The reason why my contractor never likes pedestal is that the plumbing is exposed. I want to know what a potential buyer would think. Do you mind seeing the exposed plumbing? Is a small vanity better than a pedestal there?

I personally think the pedestal looks fine. I am not a huge fan of a pedestal sink due to the lack of storage they provide, for my own use. That being said, they definitely serve a purpose for small bathrooms. The finish and overall shape and size are cohesive with your remodel. Has your contractor given you a definitive reason he thinks the sink looks bad?

Sorry, we had a cross post, so I see now why the contractor doesn't like it. I don't think that a potential buyer would be dissuaded by exposed plumbing, seeing as how many people have pedestal sinks which look lovely. I would be more concerned about lack of storage space, which could always be addressed, but I have had many people express a dislike in regards to this, not exposed plumbing.

A wall mounted vanity that is suspended would look very up to date. The pedestal sink does not look good for exactly the reasons your contractor stated. Also, many, many people would want to have more space than a pedestal sink has to set down a hairdryer or contact lens solution or other cosmetic items. A small vanity (not wall mounted) would be my second choice. Beautiful tilework, by the way.

I think it's fine.

I will disclose my bias to begin: in general I don't like Pedestal ones.
So not so fond of them and particularly not fond of the current one you have as the lines from the sink to not progress nicely into the pedestal.
The rest of the tile work is so super beautiful, if you have the funds, I would do a different sink.

one other...

I get what your trying to do with the small bathroom, I have one myself, I don't like the pedestal - if you have to keep the sink, try leaving the fixtures open and spray paint them a color that coordinates with your wall color (who says a pipe has to remain shiny and "pipe-like"!). I did this and it blends perfectly and looks intentional. Then, put a small basket or something under the sink to hold things like the hairdryer and curling iron.

Not a vanity, please! Such a small vanity wouldn't hold much anyway, would block access to the toilet & tub and make the room look much more cramped.
How do I know? I had a small bathroom similar in layout to yours and replaced the vanity with a pedestal sink. Everyone commented on how much bigger the room seemed when they didn't have to slink sideways past the vanity just to get to the toilet.
To replace the vanity top storage areas, add a clear glass shelf over the sink &/or toilet (high enough so that the toilet lid can still be removed:).

I don't mind pedestal sinks per se, but they're useless for anything but quickly washing your hands. You could never get ready in the morning in that bathroom even though it's a full bathroom as there's no place to put a toothbrush, comb, brush, blow dryer, make-up and the like. You need a countertop and some storage.

Thanks for all the replies. Though I am not sure whether a pedestal is suitable for my bathroom (looks like there are different opinions among Houzzers as well), I totally agree with mariaed that the sink does not go along well with the leg. I may take bex740's suggestion to put a shelf under the sink (as in the attached picture, but more a traditional style), and kitter's suggestion to put shelves on top of the toilet (no room above the sink, as there is a medicine cabinet).

I personally like pedestal sinks in small bathrooms , I had my plumber bring the plumbing up from the floor through the middle stand so that the plumbing was not seen. it is then just connected up to the taps from below. no plumbing seen. drop it down from the wall inside the wall and up through the floor. easy

No vanity, for reasons kitter described. Pedestal sinks are fine, though personally when I put mine in my guest bath, I will completely expose the plumbing and do the visible parts in copper or chrome piping. You can do a small floating shelf next to it or above it for space to put toothbrush, etc. Maybe make one out of whatever stone you used for the tile or a white wood shelf.

If you like a pedestal sink, then do it. It is your house and you are paying the contract. There are so many different styles of pedestal sinks. It is a good idea to have access to the water lines in case you need to turn off the water. Broken faucet or replacing faucets.

Is this an guest bathroom or for family members? That is first thing you should take into account. With a pedestal sink, the exposed plumbing has to look perfect, the feed lines the same height, where they come out of the wall has to look good, not large holes, tiles can not be cracked.
Maybe a different pedestal sink, one that matches the tub a little better.

Liked dia's idea about bringing plumbing up higher so it won't be seen. Really, your contractor/ plumber should have guided you along on this. Would be a tight fit to use a cabinet. Also, think about using a glass shelf above sink to give you room to set a water glass, etc., can get the shelf at home improvement centers.

How about something that is wall mounted with a vanity (floating vanity), but nothing touches the floor? Click on the link to see specs


Here is a similar installation that gives you an idea of what it would look like installed (but this one is a double sink and not a single style)

Attached are some different styles.

I think that the problem with this sink is that it is viewed primarily from the side, unless one is standing directly in front of it while using it. Not that it helps, but if this sink was opposite the doorway (so that the doorway faced the front of it) I would say that it would be a nice choice. We recently replaced a small vanity in our powder room with a pedestal sink--it looks good, but the lack of space on the sink to put anything drove us to put in a small glass shelf adjacent to the sink.

The pedestal is perfect for your small bathroom where even a small vanity would be crowded. The little bit of plumbing showing looks just fine. I would have done exactly as you have.

The sink is fine -However, the bathroom does look a bit crowded between sink and tub. Another option would be a shallow depth cabinets (12" d.) with the sculpted porcelain sink tops ( 14 - 16" d.)that are similar to pedestal sink top. I used one for a powder room that was 3' x 6' and was surprised how spacious it feels even with the toilet facing the sink.

Consider placing shallow depth cabinets on either side of the pedestal sink, it gives some storage and takes the eye away from the plumbing

Here are some ideas for additional storage

agreed.. the current pedestal is boring add interest by getting a more substantial base. forget adding the shelving on each side all you do is put crap on it and garbage it up. its a guest bath and your guest start to smell after three days so they will leave...so no more crap

I love pedestal sinks, I just don't like the pedestal on this one and I see what he means about the plumbing. Could he not have at least moved the pipes in a little closer to the pedestal. They do look odd stuck out way to the side which is particularly noticeable as the sink presents to the side. I think in this case the pedestal was not the best choice and I probably would have gone with a small vanity or as Deneta suggested a small floating vanity. Love the tile work.

Square pedestals look better to me ... regardless if they are traditional or modern. I try to find ones that have a more full surround which hides the plumbing. If you are stuck with this one, it will look better with a small arch faucet ... you can put a tall narrow waste can on this side which will help obscure the plumbing ... or something decorative. When the bathroom door enters from the side, toilets and pedestals often look a bit awkward, but this is an opportunity for an elephant or a tall kitty cat to help you out.

For our new basement bathroom sink, we went with the smallest sink w/cabinet combo we could find. It's the size of the sink (well, the sink actually stylistically overhangs slightly), but with a double-door cabinet below. The best part was that it only cost $99 as well. It's great to be able to store extra toilet paper and toiletries under there.

Old post.

We did a wall hung sink similar shape to yours by American Standard. It has a short close to wall support and it looks quite cool from the side. problem with yours is side view visible from door.

sink photo

I do like a pedestal...but not the big box ones like you put in. I have what appears to be the same bathtub & I'd go for something with much more character.

I'd be more concerned that he didn't try to change your mind about that slippery floor!! I certainly wouldn't want to fall on that!

Believe your contractor. The lines of the sink I feel are way too contemporary for your bath, with its classic marble floor and it looks like the tub has nice detail as well. The sink screams Home Depot. I love the one with the chrome legs that bungalomo found. Perfect.

We have an old house and I am remodeling to make sure that as we age, we can stay here. I am doing such things as having our main bath door opening out and being 30 inch wide. I chose an American Standard Retrospect pedestal with two different bottoms for our baths. They allow a 28 " walker to use both of the narrow bathrooms. We did a marble style porcelain back splash but a wood grained flooring tile to help with footing since most accidents happen in bathrooms. I was also concerned about storage and I have a skinny tall cabinet between a wall and one sink and for the other bath I have a mirrored cabidor that some can install on the back of the bathroom door but we're installing it between studs because we can. It is tall and should hold about everything. In the bath that will have the four chrome legs with a glass shelf underneath, I have an old Italian cookie tin that holds 2 rolls of tp close enough to reach from the toilet as back up for the roll holder. We also have a glass shelf above each sink for minor items (water pik and tooth brushes) that we can put away in cabinets before we have guests. Personally as we've aged the bath cabinets under a sink become less and less convenient since one practically must stand on one's head to find something that got shoved to the back. I have pull-out shelves to deal with that issue under the kitchen sink but we wanted to enlarge the shower and that took us to pedestals to allow for ample space. The hanging sinks that have the plumbing inside make for needing something other than tile if a plumber needs to fix a line that has been covered over with tile.