Baths on a budget or on a splurge

By Susan Love, The Plain Dealer
September 25, 2009, 8:12AM

Here are some suggestions on how to achieve a spa bathroom both on a budget and with a deeper pocket. Included are suggestions from Hudson interior designer Pamela Bayer, as well as ideas gleaned from home shows throughout the years.

Budget items:

Tile, tile, tile. Go to a big-box home improvement store, such as Home Depot or Lowe's, find sheets of tile for under $10. Carefully measure the space to get an idea of how much tiling will cost. Go online to places such as glasstilestore.com and go wild with the selections (especially in the closeouts link).

Thick cotton towels. Nothing says cheap faster than a wafer-thin or frayed bath towel. Go to T.J. Maxx, Home Goods, Tuesday Morning, or Bed Bath & Beyond. Major department stores also are having sales nearly every weekend. Or just buy one really nice towel every couple of weeks. Spreading out the expense is much better than using a credit card. Expect to pay between $10 and $20 each for a towel to get true plush quality.

Towel warmers. This screams "spa." A small cooler-sized accessory called Towel Spa is $59.99 and warms your entire towel inside and out in minutes. Perfect for keeping your towel warm while you're in the bath or shower. It even warms oversized towels, socks, gloves and robes. It features auto shut-off. It can be found in many locations, including bedbathandbeyond.com.

A good showerhead. Look for rain showerheads at the big-box hardware stores, but don't forget your neighborhood hardware stores, either. If you are going to blow your budget on any one item, make it this, say all the designers. When all is said and done, what do you do in a bathroom? Bathe, of course. Check www.acehardware.com for such deals as a Moen Touch Control Solex Rain Showerhead in Chrome for $41.99 or the Danze 8-inch Sunflower Showerhead in Chrome for $124.99. The Web site offers free shipping to stores.

Fiberglass tub enclosures. No, it isn't like a tiled and luxe bathtub/shower. But the look can be elegant, and with the right hardware, the area would probably be a notch up from your current 50-year-old bathroom. Prices range from under $200 if you buy the enclosure at a hardware store, or up to several thousand dollars if you go to companies such as Re-Bath or Bathfitters.

Don't rush. Have a plan and a budget. And stick to it.

Replace older fixtures. Go for new ones in polished chrome.

Paint the walls. Sophisticated colors include a soft sage or sea glass blue.

Put the plush towels you have accumulated in baskets around your Jacuzzi, tub or shower.

Change accessories. Switch your soap dispenser and wastepaper basket to glass and chrome combinations.

Luxury renovation:

Porcelain-tiled floor with minimal texture and 2-by-2 glass accents in the center provides an interesting, upscale look.

Pebbled shower floor is wonderfully tactile and artistic. If you have a free-standing tub orwhirlpool bath, pebble the deck or floor around it, too.

Glass-tile shower walls in either border or random patterns to match the floor accents.

Streamlined, linear cabinets with less decorative doors in flush or Shaker style give a clean feel.

Frameless shower door with affixed glass panels allows natural light in and showcases the interior.

Body-spray shower, rain-head shower and hand-held shower systems offer luxurious relaxation.

Steam shower is the ultimate spa splurge. Expect this item alone to be several thousand dollars (of sheer heaven).

Suggested manufacturers: Kohler, Moen, Porcher and Mico Designs.

Suggested local retailers: Stoneworks (for tile) and Stow Glass (for glass shower doors).