The secret to designing on a budget...

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When purchasing accessories, hardware and other necessities for our bathroom re-design, I was goverened by one rule when it came to cost.  Before I let you in on my little secret, take a look at my new vanity.  Try to rank the various pieces based on their cost.  Which items are expensive?  Which are super cheap?  Here's a hint:

1 thing cost $19.99 1 thing cost $5.00 (clearance!) 1 thing cost $89.00 1 thing cost $69.00 1 thing cost $100.00
OK -- go for it and stop reading ahead!  What cost what??

Ok, remember your answers and we'll see if your eye is spot on!
Here is my personal rule of thumb when it comes to purchasing new STUFF.
If you touch it, it should be expensive. If you don't, save a little.
This is the thing -- fingers are usually more sensitive than eyes. What does that mean? Think about it...your eye can be fooled fairly easily into thinking that a plastic is really metal or that a piece of glass could possibly be a fine jewel. Touch that plastic or glass though and you instantly know exactly what it is.

Take the vanities.  What part of this setup do you normally touch?
The faucet certainly, the sink too.  The mirror?  Not so much.  The lights?  Hardly ever.  So guess where I spent my $$$?


  The mirror cost $19.99 The light cost $5.00 (clearance!)* The faucet cost $89.00 The cabinet cost $69.00 The sink cost $100.00
 *(Tiny caveat on the lights...the light itself cost 5 bucks, but the glass shades were $8 a piece...more on that splurge later...)

The towels?  YES!!  Spend money!  You touch them every day!
The towel RACK -- not so much...$4 on clearance...



See how that works?   If I touch it, I spent a pretty penny on it (hello sink and faucet!).  The feel of solid, brushed metal every time I turn the water on and off a million times a day makes my bathroom feel more expensive than it really is.  In fact, the faucets cost more than any other single item in the space comparatively (based on what I I could have paid for another functional faucet).

I could have spent a pretty penny on mirrors, but glass is glass and I never touch that frame.  You wouldn't know it is cheap unless you look really good and reach over the sink and touch it.  You might do that if you are using my bathroom and very nosy, but probably not.  You certainly aren't climbing up the sink to touch the light fixture (or are you?)

In any case, if I were able to spend lots o money on EVERYTHING, that would have been nice, but if you are on a budget, spend money on the things you TOUCH.