TOTO USA: Let's Get Practical

Nobody likes to talk about toilets until they don't work. Here is my cautionary tale about finding one that does, plus discovering a source for sleek, clean lined faucets, basins, shower systems and tubs.

First, the disclaimer: this post is sponsored by TOTO USA. That said, this story is a true one, and, as always, all opinions are my own. Thank you for understanding that brand collaborations like this post with TOTO USA help fund my blogging adventures and allow me to bring you interesting content.

Here goes. As most of you know, the house where I raised my boys burned to the ground. I rebuilt the 4 story Victorian creating period appropriate details to make it look old, but function "new". That house had 4 bathrooms. At the time, I was studying interior design "for fun." I had never renovated anything, let alone build an entire 4000 square foot (plus) house from the ground up.

Everything was rush, rush rush, as we were living in a mice infested rental and on a deadline from the insurance company. When it came time to choose bathroom fixtures, I stuck with the brands that were in my mother's home. It's all I knew, and there was no time for research.

While I am very happy with how the bathrooms looked in that house, when we moved in, I soon found out (despite having spanking new plumbing) that form certainly trumped function in one very important area. Let's just say a plunger was purchased on our first trip to the hardware store after taking occupancy.

You can bet that I didn't make the same mistake twice.

A few years later, I went on to build a two story addition to the beach house we own in Montauk, including renovating the 4 bathrooms in that home. Save one little used facility where we could reuse the existing toilet, this time I was prepared and chose TOTO. You can see one peeking out in the first photo above of a beachy bathroom I did for the boys (read about that reno here).

Guess what? We never talk about toilets when we are in Montauk, because they always work, and I get a lot of company. TOTO is the leader in high efficiency toilets for a reason. Don't make my rookie mistake if you are renovating a bathroom or building fresh.

I also learned that TOTO carries very attractive faucets, shower systems, basins and tubs. Have a look at some of my favorites that I spotted in the TOTO booth recently at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair (ICFF).

First photo by Ellen McDermott. Slider photo of sinks by Dominick Mastrangelo. All other photos by Lynn Byrne.