Thursday, August 27, 2009

Decor to Dye For

I don't like bathroom rugs with the rubberized non-slip stuff on the bottom. My bathroom isn't big enough to get up to slipping speed, and our heavy tile floor is uneven enough to provide a non-slip surface as it is. I like heavy reversible cotton rugs, easy to shake out and easy to wash.

But for some reason, those are hard to find, even more difficult because I'm looking for matching rugs in three different sizes. I like a big one in front of the sink cabinet, only have room for a smaller one to step out of the bathtub/shower onto, and then also like a U-shaped one in front of the toilet (tile on a cement-slab with only a woodstove for heat = very cold floors). I found what I was looking for in white, but didn't like how stark they looked. A bottle of dye and a go-round in the washing machine took care of that!

I love the way the rugs look now! The tan color just seems more serene. Since I'm posting a photo of my bathtub, I might as well point out another part of my decor I really like. We live in a small house, with only one bathroom (that also doubles as the laundry room). The bathtub is also a shower, and that's how we usually use it. So to have all the bathing-type accessories easily accessible to a standing user, it makes sense to hang them up. But the plastic shower caddies that hang over the shower head really wouldn't fit my decor, and besides, then you've got water running over your soap. Instead, I have a copper 3-tiered basket hanging from a chain on a ceiling hook above the other end of the tub. An old luffa, cut to fit, lines the top basket, with just enough room for a couple of tilted soap racks, the middle basket holds razors and brushes, the bottom one for bottles of shampoo and conditioner. Clothespins on the top edge hold luffas, a pouf, and shower cap where they can dry. Everything just drips back into the bottom of the tub. And everything is also up out of the way when using the bathtub for baths (or washing the dog, or cleaning blinds or the dehydrator racks). Best of all, it looks uncluttered and there's nothing around the edge of the tub to move when scrubbing the tub either.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

I like your decor, especially the three tier metal baskets. I have an old metal holder thingy that hangs from the shower head. Our shower head is one of those hand held jobs so water does not drip onto the soap. I prefer your idea though. Much nicer!

Nancy M. said...

The hanging basket is a great idea! I don't really like the rubber backed mats either. Looks great!

Tree Huggin Momma said...

I absolutely love the idea of a hangin basket in the back of the shower, so I am stealing that idea. I also am adding a rectractable hanging line over the bathtub so I can hang some more items to dry.
I have no rugs in my bathroom, we have two old towels which started to tear (in the almost middle) so I finished the tear and now have 4 bathmats, that I love. I have thought about making some braided rugs from fabric scraps but we shall see.

MasterpieceMom said...

Ingenius!! I'm sure you'll have lots of copycats out there. :D

Anonymous said...

A hanging basket is a fab idea! So simple yet innovative!