My favorite thing about the beach house where we stayed earlier this summer was the outdoor shower. I’ve always liked the thought of having one, but after a week of getting all of the kids’ baths and showers done before they ever came in, I’m sold on getting one for our house.
(Even these two were on board with getting showered under the sun.)
I liked everything about this one—the shake shingle, the door with wood pegs for towels, the little bench seat inside and the wood floor. The only change I would probably make is to forego the roof.
This is most likely not a this-year-project, but my dad help me sketch it out for future reference :)
My thought is to put one on this corner of our house, where it’s tucked away, and to take out some of the shrubs on the right.
Now that I have outdoor showers on the brain, it seems like they’re suddenly everywhere. I’ve pinned several good ones to this board.
Do you have one at your house? Any advice?
I’ve been dreaming about having one too, ever since I saw Lauren Liess’s amazing out door shower. With two little boys constantly covered in mud, having a shower outside makes so much sense. We probably should wait until we move somewhere warmer though.
my dad and my husband ALWAYS talk about how much they’d both love to have an outdoor shower. I never realized how much I would enjoy one, too, until this summer at the pool. I made it a point to have showering supplies with me every time we swam, and there was just something MAGICAL about the kids being all washed-up before even stepping foot in the house! (and why does it feel so much less cumbersome to throw them in and out of an outdoor stall than to use the indoor shower? Is it the curtain? Is it the stepping-into-the-bathtub? It’s a mystery, but it’s magic! I like roofless better, too. Not only is the openness better, but there are fewer corners for spiders to call home.
(my only tip: no decks, balconies or stairs over the top of a roof-less shower. We had some hilarious extended-family moments when one of our vacation homes had a roofless outdoor shower directly underneath a 2 story deck. ;-))
Outdoor showers are very popular at Tybee Island where we have a couple of beach cottages. One of our cottages was featured in the July/August 2014 issue of HGTV magazine! There’s a photo of our outdoor shower with my granddaughter stepping out that tells which page to turn to in the table of contents. I agree that outdoor showers are great–why not have one at home?! Here’s the link to copy and paste: http://www.veryveryvicky.com/2014/06/check-out-coral-cottage-in-hgtv-magazine.html
What a great shower! And congrats on the awesome feature. Love the house :)
Thanks Emily! It was a thrill! I always enjoy seeing what you are doing–love your style!
Hi Emily, Love the outdoor shower……..I look forward to it every year at the beach! Will be eager to see how yours turns out! Good luck,
Holly
An outdoor shower has been on our home “to-do” list too! They are amazing. Love your idea to lose the roof. :)
We live near the beach and I’ve always wanted one, too! I love showering outside. And definitely no roof .
My husband has built an outdoor shower for me in the last three houses we have lived in (over the course of about 15 years!) We LOVE the outdoor shower and I use it every day from April – November (yes, we have hot water). I also have an old cast iron claw tub in ours that I got years ago at an auction for a steal. I love having an extra bathroom that requires no cleaning and that everyone loves!
That is on our list also! We already have the spot picked out and and estimate on plumbing! :) Same as you…we had one at a beach house one year…and it was our favorite thing about the house! I have pinned several and can’t wait to get started! :) Good luck!! :)
OMG! Your twins are such cuties!! I thought they were cute when they were babies but they just keep getting cuter with age!!
Thank you :)
Yikes. Just seems like yet another space to keep clean/picked up. Life seems busy enough without having yet another space to manage.
You’d have to clean them?! :) I was thinking it would cut down on indoor baths and less cleaning there. . .
This is on my wish list, too. One of our neighbors has one and raves about sunrise showers in fresh air. From my experience with them at beach houses, the water runs off and there isn’t much cleaning to do, save for picking up towels, etc. The fresh air does a great job of keeping things clean unlike a closed in indoor shower. It’s kind of like washing your car – you don’t put much energy into cleaning the driveway after. ;)
We have one at our beach house, and it doesn’t get used as much as I had originally hoped. It has very poor water pressure & a crappy shower head. I would advise you put a foot wash in with it, wish we had!
We LOVE the outdoor shower that I had installed for my Husband for his birthday last year. It’s like a little vacation at home everyday when I go out there to use it (and I use it every day!)
Two things for you to think about – 1) make sure you make it large enough for your needs. You don’t want to feel cramped while you are enjoying the great outdoors. 2) Make sure that your lines and valves are installed in a way that can be drained properly/winterized/insulated. We thought our plumber had taken care of this but he did not install the shut off valve in quite the right spot to bleed the lines properly. After the coldest winter anyone can remember here in VA, we had a cracked valve to deal with this spring. We now know some additional steps to take when we winterize this fall.
It really is a wonderful treat for yourself! I hope you can make it happen too!
Thank you!
Hi Emily. I remembered your post from earlier in the month and today on a blog called Top This Top That–they did an outdoor shower. Just wanted you to see what they did. It looked relatively simple? OK–I hope you can find this.
Lori
Thanks, Lori. I’ll check it out.