Tips to help you design a fabulous shower within your budget!Whether you have a lake house or a home swimming pool, an outdoor shower can be a helpful tool in helping to keep you and your home clean from the lake/pool life. In regards to the lake, I’ve found there to be two different kinds of lake people:
There seems to be a misconception when it comes to outdoor showers. Some clients think that outdoor showers = $$$. Depending on your style and design choices, this absolutely can be true. But it can be done on a budget! What I have found is often the largest hurdles to overcome is getting a water source to a specific outdoor location. Consider a spot where you have an outdoor spigot to save plumbing costs. The rest of the shower can be affordable depending on material choices. Here are some tips. Tips for creating an outdoor shower - how to make it fabulous on a budgetWhether you decide you’d like a simple or extravagant outdoor shower for your lake/pool, be sure to think ahead to your needs and wants and do some research for inspiration. The possibilities are endless and oh so fun! 1. Designing with House Materials to Create a Cohesive LookOur outdoor shower is tucked to the side of the cottage using the house and two sides of the fence to create a nook for privacy. It’s tucked away, and it fits in with the look of the house and yard. The fence was built using the same siding as the house to create a seamless, cohesive look. The non-stick platform is built using the same material that can be found on the deck. We decided to utilize a shower curtain, instead of installing a door, to add pattern, texture and a soft touch to the space. It’s easy to put up or take down for a quick run through the washing machine or for winter. It’s an inexpensive replacement once it becomes threadbare and we don’t have to adjust hinges when a door becomes lopsided due to hinges being exposed to the elements. 2. Get Smart on PlumbingConsider your location’s environment when making plumbing decisions. Will it be used for a season or year round? What kind of shower head will best meet your needs? Will you hide plumbing? Will you run a hot water line to the shower? We decided to go with an adjustable shower head. This gives us the ability to focus the spray for rinsing off kids or bathing the dogs. As we wanted our cottage to be casual, we decided exposed plumbing was perfectly ok with us, and a hot water line was an absolute must. 3. Think About What You Need Within Arm’s ReachThink ahead to what you will need in an outdoor shower. To state the obvious, an outdoor shower is different than a shower in a bathroom, because, we’ll, it’s a stand-alone shower. There’s nothing worse than not having a place for towels and personal items. Whether you build a shelf, provide hooks or even add a built-in bench, your guests and family will be thankful and comfortable if you keep everything within arm’s reach. 4. Don’t Forget Your Furry Friends![]() Between myself, my parents, and my brother we have 3 crazy active dogs who love swimming and playing in the lake. I’m pretty sure the whole lake calls us, “Those Crazy Dog People”. With this in mind, we knew we needed a place to easily bathe the dogs. We were sure to install a hook-up to ensure our “less than enthused to be bathed” dogs can’t wander off when it’s time to clean up. In ConclusionOften the deciding factor of what kind of lake person you may be depends upon the quality of the water at your lake. While our lake is fairly clean, often plants have a tendency to stick to you, and you always seem to have feet that need to be rinsed off. Personally, it doesn’t bother me, but I’m an outdoor person who enjoys being outside no matter how clean or dirty. And of course, we have a fabulous outdoor shower.
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Giving Your Home a little TLCThere are three R’s to consider as you make a house a home: Reuse, Repurpose, or (last) Remodel. In this lake cottage I have been working on for five years, we have done all three. Read on for tips… Reuse I don’t know about you, but for me, reusing an item brings a certain amount of joy to my heart. Not only is it environmentally friendly, but it is also good for your budget and allows you to spend your money elsewhere. ![]() When you hear “mudroom lockers” what comes to mind? A beautiful, custom made piece of furniture with hooks, cubbies and a bench? While I’m a fan of the aesthetically pleasing mudroom lockers that now seem to be everywhere, I had a true, old school set of lockers that needed to be rehomed. With a couple coats of blue spray paint, my beige lockers became a surprise factor in the home with the perfect place to contain beach towels, lifejackets, swimsuits, sunglasses and hats. RepurposeRepurposing falls more within a DIY category whether it be structural, a piece of furniture that’s been handed down from grandma, or any other sentimental item. If you’ve ever had the pleasure of taking apart an old home, you know there are many layers to discover. Some of these layers may not be a wonderful discovery (like layers upon layers of wallpaper or really dated electrical work - yikes!), but some have a certain charm to them that you may want to repurpose into your home. As this cottage would be used year round, we knew we wanted to add a gas fireplace to the living room for the cold months. When it came time to decide on the fireplace front, we wanted a material that would stay casual. As this was being designed and decided, layers of siding from the cottage was being ripped off. First blue vinyl, then wooden shingles, and at the very core of the exterior - lap siding. We decided it was the perfect material for the front of the fireplace. We kept it in the condition it was found so it would become a focal point and a nod toward the historicity of the cottage. RemodelSometimes there are areas of a home that just don’t sit well with you. Perhaps the space isn’t meeting your needs, isn’t aesthetically pleasing, or needs an update. We all know remodeling is the priciest and most time consuming of all. It is often the most satisfying as you have the opportunity to customize the space to your style and needs. This cottage had been neglected for years, and it was time for a major remodel. The tiny bedrooms on the second floor, while charming, didn’t provide enough space for a master bedroom, and the outdoor deck didn’t provide enough space to accommodate family. We went to work drawing up, demolishing, and altering the house into the cottage it is today.
Whether you reuse, repurpose or remodel, finding ways to update your home to meet your needs and still connect it to its past is a true way to create a home with a story. |
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