We’re sharing an update on our bathroom renovation—how we moved it from zero to fifty percent complete (the math will make sense once you read what we tackled) and the lessons we learned about the best layout and correct sizes for the vanity, shower, tub and other fixtures. We also dove into indoor plant care with expert Carmeon Hamilton, who answered everything we’d ever wanted to know about keeping houseplants healthy. She recommended easy starter plants, explained when to water, repot and fertilize, and offered a simple pest-control recipe. We also highlight a compact, multipurpose tool we’ve used so much we bought two, and reveal a surprise twist in our color-of-the-year predictions.
You can also find this episode on your favorite podcast platform like Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Stitcher, or Spotify.
What’s New
- If you missed our earlier post about partially gutting the master bathroom, check out the before tour to see how the new sightlines and layout changes are already making a big difference.
- We still love classic tiles, but we’re excited to lay them in unexpected patterns to give the space personality while keeping a timeless feel.
- With the layout firmly decided, we ordered the room’s major pieces: the tub, the toilet and a wide double vanity that should fit perfectly. We plan to finish the vanity in a muted gray-brown inspired by our reference photo.
- The toilet we chose is the same model we’ve used in our downstairs powder room for years; it feels like a stately, practical upgrade. It’s satisfying to replace another original fixture—soon we’ll be two for three on our bathroom swaps.
Colors of the Year
- We guessed a few possibilities for Sherwin-Williams’ 2020 Color of the Year and turned out to be wrong: the pick was a deep navy called Naval rather than the brown or green shades we imagined.
- On the other hand, Sherry’s offhand idea of a soft “blush” or peachy pink—lighter than Millennial Pink—was very close to HGTV Home by Sherwin-Williams’ pick, Romance.
- We’re still keeping an eye out for Benjamin Moore’s choice; one of our current predictions is a muted, clay-like green-gray, but we’ll wait for the official announcement before committing to that as fact.
Carmeon Hamilton’s Plant Parenting Tips
- Carmeon’s book Nubi’s Guide to Plant Parenting is a concise, friendly resource for new plant owners. It covers basic care, troubleshooting and propagation.
- Her top three beginner-friendly plants—tolerant of a range of light conditions—are pothos, snake plant, and ZZ plant. Important safety note: many common houseplants can be toxic to pets, so check toxicity before bringing plants into homes with curious animals.
- Carmeon prefers monstera over fiddle leaf figs for durability and style. If you want a larger specimen, there are multiple size and price options depending on retailer and planter choice.
- She provides clear guides on how to propagate pothos and monstera, which is a great, low-cost way to grow your collection and share plants with friends.
- For pest control, Carmeon recommends a gentle homemade spray: fill a spray bottle with water, add a couple capfuls of apple cider vinegar or neem oil and a few drops of dish soap. Spray infested plants outdoors, wipe leaves clean, and allow the plant to dry for a few hours before bringing it back inside.
- For regular feeding, Carmeon suggests a balanced liquid fertilizer formulated for houseplants; follow package directions for dilution and frequency to avoid over-fertilizing.
We’re Digging
- One tool we keep recommending is the Ryobi inflator. We’ve got two now because it’s compact, reliable and useful for inflating bike tires, sports equipment and pool floats. It’s a small, affordable gadget with more uses than you might expect.
- On a lighter note, Sherry has started saving cute photos of friends in her contacts and sometimes adds a heart emoji after my name—small rituals that make texting feel sweeter. We shared an Animoji reenactment on the episode to capture that feeling.
If you’re searching for something we’ve featured in earlier episodes, we keep a master list of all the items we’ve recommended and discussed in the “We’re Digging” segments, plus a Book Club page with every title we’ve highlighted.
Finally, thanks to Annie Selke for sponsoring the episode. Their seasonal collection includes new rug patterns we love; they offered a special discount code for listeners of the show.
Thanks for listening and following along as we renovate, learn more about plant care and test useful tools. We’ll keep sharing progress, discoveries and practical tips as the bathroom comes together.
*This post contains affiliate links*