Overwhelmed by My Bathroom

So we had a crack in the bathtub that caused damage to the flooring around it. I called the insurance company and they sent someone out to appraise it. He handed me a check right on the spot to pay for the damage, labor, etc. Now it's my responsibility to figure out how the fuck to get the bathroom redone.

It's a small room, and I want to stay within a certain budget..probably in the $3000 range. One main problem is what to do about the bathroom vanity. It's an odd size - 54" cabinet, so 55" top. It has one bowl in the center. The top portion needs to be replaced because the sink part is damaged. But to get a top that size would be at least $600. We could get a whole new vanity and top for the about the same price, but the vanity would be 48" instead of 54". Not a huge difference, but 6" is 6".

The couple guys I had out here last week to give me estimates on the work (before the insurance guy came) both said we should think about getting ceramic tile on the floor instead of linoleum or vinyl tiles.

I want to do something a little different in the bathroom - put something not vanilla in there. Like a design around the floor with some smaller tiles, or tile the shower with a design in it, but hubs says "just cuz we like something doesn't mean the next people who buy the house will." So what, I'm supposed to not decorate my bathroom the way I want to because some possible buyers of a house we aren't even talking about selling might not like it? I don't agree with that. I don't want the fucking thing to be purple...just not all bland and boring, yanno?

Oh - one other thing. Instead of the tub/shower combo that we currently have, hubs wants just a shower with a bench. I guess that's ok with me, but that is something that may affect resale value and is not easily changed. I mean, don't people still like tubs in their master baths?

Anyone who has done a bathroom makeover, please gimme some advice. Where did you start? What did you base your color scheme off of? I'm overwhelmed with this. Pictures would be good too. Before and after?