Instagram Bathrooms Are Lying To You

Nobody loves scrolling through Instagram renovations more than we do. You can easily find information there about the lavish lives of celebrities, their homes and endless ideas for your next home project. Who doesn't want to live the luxury life beginning their day with a bathroom "spa experience" in their own home?

The truth of the matter? Instagram is lying to you.

What you see in those photos is "staged" and not built for living. They may not represent what you need for functional living and they definitively don't caution you about where your bathroom budget is actually needed. You need a bathroom that lasts, not one with high-end finishes at the expense of cutting costs behind the scenes. A bathroom that looks good but leaks because corners were cut will not be a win.

Many homes in the Ottawa area are older. They come with old plumbing, uneven floors/walls and outdated codes that require upgrading. These all need to be considered when making your selections. Not every bathroom budget will house Instagram  featured large format tile, niches, glass showers, statement lighting or curbless showers. Nor will every homeowner know how to stage their bathroom with plants, candles or personalized hand towels. This doesn't mean you can't get there, it means you need an experienced contractor.

Beautiful photos sell an idea but unfortunately don't educate homeowners on ensuring their contractor has a sound plan. Before starting your project, discuss the compatibility of membranes, drains, corners, shower slope and proper transitions to avoid leaks. It's a "Red Flag" if you start hearing your contractor tell you "we have always done it this way" or "we will seal the grout". Grout is not waterproofing.

Bathrooms don't just fail from leaks. Improper ventilation can also cause a major bathroom malfunction and should be a part of your plan. Proper fan sizing matters and the duct run is essential in avoiding unnecessary leaks in your ceiling. Humidity in your bathroom causes mildew, peeling paint, warped finishes...and there is nothing luxurious or spa-like in that.

So where does the cost come from in a high-end bathroom? Precision labour, ventillation, sequencing, organizing your HVAC, electical, plumbing and glass shower walls are a few. These are the people who prepare your bathroom to work as it should. Your precision labour helps to ensure you have clean finish lines, a plan for making those large format tiles have alignment, straight cuts, proper transitions. 

Ultimately, it is easy to find "the look you want" when choosing marble looking tiles or paint colours, but in order for you to actually be happy, make sure the person you hire has the experience and knowledge to ensure everything you don't see is planned out and executed properly to avoid a luxury loss when it comes to your bathroom spa.

-Emily Jossinet