It's that time of year... when love is floating in the air. I want to share a project with you that I fell in LOVE with!
I met this incredible family in 2019 who was looking for some guidance on a bathroom remodel. There were three girls ranging in age from elementary school to college age, all sharing the same bathroom. That's a lot of hair care, make-up and hygiene products in one tiny space. They were often showering together to get to where they were going on time, and they only had one sink between the three of them. Talk about a tight fit.
Take a look at these before photos to see just how cramped this bathroom was!
As you can see, they didn't just need more space, but more function as well. And that's just what they got!
I'll never forget what my client said to me at the end of our initial visit, "Be creative! We don't want boring, bland or ordinary. We want something exciting that we can all enjoy."
It's a Designer's dream to hear those words! Oftentimes on a project, the client has some idea of what they want. They have seen an image on Pinterest or HGTV that they fall in love with and want to re-create that style in their own home. Well, not this client. They wanted a fresh and unique space that captured the heart of their girls and something guests would love when they were in town to visit. They also desired a place they could retreat to themselves when the girls were out of the home and they were empty nesters.
Back in 2018 I came across a mosaic marble floor tile that I longed to use on a project. I waited and waited for that project to come. As I started putting this design together - I knew this was the one. The perfect fit for my beloved floor tile! As I paired shower tile with paint color and a deep spa tub with gold accents, I knew this would be one of my favorite remodels that I would have the pleasure of designing. Keep reading to see just how stunning the bathroom floor really is!
Not only did I adore the floor tile, but when I came across this large pink subway tile, it jumped out at me! Simple. Fun. Feminine. A match made in heaven!
I went with bold and contrasting colors to really give this bathroom the POP it deserved, while bringing in the pink to give it that soft and welcoming ambience as you walked through the doorway.
If you notice, we added a double shower so the girls didn't have to share a shower-head, as well as a bench with a handheld nozzle for them to sit and relax on while the steam from the hot water filled the room. The shower niche that houses the shampoos, conditioners, and other products was built the entire length of the double shower with height tall enough to fit the kind of containers that have pumps on the top. There is no longer a lack of shower space in this bathroom!!!
The space that the new shower is currently residing in used to be a hallway! Can you believe it?!? We knocked down the wall separating the bathroom and the hallway and turned it into this extra large walk-in shower. We also took the coat closet that was in the adjacent hallway and turned that into the toilet closet. This really expanded the square footage of the bathroom and provided the girls with lots of elbow room. Watch the video at the end to get a tour of the bathroom with more details about what products were used and how we added all types of functional elements. You don't want to miss it!
I wanted to keep a black and white theme throughout the bathroom to keep in step with the floor tile, and I needed to add accents that would not dominate but compliment the color scheme. This is where the pink tile and gold accents came in. A classic color combination for a timeless design.
When I am working on a design, it is important to me not to follow the current trends too much. Trends come and go every few years and the color of the year changes... well, every year. So unless you want to remodel or redesign your home every season, you want to make sure that you are designing with the future in mind. This is definitely one major reason to hire a designer.
Black and white are as eternal a couple as Romeo and Juliet. The floor tile, mirrors, and gold accents we used speak largely to the Art Deco style of the 1920's and 30's as it met old Hollywood's classic charm. I of course did not want this bathroom to remind you of the past when you walked in, so we introduced the modern geometric shapes being used in current modern design styles. The large white hexagon tile in the shower, down scaled to small white hexagon tile in the bathtub niche, along with the metal caged chandelier --- made this bathroom relevant to today's design aesthetic.
A tip to remember when you are designing any room, is this... Always create multiple layers of lighting. There are five main types of interior lighting: general, ambient, mood, task and accent. I have mentioned this in a previous blog post; I try to incorporate at least 3 layers of light in every space I design. In the case of this bathroom, there is no natural light so all 3 layers came from an artificial lighting source.
1- General Lighting: this type of lighting is great when you are getting dressed or cleaning the space. In this bathroom we installed 4 can, or recessed, lighting fixtures. This gives overall light to the room when on. We used a higher wattage bulb that was on the brighter side instead of the warm side. And as technology has advanced, LED bulbs, though a bit more costly, save money and energy in the long run. I use them on all my projects as well as in my own home.
When figuring out how many recessed lighting fixtures to install in a space, the general rule of thumb is to take the height of the ceiling and divide it by two. That number is the number of feet each light should be from the one next to it.
For example: the height of the ceiling in this bathroom is 8 ft; 8/2 = 4. So we made sure to place the light fixtures at least 4 ft from one another.
2- Mood Lighting: mood lighting is always a great addition to a space. Whether you use dimmer switches to lessen the amount of light entering a room in the evening or you use a strobe light at a disco to create a lot of energy, mood lighting will set the tone of the atmosphere. I really wanted to design a space in this home where everyone in the family could find a place to relax. The warm yellow bulb we used in the chandelier above the tub did just that. We also put the chandelier and the recessed lighting on dimmer switches. This allows for more control when you do not have natural light coming in from doors or windows.
3- Task Lighting: whether you are in your office and you need your desk lit up by a table lamp or you are putting make-up on in the morning, task lighting is key in most areas of the home. Not just placement, but the right bulb type for the task as well. Task lighting was used above the vanity in this bathroom so the girls were brilliantly sparkling as they were using the mirrors. Again, we used a higher wattage bulb that was on the brighter side.
The end design on this bathroom is really something to admire. You walk in and your heart screams "BE MINE!". It is charming and will make your heart throb. It certainly leaves you smitten!
(ok... I was trying to use as much "Valentine's" lingo as I could possibly think of in this post since this is a Valentine's Day post and I did put a pink wall in this bathroom! Perhaps it is overkill... hehehe)
But for real, this bathroom is stunning and I am so proud of it. If you want to continue admiring this design, CLICK HERE for more images and get the full tour in this video.
As always, thanks for stopping by and having a read.
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