refresh every floor

Bathrooms & gym

The neighborhood I live in is college-aged, that is to say young and lovely but not as perfectly new as it first was. The homes are starting to show some wear, and a little love can bring them of age in the most spectacular way. That's where this story picks up. 

A kitchen and primary bath remodel a few years back left the remaining bathrooms looking a little haggard, and a space in their finished basement — once a family game room — had been abandoned by their grown kiddos and was in need of a new job.

We gave the Jack-and-Jill bath a makeover in the most lovely blue-green, and the main floor bath is now the life of the party with patterned floor tile and an updated shower stall. I found the most lovely quartzite remnant for counters, and we brought in fixtures and accessories in rich brasses and bronzes. The basement game room grew up to be a gym, complete with exposed brick walls, mirrored doors to camouflage bookshelves, and bomb-proof Coretec flooring. (They loved the brick so much, we added it to the main floor living room, too.) And even the front porch got updated fixtures and a beadboard ceiling. 

With high interest rates, homeowners with years of equity in their homes are finding it a perfect time to invest a little in a big payoff.