessories 

Circa Lighting: Vanity sconces 

Signature Hardware: Bathtub 

Rejuvenation: Vanity knobs 

Builder Depot: Hexagon tile for bathroom floor, Subway tile for shower walls 

Divided Style: Shower door 

Farrow & Ball: Studio Green paint on custom vanity built by our handyman

Pottery Barn: Wood bowl