bathrooms
A large rock was placed in the center of the master shower as a seat (to invite a re-creation of Rodin’s sculpture “The Thinker”?) Snider explains that Perry wanted a seat for showering, one that felt natural. “Since the shower also extends outdoors, the rock was a perfect addition to the interior,” he says. Perforated blackened steel panels make for a delightfully spare shower wall and flooring. Water drains through the holes to a floor drain below.
For small bathrooms: This bathroom's layout would've made fitting in a single dedicated shower difficult, but the shower was designed to serve as a walk-through to the tub. This allows the homeowner to have both a bathtub and a shower without combining both into a small space or squishing a shower into one corner and the tub into the other.
A built-in tub like this is actually much easier to install than a freestanding one. Waterproofing behind and under tubs with little wiggle room can be difficult, so I always suggest that clients install tubs like this, for practicality and cost savings. Tip: Make sure your walls are waterproofed up to a height of 6 feet in your shower and tub area's primary wet zone. Waterproof the walls at least 18 inches above the tub lip in a bathtub without a showerhead.
If this modern tub were a tub shower, it'd be pretty difficult to waterproof because it's designed as an undermount tub. Clean-lined tubs like this usually don't have edging that connects the tub with the wall's waterproofing. Placing the tub inside the shower means the entire area is waterproofed, and it actually simplifies the room's design.
Waterproofing is vital in these installations. Your bathtub will have a 1½- to-2-inch drain line that will need to travel through your shower's waterproofing materials. Tubs in general are awkward and a pain to hook up, so there are a lot of factors to consider here. For example: Will your tub's anti-tipping brackets poke through your shower membrane? This is a good question to ask your builder.
COLORS...Mix things up with neutrals. Those who like to branch out and are confident in their own color picks can mix up their cool and warm colors. This beautiful dining room features a neutral wall color with a cool ceiling color and a warm white trim color. The effect is soothing because the colors are all very muted and soft.
6. Use contrasting shapes. Sometimes the use of the same shape can create harmony in a space, and sometimes the use of different shapes can create a contrast that works. In this creative bathroom, small white floor tiles contrast nicely with 4-by-4 glossy black ceramic wall tiles. The black and white palette allows the wall mural to make its statement.
3. Vary the sizes and shapes of materials and furnishings. Transitioning between sizes of furniture and materials connects various parts of the space in a different way. There are many good examples of scale in this classic bathroom. There is a nice transition in scale from floor to ceiling, with the small basket weave tiles on the floor, the medium subway tiles for the wainscoting and the large drywall that leads to the ceiling. The leaded window design relates in pattern and proportion to the basket weave floor tile. And because the ceilings are quite high, I love this tall wooden chest next to the cast iron tub. It helps connect the space from floor to ceiling.
2. Play with one main material. Choosing one main material for your bathroom's palette will help harmonize the elements, creating a visual flow that's easy on the eyes. Here's an obvious example of how using one main material produces a calm feeling. The large 12-by-24 tile reduces the amount of grout lines, adding to this bathroom's expansive feel. And the simplicity of one material allows the art in the room — the silver steer head — to have a real presence.
1. Use similar shapes in different sizes. Using similar shapes — rectangles and squares or circles and hexagons, for example — in different sizes can add interest and subtly draw the eye around the space. Unlike most bathrooms, where rectangular and square tiles have a significant presence, this bathroom has round elements — hexagonal tiles, round mirrors and round floor mats — that create an environment that is both fun and minimalist. The white hexagonal tiles on the walls, floors and bathroom vanity make the space feel large and bright.
when the homeowner isn't working at his finance job, he spends most of his time working in a music studio. Moriarty embraced his client's love of music by drawing inspiration from the British alt-rock and punk rock era. He then added depth, color and texture with eye-catching artwork. "To balance, I looked toward traditional British tailoring and made sure every piece we placed in the home was well considered and perfectly proportioned," he says. Sofa: Brooks Sectional; chairs: Zinc Chair, Room & Board; ottoman: custom design by Michael Richman; ottoman bench: custom design by Bladon Conner
The cast iron tub is another salvaged piece. The original porcelain was in great shape, and Tiesi had the folks at Provenance strip it down to the cast iron on the main body of the bathtub — again, to lend an industrial feel. Whether one is cooking, lounging or taking a soak, all of these beautifully refurbished pieces are a constant reminder of the recently refurbished building's industrial past. Light fixture: Capitol Lighting; faucet: Dornbracht
Tongue and groove poplar boards add a rustic touch to the master bathroom, while a Minwax stain adds more of the loft's blue accent color. A salvaged sink lived its former life in the Tastykake factory in Philadelphia. Tiesi had the folks at Provenance, where she found it, strip it down to keep the rustic look. One thing Tiesi notes about salvaging is that it can pose some unforeseen challenges — for example, she mounted Dornbracht faucets to the walls without too much trouble (in the factory, the water came down from overhead) but she and her plumber had quite a time finding just the right piece to fit the drain hole. Faucets: Dornbracht; shutters: Olde Good Things
"I love a powder room to be a little jewel box," Tiesi says. She combined metal tiles (a challenge to install, as it turned out, but the workers conquered the task) with blue wall tiles. She was able to salvage the door on the right from the original building, and had the Provenance crew strip it down to the metal. It still has the original glass (you can catch a glimpse of it on the right side of the previous photo as well). By the way, the team also just completed replacing that ceiling with reclaimed tin ceiling tiles, but there's no photo of it yet. Mirror, vanity: Kallista; sconces: Restoration Hardware; white tile: Artistic Tile; other tiles: Casale Tile
I've fallen hard for vintage claw-foot tubs in fun hues. This charming red toile wall covering is another great way to bring color into the room.
Reddish-orange walls look crisp and modern when paired with shades of white, black and gray.
1. Decide whether you'll buy a premade model or build your own. Some saunas come assembled and ready to install, others arrive in kit form and still others are custom built onsite. Or choose a portable sauna, which doesn't have to be built into a fixed spot. Pricing varies widely, depending on size, materials and many other factors, but you can find small, premade saunas for about $1,000 (uninstalled), while custom-built models can extend well into the five-figure range. If your wiring won't support the voltage that an electric sauna requires (around 220 volts), you'll need the help of a licensed electrician to correct it. In addition, you may need to add an exhaust vent nearby to siphon off moisture generated by the steam.
Shed dormers really do add that extra bit of interior space that's transformative. So where there initially wasn't ample room for a large closet or a bigger bedroom or a nice, big soaking tub, now there is. And with multiple windows, the spaces created by a shed dormer are light and bright and open.
Consider your lighting and tile layout from the start. This is key to a polished-looking shower. Make sure to include lights in your shower, not just around it. Depending on your shower size and makeup, one, two or four lights might look best. When you remove your old tub and tub surround to make room for the new shower, this is a perfect time to check that your light system can be installed like you had planned. Often the ceiling framing above a tub can be easily adjusted to accommodate a lighting plan. Don't tile without the finished light sources in place. Without a light source in place, it is hard to know how any lippage might look. In a shower the lights are often quite close to the wall, which will show every little flaw in a tile installation. Tip: Plan your tile layouts early, using the ceiling height as a reference. Try to avoid sliver cuts in tile layouts. Drawing the layout on paper helps — once you have this finalized, you can use your fixed tile grout lines to lay out shampoo niche locations and shower fixtures.
Tip: If you're building a steam shower, consider Dornbracht fixtures. Remember that a steam shower should be constructed by someone with at least five years' experience in vaporproofing.
Companies like Kohler make porcelain soaking tubs like this. The material for the surround is up to you.
A tiled ofuro with built-in storage.
Raised tubs with small stairs leading up to them almost have a throne-like feel. This one has a wooden frame with an insert. Depending on what style surround you decide on, this is generally the more economical way to go. Many mainstream manufacturers make similar tubs.
There is something so luxurious and spa-like about stepping down into a tub flush with the floor. This tub is large enough for a small group, but many ofuros are just big enough for one. Notice the hand shower on the left.
Rounded shower enclosures such as this one take up less room than squared ones, making them ideal for baths in which square footage is at a premium. A slender cupboard in a sliver of free space offers just enough room to store sundries.
Floating vanities and teeny bathrooms were made for each other. Although it can be tricky to pull off this many materials in a tight space (dark wood, marble, two kinds of tile), strategic placement makes it work here. The tile on the shower floor blends unobtrusively with the marble, deep gray-blue walls appear to recede, and the espresso-brown vanity cabinet anchors the whole scheme. Note too how the transparent shower curtain doesn't stop the eye, even when it's drawn.
Here's the same bath from the opposite angle. A shower door (even a frameless glass style) or curtain would have chopped up the slim space, so an open shower makes sense here. Wall-mounted hooks and racks provide space for linens and help to solve the storage problem.
This narrow bath, a converted storage closet, proves that high style sometimes comes in small packages. The designers tucked the toilet and shower at opposite ends and kept the fixtures shallow. Graceful sconces and subway tile walls draw the eye upward; a mirror with a Greek key pattern on the frame expands the room visually.
Old-fashioned claw-foot tubs are a great option for small baths. They tend to take up less floor area than traditional built-in tubs and create the illusion of more square footage, because the floor is visible beneath them. A medicine cabinet helps corral toiletries.
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