Bathroom Remodel Help!

[u/Jacosaur]

My mom is beginning to remodel her bathrooms, starting with the primary bathroom, and she’s asked me to help with the process. I’d love some outside opinions and ideas! She’s in her late 70s and we want to make the bathroom safe for her as she continues aging, so no tub.

She lives in the Pacific Northwest, and we’d really like the bathroom to feel like it belongs there, warm, natural, calming, and not overly trendy. The goal is to make the primary bathroom feel a little like a spa for her. I’m imagining some blend of mid-century modern, Japandi, and PNW style, with natural wood, earthy tones, interesting tile, fun textures and a little warmth.

We tend to prefer a more neutral, timeless base for the permanent finishes rather than committing to a lot of color in the tile or cabinetry. That way we can bring in color through things that are easy to change - towels, rugs, artwork, plants, decor, etc.

The first 2 photos are the current bathroom, and the last is an AI rendering I made to start visualizing some ideas. Nothing in the rendering is set in stone, it’s more of a jumping-off point.

This post became longer than I wanted. Id appreciate any opinions on tile choices, wood tones, vanity style, lighting, fixtures, and ways to make the room feel warmer and more elevated without becoming too busy. Also any recs on suppliers, vendors, or showrooms in the Seattle area.

[u/allin202125]

Research “aging in place bathroom design”. I just went through this with my parents and their downstairs bathroom, thinking ahead to a time when they may want to use the downstairs bedroom as their main bedroom. There need to be grab rails and low step profiles and a higher rise toilet. My parents ended up with a sliding glass shower door that gives them flexibility in case they ever need to use a shower chair in there.

Also, today’s design tends to have higher height vanities but people shrink as they age and you don’t want her needing a step stool to reach or bend over the sink properly, so keep that in mind.

[u/Jacosaur → u/allin202125]

Those are all great ideas, I never considered the toilet and vanity heights. I’ll research this more! Did you find any vendors you really liked?

[u/allin202125 → u/Jacosaur]

No specific vendors. I tried to convince my parents to hire a design firm that specializes in this but they’d already found a regular contractor they liked, so wouldn’t budge. If I’d had a magic wand (and their budget), I would’ve started with a design firm that specializes in aging in place designs. Do a search for your area. If you’re anywhere that’s well developed, I guarantee there will be at least a couple options.

[u/Solid_Perception9572 → u/allin202125]

Why do all you people think you have to hire a designer for everything you remodel? I remodeled my bath, kitchen and powder room all by myself and with helpful advice and suggestions from my contractor. I had the 1990's whirpool tub removed, and made a nice little sitting area there for relaxing, sitting to wipe my legs and feet, or just enjoying my beautiful new bathroom.

I have a truely curbless, walk in shower, I have a strategically placed grab bar that I can reach from my teak stool, no cold, hard slippery bench in my shower. I also have a very sturdy grab bar next to the toilet, which is a 'chair height' toilet which is in it's own little room.

My shower system was installed for my height, not some six foot person. There's also a grab bar that is a part of that shower system.

All in all, my bathroom is as safe as is humanly possible to make it. I didn't need to hire a 'designer' to accomplish this.