This article was featured in The Ottawa Citizen, and we decided to pass the wisdom along to you, our loyal readers.  After all, the bathroom is indeed the busiest room in your house! Check out some of the fantastic tips below, or click here to read the full article.

1.  Lighting: Bye-bye ugly light bar above the mirror and hello sleek, streamlined wall sconces. “Updating the lighting is a quick and easy way to rejuvenate a bathroom,” says designer Dean Large of the Astro Design Centre on Old Innes Road. Besides adding a stylish look to the room, Large says two fixtures on either side of the mirror provide more even light which is especially useful when applying your makeup.

Cost: from $200

2.  New faucet: Often referred to as the jewels of the bathroom, replacing old taps with gleaming new faucets gives a custom, personalized look to the bathroom. The hot new trend is square, angular, single-lever faucets in white or black matte finish.

Cost: $100 to $1,100

3.  Adjustable shower: A drizzling rain showerhead may be relaxing, but not a practical choice for daily showering because it doesn’t provide enough water pressure. Large recommends pairing a fixed showerhead on an adjustable bar –”to accommodate the heights of all family members” — with a hand-held shower to make it easy to wash down the tub or rinse off your legs while shaving.

Cost: from $200

4.  Bathtub liner: If your bathroom is a throwback to the 1960s, the tub is likely a gaudy dusty rose, mint green or mocha beige. Rather than rip it out and all the surrounding tile, Bath Fitter sells a moulded, acrylic tub and wall liner that fits right over the existing eyesore. Best part: It can be installed in just one day.

Cost: $2,200 to $3,200, depending on style, colour and ceiling height

5.  Anti-slip protection: Rubber bath mats are designed to prevent nasty spills in the tub or shower, but they’re also a breeding ground for mould and bacteria. The Porcelain Tub Treatment from Home Hardware (homehardware.ca) is a liquid you apply to the bottom of the tub or shower to make it slip-resistant.

Cost: $19.97 for one-application kit

As Dorothy says in The Wizard of Oz, “There’s no place like home.” I couldn’t agree more, but lately my house’s drab bathroom decor has had me thinking Dorothy’s domestic mantra doesn’t extend to the washroom.  Ever the optimist, I’m making it my personal quest to prove Dorothy’s words can include my bathroom. So, I’m setting out to give my bathroom decoration a major makeover.  I stumbled upon this article below which was more than helpful in giving me the inspiration that I need.

What is the most frequently visited part of a home besides the living room? Of course, it’s the bathroom. This is where you clean yourself up everyday. That is why the bathroom is one of the most indispensable parts of a house. That being said, many homeowners invest a lot on bathroom design even if it is a very private area. These days, some bathrooms have neutral and simple designs, while others have elegant and elaborate designs. Regardless of the bathroom decoration people have at home, one thing is for sure: they want a unique look and feel for their bathroom.

Isn’t it a great idea to make your bathroom look more eye-catching and interesting? The bathroom has huge potential to look beautiful and capture attention, so don’t let yours remain plain-looking. Because your bathroom literally and figuratively holds a special place in your home, it pays to give it a facelift-you will be very happy with the results. The following are a few bathroom decoration ideas you can use to enhance the appearance and functionality of your bathroom.

Pick your own unique design theme and stick to it.

The bathroom design includes everything from the bathroom tiles to the toothbrush holder. Here’s a tip: opt for bathroom products or accessories that capture your fancy. If you are fond of collecting multi-colored glass figurines, then you can add them as decor for your bathroom. Other ideas for bathroom decoration include a classic theme that consist of materials such as porcelain, wood, or bronze; a contemporary theme with simple lighting, multi-colored glasses, and white steel and chrome accents; an Asian theme consisting of Buddha figurines and lanterns; and a design consisting purely of stones or pebbles.

Each spot of your bathroom such as the toilet, shower, and grooming area must be planned well, keeping in mind the needs and preferences of all members of the household. Bathroom wall tile ideas are one way to customize every part of the bathroom.

Place a small table close to the toilet or bathtub.

This is where you place books and magazines, so anyone who uses the toilet or takes a warm bath in the tub will have something to read while relaxing.

Use elegant soap trays and dispensers.

These bathroom accessories can complement the overall decoration and theme of your bathroom. If you are talented enough, you may want to make your own soap dishes and dispensers.

For a soothing and relaxing effect, hang a photo or painting of a landscape, lake, or seascape in front of the shower area or bathtub.

Use materials that reflect light such as polished chrome and stainless steel to allow for more ventilation and create an illusion of space in the bathroom. White brick tiles, white paneling or wainscoting, and other white elements create a similar effect.

If your living room is located near your bathroom, you can try to blend the style of these rooms using faux-finish wall coverings and brass or gold fixtures.

Consider turning your simple bathroom into a sophisticated living or entertainment area.

Electrically-powered devices such as TVs, speakers, and music players that are made for bathrooms have gained much popularity today. If you install them in your bathroom, you can enjoy the convenience of listening to music or catching up on the latest news on TV while you take a shower or use the toilet. Bathroom electronic devices may be pricey, but the cost will be worth it because of the convenience and functionality they offer.

Bathroom decoration won’t be a hassle for you because bathroom products and accessories are widely available in local home improvement stores and online shops nowadays.

Source: Mondetur.net

I know how difficult it can be to stay organized in the bathroom, what with the exorbitant amount of hair products, lotions and soaps cluttering my counter space.  This video, featuring Linda Germal from “Rejuvinate Your Home,” offers excellent advice for ridding your bathroom of chaotic clutter and helped me turn my bathroom from messy place to serenity space.

Our friends over at Real Simple magazine have come up with some really clever ideas for rejuvenating your bathroom design. Take a peak at some of the bathroom ideas below for taking your bathroom from drab to fab, or click here for the top 20 ways to upgrade your bathroom.

1. Bedroom, yes. Living room, of course. But a bouquet of flowers in a bathroom feels especially unexpected. Even a small vase of yard-cut greens adds freshness to the room.

2. One attractive option for window treatments is faux-wooden blinds, which offer all the elegance of real wood and none of the worries of water damage or warping.

3. Towel bars have been replaced by hooks next to the shower, eliminating the need for folding and just-so draping. An extra hook installed below gives the bath mat a place to dry.

4. A woven basket holds an ample supply of toilet paper, eliminating the need to hunt when you’re down to the end of a roll (your guests will thank you).

5. It is possible to keep toiletries looking neat on a bathroom countertop, with the aid of odds and ends like unused, mismatched serving pieces.

Some of our BATH FITTER franchises across Pennsylvania sponsored 15 different breast cancer walks across their territories in 2011.   Their theme was “Together We Make a Lasting Impression”.  Here are some employee submitted photos of their family members and friends.  The following images were taken at the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in Harrisburg, PA.

BATH FITTER is teaming up with Virgin Radio in their Annual “SHAVE to SAVE” for the month of October.

VIRGIN RADIO 96’s Shave to Save is an annual fundraiser for the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation. The event takes place throughout the month of October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Money is raised by people having their heads shaved.  Individuals and/or companies are challenged to raise funds for the cause.  We need to raise $2K or more per head and Virgin Radio will come out to our location on October 27th to perform the shave.

The funds raised will be donated to the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation.  Since it first started in October 2000, Virgin Radio 96’s Shave to Save campaign raised $ 3.7 million for the cause.

By the fall of 2011, the Foundation will have contributed more than $20 million to a wide range of Quebec-based research projects, and has funded several initiatives in recent months, including a financial support program in partnership with the Kelly Shires Foundation and the modernization of mobile mammography units in collaboration with the Institut national de santé publique du Québec.

Donations like yours make it possible for the Foundation to make such investments and provide more support services that meet the needs of women in our community.

Let’s put our heads together and start raising money!

Our BATH FITTER office in Tennessee won the Tennessee Governor’s coveted Safety Award and we couldn’t be any happier! Our BATH FITTER Manufacturing facility in Springfield, TN was recognized for employee safety on the job. Check out the following video by Smokey Bear News for the full media coverage on the event! Explore bathroom remodeling like it’s never been done.  BATH FITTER offers custom-made acrylic bathtubs, bathtub enclosures, shower surrounds, and tub-to-shower conversions made of durable, long-lasting acrylic. We install our bathtub enclosures and shower surrounds in just a day.

BATH FITTER, our French name Bain Magique, participated in Montreal’s St. Patrick’s Parade last weekend in downtown Montreal! BATH FITTER won 3 prizes in the parade: Best Amateur Float, Most Creative Endeavor, and Best Overall Float! We had a blast at the parade and took a lot of pictures so make sure to check them out below and head over to our official BATH FITTER Facebook page fore even more photos from the parade!

For the full list of Trophy Winners at the parade click here.

For more information about Montreal’s St. Patrick’s Parade click here.

This is a heartwarming story about giving and generosity involving one of our local branches, BATH FITTER Regina.  BATH FITTER Regina provided the Luyke family with a bathroom remodel at no charge and the installers donated their time to get the job done.
______________________________________________________________

By Pamela Cowan, Leader-Post

March 9, 2011

As Jeff and Keri Lukye adjust to life at home, they are being showered with kindness.

A wheelchair-accessible shower was installed at the Lukye’s home just in time for Jeff’s return from the Mayo Clinic where he had endured three life-changing surgeries.

And the price was right. The bathtub-to-shower conversion was estimated to cost $5,000, but it was free for the Lukyes -courtesy of a random act of kindness by Bath Fitter Regina.

On Feb. 28 -the same day the Lukyes left the Mayo Clinic after a stay of more than three months – Bath Fitter installers were on the road to do the bathroom retrofit at the Estevan couple’s home.

Jeff returned home on Mar. 1 after enduring three radical surgeries that included the removal of a cancerous tumour, half of his pelvis, lower spine, pelvic organs and right leg.

While the 31-year-old was recovering from 55 hours of surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., family members asked Bath Fitter to estimate the cost of retrofitting the tub area to accommodate Jeff’s needs.

When Bath Fitter staff realized who the renovation was for, they spoke to Randy Shalovelo, co-owner of the local franchise, about helping the family.

“Paul Dauphinais did the estimate, brought it back to the office and all three estimators were speaking about Jeff’s situation and brought this idea to me that maybe there was something we could do,” Shalovelo said. “We put our heads together and decided that we’d supply the bathroom complete -at no charge . We are able to do it in a one-day situation. We were just the perfect fit to do this type of shower. It was an easy decision and the people who work here felt good about helping someone out.”

The wheelchair-accessible shower includes grab bars and portable seats.

“We try to customize it for whatever people need,” Shalovelo said.

Installers Curtis Kwiatkowski and Ryan Vindevoghel donated their time to do the installation and the franchise covered the cost of materials and the men’s travel time.

“It’s a good feeling -especially this cause, it was great,” Shalovelo said.

The next time his installers are in Estevan, they will install one more grab bar.

Meanwhile, the Lukyes are thrilled with the modification.

“It’s working really well,” said Keri, Jeff’s wife. “Had that not been done, I don’t know if Jeff would have gotten too many showers . The generosity of complete strangers is just overwhelming.”

Back in November the team at BATH FITTER created a contest where each section of the organization would bring in non-perishable food items, and whoever brought in the most would win a pizza party for their group.

In 2009 BATH FITTER raised 1500 lbs of food for the community and wanted to increase the goal for 2010 by raising it to 2500 lbs.  No one expected the amazing results obtained for 2010!

Over 7000 lbs of food were raised to donate to families in need this Holiday Season. This amazing result was achieved by BATH FITTER matching the amount of food raised by the employees.  In addition to matching the amount, the fee of admittance to the 2010 Christmas party was: 2 non-perishable food items per attendee. It was a win-win situation!

Every year the amount raised keeps getting bigger and the sense of pride gets stronger and stronger. Making this season easier and more enjoyable for those less fortunate is the best gift of all to the team at BATH FITTER.