Framing closes when the list of everything that will ever be fixed to the walls is complete. That list is the entire job at this stage. The blocking schedule captures every mirror, every shelf, every grab bar, every fixture attachment point. If something is missed, the wall closes without blocking for it, and adding it later requires opening the wall.
The blocking schedule is one decision point that covers everything. Not separate decisions for mirrors, then for hardware, then for grab bars. One comprehensive list that covers it all. Missing one item means one extra project later — reopening a wall, installing blocking, refinishing.
Why the list has to be complete before walls close is simple: once drywall covers the cavity, adding blocking is not a surface-level retrofit. It requires opening the wall, cutting back drywall, installing the blocking, and refinishing. This is expensive and disruptive.
Altered and new partitions are part of the framing conversation. If the bathroom layout is being changed, walls move or new walls are added. These changes affect the blocking schedule — new positions for everything that attaches to walls.
Packing out to make room for services is another framing consideration. Plumbing and electrical need space in the walls. If the wall is too thin for the services the bathroom needs, the wall has to be built thicker or the structure has to be altered. This is a framing decision.
The questions worth asking at the framing stage are the ones that are much more expensive to ask later. Where will grab bars go? Where will the mirror be? What will be hung on which walls? These questions drive the blocking schedule. Asking them after framing closes means opening walls to answer them.