I like to think of plumbing and lighting fixtures as the jewelry of a home. This is where you can really get creative and add huge character to your home for a decent price (sometimes). If you are building a new home, usually the first decision is going to be finish. Oil rubbed bronze, brushed nickel, chrome…….chrome is coming back in a big way but if you do it you can’t simply do the standard builder grade faucet. The faucet above is a Danze Opulence kitchen sink faucet in chrome. Because chrome is less expensive than oil rubbed bronze this actually wasn’t much of an upgrade. However, this is what you would call a “widespread” faucet where the handles are not attached to the main faucet and this is generally an upgrade because the faucets are more expensive as well as the valves. You also want to let your granite fabricator know hole widths. You can also add matching sprayers and soap dispensers for all your daily needs.
People often forget about the “small things” like laundry faucets. Your laundry room doesn’t have to be boring, above is the matching Danze Opulence faucet but in a less expensive version more appropriate for a laundry room. You can also get pull down faucets for laundry sinks but this sink was smaller so it wasn’t needed. A round sink was also selected instead of a standard square one.
Above is a Kensington hand held bath faucet. This faucet we purchased for our 2014 parade home master bathroom as we upgraded to a claw foot tub and this faucet is really the traditional faucet that goes with a claw foot tub. Hand held faucets are pretty pricey but a nice upgrade for your master bathroom tub and shower and also help make things easier while cleaning.
Plumbing fixtures can get expensive especially when your builder may can a certain type for a really great price because they may purchase bulk quantities. If you can’t afford to upgrade your whole house start with the kitchen and master bathroom fixtures. Also, if you are going to go with oil rubbed bronze fixtures you will also want to go with oil rubbed bronze lighting fixtures, doors hardware, bath hardware etc. I like to keep finish types consistent in a home!
