We built our home almost ten years ago and at the time the kids were very young so we wanted our bedroom to be on the second floor close to them. The plan was always to add a master bedroom and ensuite on the main floor. We embarked on our addition a year ago in September and we completed it last April. We took our time as we were contracting it ourselves and I was on the hunt for good deals. Here are some of our saves and some of our splurges…..
I really wanted to put marble on our entire fireplace wall on the bedroom side as there was no good place to cut it off. It also contributes to a much more modern vibe. I also really wanted to put marble on all of the walls in the bathroom. I called Olympia Tile (located in Burnaby, BC) and they had some “damaged” 12″ x 24″ Bianco Carrera marble that was honed (not shiny) for about $5/square foot. That’s half price. I went down to take a look at it. One edge on each tile looked slighting scuffed and I was willing to live with it. No one even notices!
The marble was a save and the floating cabinet in the master was a splurge, but not much more than a dresser would have cost. We have a small fridge in there for water.
The Barcelona-style chairs came from Eternity Modern Their Pavilion chair and ottoman are a reproduction of an iconic design, but I am ok with that. At $699 each, not a bad price, as each chair comes with an ottoman. The ottomans are used at the end of my bed so I didn’t have to buy a bench!
The Eileen Gray reproduction table was also from Eternity Modern from $149
We had the bed made by Van Gogh Designs and it was much less expensive than similar ones from Crate and Barrel or Restoration Hardware. I purchased the fabric at a steal from the Robert Allen Outlet store online. I had the pillows made through Tonic Living in Toronto, so I didn’t have to pay any duty. Tonic Living can also make custom pillows from any of the fabrics they carry. Pillows are extremely reasonable ranging from approximately $25 to $50.
Pillows from Tonic Living, bed from Van Gogh Designs
The light above the bed was a splurge from http://www.et2online.com
Tonic Living is offering our readers a 10% coupon with no minimum purchase (on ready to go products, fabric or custom projects) which will be SUGARPLUM (enter in coupon code box on first page of checkout). Offer expires December 31, 2011. Throw cushions make a great Christmas gift and custom orders usually ship within a few days!
We saved a large amount of money on the freestanding tub. I asked our plumber to keep his eye out for any damaged floor models. Our tub has an imperfection of the back right corner, but no one will ever see it! The chandelier is from ET2 Lighting
For the blog launch party, we created a floating arrangement for the tub
The see through fireplace was a splurge. We thought of going down a size, but it would have looked too small.
We splurged on the bathroom cabinety…floating cabinets, a his and hers, made out of African mahogany. I especially love the towel storage. JMV Woodworks did an outstanding job on all of the cabinetry.
No regrets here!! This is my cabinet!
Jason likes to shower, so this is another area that we didn’t skimp on. We splurged on the marble mosaic tiles and the plumbing fixtures (rain head and 3 body sprays from Riobel).
We saved on the benches. They are from HomeSense. Pillow from Tonic Living
My last, and probably favorite, splurge was my closet. Originally we were going to wait and just put in some wire shelving, but Jason encouraged me to go for it! I’m a lucky lady! I really enjoy my closet and find that I wear more of my clothes because I can actually see them. JMV Woodworks designed and built the cabinets. It sounds so vain, but it is my happy place. If you ever can’t find me….look for me in my closet!
We saved some money in the closet by only using a single marble slab on the island without thicker edging and we just used cabinetry for the back cabinet top instead of marble
Shoe racks flank the double french doors
I feel extremely fortunate, even spoiled, that we were able to add these rooms to our home. But I do believe that your master bedroom should be an oasis…a place of rest and an escape from the busyness of life. Look for ways to make your bedroom special, whether it’s a scented candle, a comfy blanket, or even a toss cushion in your favorite colour. It’s the little touches that make it an retreat.
