Countertops for kids bathroom

[Alps79]

Hi! I'm a long time member and used to post on YH, YNH, and wasn't there even a home & decorating (or maybe D&R, does that ring a bell?) board from way back when. Anyway, thought I'd try here and see if maybe I can get some good ideas. We've been in our home for almost 13 years and have nearly renovated it fully so hopefully I can contribute as well. 

We are nearing the end of our DIY jack & jill bathroom remodel. Vanities are in and we need to choose countertops. As much as I love natural stone, I don't love that it's not a single surface, mainly for ease of cleaning. Also, my kids are the only ones who use this bathroom so I'm not feeling the need to go high end. I will do widespread faucets that I think give a nice look.

We redid our bathroom about a decade ago and put in cultured marble. I'm actually really pleased with it. We did a waterfall edge and square sinks and it still looks really nice. So that's a strong option. This is ours.




My girlfriend did Corian, very similar to this and really loves it. 


Is there another countertop surface I should look into? When I say kids, mine aren't super young. They're 9 and 12... but messy girls who love nail polish and don't wipe down their counters.... so like marble would never be an option.

[hbomdiggity]

Quartz

[Alps79]

Feb 4, 2021 12:10:20 GMT -5 hbomdiggity said:

Quartz

With quartz, do you have to do a separate, undermount sink? Or is it all one piece? 

[Susie]

Feb 4, 2021 12:44:41 GMT -5 Alps79 said:

With quartz, do you have to do a separate, undermount sink? Or is it all one piece? 

I have quartz.  Separate undermount sink.  We've had it for almost 3 years now.  It's maintenance free and flawless, enthusiastic thumbs up.  But it was not the least expensive option.

[nicolewi]

I don't really have anything to add re: materials. I just wanted to chime in and say that I wanted to do solid surface with integrated sink in the kids' bath when we renovated, but we ended up getting a deal on granite remnants due to other granite purchases, so we did that. It looks great, and it really does work just fine overall. I do love that the girls can get makeup and stuff on it and it doesn't stain. HOWEVER, I still think I would have preferred, overall, the ease of a solid surface with integrated sink. I think it would be easier for the kids to reliably keep it clean on their own.

I would just make sure your material won't color easily with makeup, stain with oils/skin products, and is heat resistant enough for curling irons, etc. I don't know whether all that is possible or not.

[Alps79]

The cultured marble is pretty bullet proof :/

[aprilsails]

I think Quartz and granite are both good options. You would still have an under mount sink, but I find them vastly easier to clean than drop in sinks. For both there is a wide range of pricing so it really depends on the materials you pick. For a bathroom where it won’t need to take a heavy load I would be ok with a thinner thickness of material (3/4 - 1”). This would correspond to a more reasonably priced cut of stone.

[dr.girlfriend]

I would do quartz, or if that is too expensive a darker-tone granite. I have a marble vanity, and although I do love the look it is not easy to keep looking good. There are darker spots in front of the sinks where water settles, and pink areas where I apply my blush and it drifts down onto the countertop. I should probably do a better job cleaning and sealing, but with no one visiting our house for the past year the motivation just isn't there. :-)

[irie]

Feb 4, 2021 13:04:06 GMT -5 Susie said:

Feb 4, 2021 12:44:41 GMT -5 Alps79 said:

With quartz, do you have to do a separate, undermount sink? Or is it all one piece? 

I have quartz.  Separate undermount sink.  We've had it for almost 3 years now.  It's maintenance free and flawless, enthusiastic thumbs up.  But it was not the least expensive option.

Would you mind sharing the countertop and paint color?

[Susie]

irie, the countertop is Cambria Praa Sands, and the paint is SW Quietude.

[irie]

Feb 4, 2021 15:09:21 GMT -5 Susie said:

irie, the countertop is Cambria Praa Sands, and the paint is SW Quietude.

Thanks we just picked praa sands for our kitchen remodel.

[hbomdiggity]

Feb 4, 2021 12:44:41 GMT -5 Alps79 said:

Feb 4, 2021 12:10:20 GMT -5 hbomdiggity said:

Quartz

With quartz, do you have to do a separate, undermount sink? Or is it all one piece? 

Ah, I didn’t understand what you meant by single surface. As Susie mentioned it’s a separate sink, but virtually maintenance free and easy to clean.

And if easy to clean is a goal I’d skip the spread faucet and having to clean between. I’m team single faucet.

[Susie]

Agree with hbomdiggity about the faucet. I like the look of wide spread best, but the single handle is easiest to use and to clean. I have wide spread in our powder room but single handle in the upstairs hall bath, where the kids seem to get toothpaste, etc. e.v.e.r.y.w.h.e.r.e.  The ones I really hate cleaning are the center set ones. Too many nooks & crannies!

irie , I love the Praa Sands.  The only caveat is that I hate when I drop a contact lens on it.  The aqua in the quartz is just the right shade that it's hard to find a dropped lens on it!  I still love it, but when I someday get a master bathroom (either via addition or moving) I might choose something whiter for the master bath counter.  Both H and I wear contacts.

[dontlook]

Quartz and it’s been super easy so far. My kids (10,7,2) and horribly messy are it’s been fine.

[Alps79]

woof. Just got quote for both vanities. Rectangular sinks in both.
Cultured marble- $700 for both vanities. Note I have this in my bathroom and I think it's totally fine. So low maintenance and easy to clean. But clearly unpopular :/
Quartz Misterio- $2685 for both.

It's kind of a no-brainer.

[dontlook]

Feb 6, 2021 9:03:35 GMT -5 Alps79 said:

woof. Just got quote for both vanities. Rectangular sinks in both.
Cultured marble- $700 for both vanities. Note I have this in my bathroom and I think it's totally fine. So low maintenance and easy to clean. But clearly unpopular :/
Quartz Misterio- $2685 for both.

It's kind of a no-brainer.

Yikes! I’d definitely go with marble in that case.

[macmars45]

Definitely don't do what the planner did in my new construction house (same tile as on the floor is on the counters in the bathrooms). The white groat is already gray because of soap spills in my DS' bathroom. Even the master bath has a few gray spots. It's a big thumbs down.

[dontlook]

Feb 8, 2021 14:23:29 GMT -5 macmars45 said:

Definitely don't do what the planner did in my new construction house (same tile as on the floor is on the counters in the bathrooms). The white groat is already gray because of soap spills in my DS' bathroom. Even the master bath has a few gray spots. It's a big thumbs down.

We just built and H wanted nice tile in the kids bathroom and I fought for vinyl. They get nothing nice. Nothing with grout. I have enough to clean lol. Our last house always had toothpaste (bright blue) right in the grout lines.

[macmars45]

Feb 9, 2021 13:22:05 GMT -5 dontlook said:

Feb 8, 2021 14:23:29 GMT -5 macmars45 said:

Definitely don't do what the planner did in my new construction house (same tile as on the floor is on the counters in the bathrooms). The white groat is already gray because of soap spills in my DS' bathroom. Even the master bath has a few gray spots. It's a big thumbs down.

We just built and H wanted nice tile in the kids bathroom and I fought for vinyl. They get nothing nice. Nothing with grout. I have enough to clean lol. Our last house always had toothpaste (bright blue) right in the grout lines.

We bought a completed new construction. If we'd bought before they built/ordered all the stuff I'd have chosen differently for many things.

Like who puts brown tile down in the laundry room/mud room? The dirt blends in! (My DS is almost five & lives/breaths dirt play).

Pedestal sinks are dumb. Anyone can fight me on that. The one in the half bath will go in the next 5 years. I hate it. No storage for hand towels, toilet paper, feminine products, cleaning supplies. No where to put a soap dispenser next to the faucet. What's the point? There is none.

Also, spring loaded door from the house to the garage. There is NO point to that! sign, watched my kid get his head slammed between the door and door frame more than once. Plus also hauling stuff in & out of a door that won't stay open without being propped is a huge pain in the butt. Huge.

I could go on.... tile used for sink counters, formal dining rooms are dumb (mine is currently the home school room & will be a library/game room some day), house doesn't come with laundry room storage or window blinds....

[dontlook]

Feb 9, 2021 13:46:47 GMT -5 macmars45 said:

Feb 9, 2021 13:22:05 GMT -5 dontlook said:

We just built and H wanted nice tile in the kids bathroom and I fought for vinyl. They get nothing nice. Nothing with grout. I have enough to clean lol. Our last house always had toothpaste (bright blue) right in the grout lines.

We bought a completed new construction. If we'd bought before they built/ordered all the stuff I'd have chosen differently for many things.

Like who puts brown tile down in the laundry room/mud room? The dirt blends in! (My DS is almost five & lives/breaths dirt play).

Pedestal sinks are dumb. Anyone can fight me on that. The one in the half bath will go in the next 5 years. I hate it. No storage for hand towels, toilet paper, feminine products, cleaning supplies. No where to put a soap dispenser next to the faucet. What's the point? There is none.

Also, spring loaded door from the house to the garage. There is NO point to that! sign, watched my kid get his head slammed between the door and door frame more than once. Plus also hauling stuff in & out of a door that won't stay open without being propped is a huge pain in the butt. Huge.

I could go on.... tile used for sink counters, formal dining rooms are dumb (mine is currently the home school room & will be a library/game room some day), house doesn't come with laundry room storage or window blinds....

I could join you in this complaint party! We had to make cuts due to the budget and I’m really missing my laundry sink and storage. The joys of homeownership. It’s never quite right, is it.

[redheadk]

Feb 9, 2021 13:46:47 GMT -5 macmars45 said:

Feb 9, 2021 13:22:05 GMT -5 dontlook said:

We just built and H wanted nice tile in the kids bathroom and I fought for vinyl. They get nothing nice. Nothing with grout. I have enough to clean lol. Our last house always had toothpaste (bright blue) right in the grout lines.

We bought a completed new construction. If we'd bought before they built/ordered all the stuff I'd have chosen differently for many things.

Like who puts brown tile down in the laundry room/mud room? The dirt blends in! (My DS is almost five & lives/breaths dirt play).

Pedestal sinks are dumb. Anyone can fight me on that. The one in the half bath will go in the next 5 years. I hate it. No storage for hand towels, toilet paper, feminine products, cleaning supplies. No where to put a soap dispenser next to the faucet. What's the point? There is none.

Also, spring loaded door from the house to the garage. There is NO point to that! sign, watched my kid get his head slammed between the door and door frame more than once. Plus also hauling stuff in & out of a door that won't stay open without being propped is a huge pain in the butt. Huge.

I could go on.... tile used for sink counters, formal dining rooms are dumb (mine is currently the home school room & will be a library/game room some day), house doesn't come with laundry room storage or window blinds....

I'll join you about pedestal sinks. We have one in our half bath and it's the worst. I absolutely hate it.

For your door, you might be able to disable to auto-close mechanism. DH disabled ours somehow. It is a safety feature, I think for fire? Regardless, it was incredibly annoying. 

[bhnumbers]

Feb 10, 2021 16:20:47 GMT -5 redheadk said:

Feb 9, 2021 13:46:47 GMT -5 macmars45 said:

We bought a completed new construction. If we'd bought before they built/ordered all the stuff I'd have chosen differently for many things.

Like who puts brown tile down in the laundry room/mud room? The dirt blends in! (My DS is almost five & lives/breaths dirt play).

Pedestal sinks are dumb. Anyone can fight me on that. The one in the half bath will go in the next 5 years. I hate it. No storage for hand towels, toilet paper, feminine products, cleaning supplies. No where to put a soap dispenser next to the faucet. What's the point? There is none.

Also, spring loaded door from the house to the garage. There is NO point to that! sign, watched my kid get his head slammed between the door and door frame more than once. Plus also hauling stuff in & out of a door that won't stay open without being propped is a huge pain in the butt. Huge.

I could go on.... tile used for sink counters, formal dining rooms are dumb (mine is currently the home school room & will be a library/game room some day), house doesn't come with laundry room storage or window blinds....

I'll join you about pedestal sinks. We have one in our half bath and it's the worst. I absolutely hate it.

For your door, you might be able to disable to auto-close mechanism. DH disabled ours somehow. It is a safety feature, I think for fire? Regardless, it was incredibly annoying. 

yes, they are fire safe doors and when we renovated, our county required it between the house and the garage. I also find ours to be a pain in the ass because while it does swing shut, it doesn't shut with enough force for it to be completely closed and my kids almost never check to make sure it's closed all the way. 

and I'll join in on the pedestal sink hatred. our main floor bathroom has one and it's the worst. there is a space on the back of it for a soap dispenser, but because our bathroom is so tiny our sink is built into the corner and grouted to the wall on two sides. the geniuses who installed it didn't do any kind of tile backsplash, so water always gets all over the wall right above the grout. it's a whole mess and it's on my long list of little things that we need to fix.