Phew! It’s been a busy week! We had a bunch of family in town for Avery’s birthday and are now playing catchup. I’m working on a party recap post, but wanted to first share this little switcheroo project that Kyle completed a few weeks ago.
So, remember this bathroom follow-up post from last November when we talked about replacing our failing sconces? Yep, well…8 months later:
No more sad, broken lights! We finally pulled the trigger and bought two new sconces from local lighting company Resolute. There are a few options for the shade, but we opted for the opal one which has a nice, diffuse light.
The fixtures have a wide face plate which was helpful in covering the existing electrical boxes from our previous sconces.
If these fixtures look vaguely familiar it’s because we have a similar sconce in the loft and reach lights in the kitchen (all from Resolute). Despite the vast selection of lighting out there, it’s surprisingly hard to source simple, well-designed fixtures and we find ourselves going back to Resolute again and again (on our own house and Studio Zerbey projects).
It’s a small change, but the space feels so much better now. Of course, now I want new towels and a new shower curtain (we’re using the same ones we bought when we remodeled nearly 5 years ago!). Anyone have a recommendation on great towels? I’ve been somewhat disappointed with the last few sets we’ve owned and am hesitant to invest in another so-so option. (We loved our current ones, but they’re a bamboo blend and have lost a lot of their original softness.)
We designed our bathroom so that the accessories would be the color in the space and I’m ready to try something new!
Nordstrom rack! Has the huge oversized bath towels, but their marching hand and face towels are normal sized. All 100% Egyptian cotton – great colors, but I chose basic white. I have had ours now for close to five years! And they are still soft, and thick. Nordstrom rack still has these towels, which always makes it so tempting for me to purcash more even though I don’t need more. Ikea / Macy’s/ Ralph Lauren etc towels are so-so, they’re nice but more on the thinner side compared the Nordstrom rack ones. Good luck!
Deena Chikamura
I really like the Vera Wang towels from Kohl’s. Heavy cotton and great in quality.
We really love Resolute – we have some from the Purity line in the upstairs hallway. Your bathroom sconces look great.
I’ve got nothing for you on towels…ours are so old and worn out it’s shameful.
Resolute looks like a great local company for lighting. Wish they were in New York!
My best friend and her husband treated themselves when they got married and bought their towels at a Restoration Hardware Outlet. I always notice how nice they are when I’m visiting.
Turkish Bath Towels! They’re highly absorbent- take up so much less space folded- and dry insanely quick. Plus they just keep getting softer as you wash them- quick low heat tumble does the trick. Or in the sunshine- so that they smell wonderful.
Nice! They remind me of this one from Ikea, I think it’s new… http://www.ikea.com/es/es/catalog/products/10204860/
I can recommend against Restoration Hardware towels. I’ve heard good things about some towels from Kohls, and Land’s End towels are supposedly fantastic.
Ooh…I’ve heard of turkish towels but haven’t tried them yet! Hmm…
I’m sure they would ship to NY. 🙂 (They don’t have an actual store in Seattle, just a showroom.)
Ahh, the Rack! I should have thought of that! Thanks Deena!
Where did you get that medicine cabinet/mirror? Or is it something that you designed?
I LOVE it…..
Hi Hilary, it’s from the IKEA Molger collection but sadly they no longer make it (we bought ours in 2006 or so…).
Seeing your bathroom again reminded me of how much I like most of the Molger line and am so bummed that now, when I need a medicine cabinet/mirror they no longer carry that piece.
Towels- I’ve had good luck with JcPenny’s in the past – though my favorites are a line no longer carried, but they are 5+ years old and still look pretty darn good.
Unrelated, but fun. Nice shout out in Dwell from Daniel / Manhattan Nest!
I like Royal Velvet towels from JC Penney. They’re thick and soft and come in a nice array of colors, and won’t break the bank. The first time I used them (after one wash) I was disappointed b/c they slid across my skin rather than absorbing. I was ready to return them, but a friend said, “No, they have to be washed three times” and sure enough, after the third wash they were a dream.
We usually go with plain white towels from Target. They seem to last about as long as the more expensive options, and because they are white, we can bleach them if they start looking a little dingy. Alternatively, we’ve also purchased Ralph Lauren’s plain white towels, and have found them to be very fluffy and long lasting as well.
Fred Meyer has some great organic cotton towels. Ours have lasted over nine years of heavy use/abuse.