Fixer To Fabulous: 12 Most Impressive Bathroom Transformations, According To Fans
Turning old homes into modern abodes is what Dave and Jenny Marrs do best. The builder-designer couple from Northwest Arkansas has impressed viewers with their game-changing renovations in HGTV's series, "Fixer to Fabulous." After five successful seasons, we have decided to revisit the projects that have left us in awe. In particular, we did a rundown of the show's best bathroom transformations that have won the hearts of viewers.
With so many notable works, picking the jewel in the crown is not an easy task. However, we are avid followers of the cast and have been watching them since the first season. We reviewed the episodes, read all the comments, and counted all social media reactions to bring you the top 12 most impactful bathroom makeovers according to the fans. You can learn how we did our ranking with more details at the end of the list. Whether you are a follower of the show like we are or just looking for design inspirations for your own bathroom redecoration, then this article is for you.
Spa-like bathroom for Jenny's relatives
Our first bathroom is from the biggest renovation that Jenny and Dave Marrs have ever undertaken in the show. It is the rancher house for the family of Jenny's sister who decided to move to Arkansas from Colorado back in Season 3. Aside from being outdated, the property they bought also lacked space. The team addressed this by expanding the house with an additional 1700 square feet of floor space including a glorious ensuite for the master bedroom.
From a dull, grey-tiled shower room, they were able to create a spa-like bathroom with a soaking tub and steam shower. At the center is a double vanity with a luxurious grey countertop and floating oak cabinets. The most striking feature, however, is the fluted floor tile that gracefully went up the wall to the ceiling line. "This is probably my favorite floor tile of all time," wrote Jenny Marrs on their blog. It left her sister and brother-in-law speechless and also got the attention of fans. "The bathroom is the bomb," says one comment on YouTube.
'90s home bathroom gets an opulent update
Next up is a home transformation for another relocating family, this time coming from California. The house they got was decently sized but still possessed an outdated '90s look. Even the master suite bathroom was quite luxurious — if you were living there 30 years ago. The wall was coated with a dark brown hue. An old drop-in bathtub sat on one side while a wooden vanity and dresser were on another, along with its circular button handles and acrylic counter.
As the design expert, Jenny Marrs knew that the room would be one of the focuses of the project. The crew decided that a full re-do was the best approach. They built a double vanity with wood cabinets and a crisp, white countertop as well as a walk-in shower with vertical tiles. From the previous drop-in tub, they opted to choose a free-standing bathtub that was perfect for the space. Large-format porcelain tiles covered much of the room and evoked a Calcutta marble effect while resplendent brass hardware tied all the elements together.
Black and white bathroom for community heroes
You might still remember this episode about the McGhees, the family beloved by the local neighborhood for their well-known generosity and kindness. The cast came in to remodel their house which had not been updated for the whole 17 years that they have lived there. Its master bathroom was dark and styleless with plain walls and chrome-plated hardware and linings. The toilet was in the middle of the room without any division which meant the other person could not use the rest of the utilities when someone was sitting on it.
Dave and Jenny Marrs were eager to deliver the dream home that the giving family deserved, including a fashionable and relaxing bathroom. They changed the layout to separate the areas and updated all elements following a lush motif of black, white, and gold. Terrazzo tiles were used for the new shower while the double vanity comprised handsome jet black cabinetry that matched the black frames of the mirrors above.
Bathroom for owners who host international guests
In this episode, our network stars redesign the house of the Lennards, a well-traveled couple who openly accommodated foreign exchange students and missionaries from different countries. In addition to the much-needed updates, the cast wanted to incorporate this multicultural background into the design of their new home. In the master bathroom, tasteless tiles and a hideous green bathtub unpleasantly stood out, and the owners happily wanted them out.
The team demonstrated their resourcefulness in this makeover, pulling in materials from international suppliers such as the traditional terracotta tiles from Mexico. It worked beautifully in adding character to the space and serving as a backdrop to the luxurious free-standing white bathtub. A Mediterranean-inspired shower filled the space next to it featuring pebble stone flooring and dark teal tile backsplash. In another corner, they assembled a double vanity with grey stone countertops. Though some criticized that the design would cause resale issues, the unique bathroom still appealed to many viewers garnering nearly 1500 likes on Instagram.
Peruvian-style bathroom for retiring couple
Pepe and Denise Estrada are an empty-nester couple who bought a small house with the intention of downsizing. They contacted the show hosts to improve the place and fix certain issues before they moved in. For instance, the bathroom did not connect directly to the main bedroom. All its elements were out of style too, from the faded tiles and hardware to the dated bathtub and vanity.
Pepe grew up in Peru, and Jenny Marrs wanted to incorporate his home country into the design of their new house. After fixing the layout, the crew constructed a new vanity with a captivating star pattern tile wall that matched the floors. Rich gray cabinets filled the lower half topped with a lighter-toned counter. In place of the old tub, they built a marvelous walk-in shower with an arched entryway that mirrors the dome shapes seen in many Peruvian buildings. Marble hexagonal tiles covered its interior walls while pebble stones served as flooring. "It's so pulled together like a gorgeous outfit for date night!" described fan Mona Maiso on Instagram.
Luxurious bathroom for their teammate Derek
Derek, a veteran member of Dave and Jenny Marrs's construction crew, asked for help in renovating his newly bought house. At that time, he was recovering from a shoulder injury, and his bosses were eager to make this makeover an extra-special one for their trusty teammate. The biggest challenge was the layout. Jenny Marrs suggested rearranging the spaces so they could allocate floor area for a spacious master suite for Derek and his wife.
Their posh new bathroom sported a free-standing tub and a vintage-style vanity. A white countertop rested on top of it while a pair of high-tech mirrors and slender lights hung above. Large, marble-style tiles were used for the floor while hardware and plumbing had mixed metal finishes. However, the item that seemed to please Derek the most was the enclosed shower with its contemporary black tiles that gave it a luxurious feel.
This bathroom with repurposed vintage furniture
Our celebrity renovators took on a remodeling project for a couple with a taste for antiques. You can tell they were serious about it, considering that the property they bought was built way back in 1905. For something more than a hundred years old, the house was noticeably in great shape. However, the challenge was to enhance the look and livability while maintaining its historic charm. The bathroom needed new items, but the clients were already happy with the existing layout. It had been previously renovated several decades back, and aside from the wallpaper, nothing about it represented its original Edwardian style anymore.
HGTV / YouTube
The owners certainly chose the right contractor for the job since restoring old buildings is the specialty of the Fixer to Fabulous team. They decorated the walls with a charming beadboard for the lower half and a newer hand-painted floral wallpaper for the upper half. The highlight of the room, however, is the one-of-a-kind vanity custom-made from a vintage dresser. Jenny Marrs knew the best places to buy antique furniture and personally picked out the piece. Not everyone has a heart for old-school, but this bathroom won the approval of numerous fans, earning a noteworthy 2,318 likes on Instagram.
Bathroom of historic building with a second-floor apartment
Rather than a residence like most other projects filmed in the show, this episode finds Jenny and Dave Marrs renovating a commercial building that they bought themselves several years ago. Erected nearly 120 years ago, the couple now intended to turn its second floor into a cozy apartment for relatives and friends coming to visit them. The current bathroom had those notorious green fixtures that seemed to haunt many of the town's old houses. They knew that the room was due for a full facelift.
The team replaced the tub with a spacious shower lined with vertical ceramic floor-to-ceiling tiles. In contrast, they used Saltillo tiles for the main flooring following a herringbone pattern. A custom vanity was made opposite the shower using the same wood finish as the rustic-style door. The tiles as well as the antique brass fixtures were all hand-made. This is arguably one of the most modest bathroom designs we've seen on the show. But, it seems less is indeed more to many of its followers who praise the room for its serene palette and clever combination of materials.
Cotswolds-inspired home bathroom for an expecting couple
If this episode was not memorable for fans, it surely was for host Jenny Marrs. This renovation from Season 3 was a dream project for her as she finally got to work on a Tudor-style home, like the idyllic cottages found in England's Cotswolds region. The Smiths, who occupied the house, revealed that a second child was on its way and they needed to make more room for their growing family. That meant converting their garage into a new master suite — an exciting challenge for our design experts.
The crew practically had to build the bathroom from scratch which was a good thing since they were not restricted by an existing layout. They did a full ensuite with a modern free-standing tub and glass wall shower. On another side was a double vanity with deep rosemary green cabinets and a quartz countertop. A combination of marble and hand-made tiles was used for the flooring and walls. Meanwhile, all plumbing, cabinet hardware, towel holders, and lighting fixtures were a sophisticated black. The bathroom received more than 3,600 likes after being shared on Instagram.
Stylish guest bathroom for a dad's bachelor pad
Our makeover duo helped a single dad who wanted to make his house more welcoming to his friends. He started doing some DIY renovation but decided midway that it was best to let the professionals take over. The house had a delightful swimming pool and patio which was right outside the guest bedroom. This room had an adjoining bathroom that needed a complete update. However, Dave and Jenny Marrs had something more in mind.
Apart from making it more modern, the crew also carved an opening on the bathroom exterior wall. They installed a frosted glass door that led directly to the walk-in shower. This way, it served both the guest room and the people using the pool. Jenny Marrs selected brass pieces for the plumbing fixtures, including a rain shower. On the other hand, she adorned the shower walls with trendy blue tiles that got fans raving. Blue tiles are a timeless addition to any bathroom. "Those blue tiles are swoon-worthy," said one follower, Laura Wynne, on Instagram.
This pink bathroom that fans can not get over
Who can forget this personally-requested pink bathroom from Season 3? This is from the house of Todd and Trisha Lemery who decided to move to Bentonville after a memorable visit there. For this renovation, Trisha had one particular requirement on her checklist: changing the master bathroom theme to her favorite color, pink. That might be a pupil-straining picture to imagine, but our show hosts were ready for the challenge. After all, the room's existing apple-green coat was not understated either. A change of motif was undoubtedly needed.
Jenny Marrs happens to also be fond of the rosy hue and knew that the key to pulling it off would be to find the right shade. She was able to source a pale pink tile design that worked beautifully without overwhelming the space. It perfectly contrasted with the concrete flooring while white walls and the huge white soaking tub further lightened the overall palette. "[It] feels like a seashell," described one comment on YouTube. The bathroom was such a fan favorite that it was reposted several times on Instagram, one of which collected more than 5,300 likes.
Dreamy blue farmhouse bathroom becomes an IG craze
Speaking of likes, our champion bathroom tops the list with nearly 6,000 of them on Instagram. Our number one seat goes to the main bathroom of the Puorro family farmhouse. Coming from the Dallas metropolis, they purchased a 62-acre plot of land, intending to embrace the country life with their three kids. The old brick house that came with the property had a cramped one-person master bathroom. Its shower and vanity, still wearing the glory of yesteryears, were pleading for a redesign.
By adjusting the adjacent rooms, our builder-designer tandem was able to expand the bathroom by at least twice its original size. They used grey hexagonal tiles for the main flooring and fixed a new his-and-hers vanity. However, the shining feature of the room was its majestic blue tilework and metal framed glass partition that Dave Marrs custom welded for the project. A free-standing bathtub sat on one side, and an open shower was on the opposite end. All hardware and accessories were black to match the glass framing.
Ranking methodology
To determine the ranking above, our team reviewed all social media accounts of the show's cast members and HGTV. Our primary sources were Instagram and YouTube since these are the most active channels in terms of posts and public reactions. On Instagram, we selected the posts that specifically featured the bathroom renovations done by Jenny and Dave Marrs. Posts that involved other rooms were not considered. We read every comment and listed the number of likes attributed to each bathroom. Our team also went through all the episode recaps on YouTube and filtered all comments that pertained to bathrooms. We considered both the volume and intensity of the reactions. Negative reviews were also taken into account.