Room Tour: An Elegant En Suite Bathroom With a Luxe Vanity Unit
A spacious walk-in shower and a bespoke vanity unit gave this en suite the indulgent feel the owners were looking for
Having one large room that was both a dressing room and a bathroom meant neither function was well served in this 1920s Surrey home. Designer Clare Altarafi of Clare Elise Interiors immediately saw that splitting the space into two and giving each area its own identity was the key to making the master suite work better. Scroll down to learn how she mixed colour and pattern to create a glamorous, well-functioning and relaxing bathroom for her clients.
This ‘before’ plan shows the original bathroom/dressing room, on the right. Wardrobes ran along the left-hand side, while the sanitaryware was bunched along the wall opposite.
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Want some advice about how to improve your bathroom? Search for local bathroom designers in the Houzz Pro Directory and see photos of their past projects.
Clare divided the space into two, so the couple now enter the dressing room (seen through the door) from the bedroom, then turn left to enter the bathroom.
The owner wanted the look to be warm and feminine, but with an industrial edge, and the metal-framed sliding door with reeded glass helps to create that vibe.
There’s also a subtle pink theme running throughout the house, so Clare wanted to bring that in, too. “We used pink on the walls in here, just in case, further down the line, [the owner] goes off it; it’s an easy thing to change,” she explains.
Sliding door, Direct Doors. Pink velvet stool, House of Isabella. Walls painted in Dorchester Pink Mid, Little Greene.
The owner wanted the look to be warm and feminine, but with an industrial edge, and the metal-framed sliding door with reeded glass helps to create that vibe.
There’s also a subtle pink theme running throughout the house, so Clare wanted to bring that in, too. “We used pink on the walls in here, just in case, further down the line, [the owner] goes off it; it’s an easy thing to change,” she explains.
Sliding door, Direct Doors. Pink velvet stool, House of Isabella. Walls painted in Dorchester Pink Mid, Little Greene.
There’s a mix of patterns in the room, but all in a simple grey and white palette, which gives the scheme depth without it feeling busy. “I wanted it to feel like an extension of the other rooms in the house by layering texture and pattern,” Clare says.
“[The owner] really likes geometrics, so I’ve brought some in through the tiles,” she continues. “Where there’s space, I like to use at least three kinds of tile – a wall tile, a floor tile and a shower enclosure tile. It gives each area a bit of differentiation.”
The white wall tiles are slightly fluted. “I wanted to give the walls a bit of texture to help the room feel more luxe,” Clare says. “There’s quite a lot of wall space, so I didn’t want it to feel flat and stark.”
Natural linen blind fabric, Warwick.
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“[The owner] really likes geometrics, so I’ve brought some in through the tiles,” she continues. “Where there’s space, I like to use at least three kinds of tile – a wall tile, a floor tile and a shower enclosure tile. It gives each area a bit of differentiation.”
The white wall tiles are slightly fluted. “I wanted to give the walls a bit of texture to help the room feel more luxe,” Clare says. “There’s quite a lot of wall space, so I didn’t want it to feel flat and stark.”
Natural linen blind fabric, Warwick.
You might also enjoy 16 Ideas for Adding Gentle Texture With Fluted Surfaces.
The wall where the wardrobes used to be lends itself to the long vanity unit, designed by Clare and made to measure. “Normally in a bathroom, you’re fighting for space,” she says, “so this felt like an opportunity to house a really large vanity unit with plenty of storage. Embracing the space makes it feel a bit more high-end.”
Clare has included the requested double basins, and she was also asked to incorporate a dressing table. Three mirrors delineate the areas and also help to magnify the light in the room. “Arts and Crafts windows tend to be quite small,” she says.
Blue is the client’s favourite colour and the vanity unit adds a swathe of a warm, mid shade. “The blue is a really lovely tone. It has grey in it, which picks up on the shower and floor tiles,” Clare says. The countertop is marble-look quartz.
Colmar wall lamps in antique brass, RV Astley. Vanity unit painted in Juniper Ash, Little Greene. Mirrors, La Redoute.
Clare has included the requested double basins, and she was also asked to incorporate a dressing table. Three mirrors delineate the areas and also help to magnify the light in the room. “Arts and Crafts windows tend to be quite small,” she says.
Blue is the client’s favourite colour and the vanity unit adds a swathe of a warm, mid shade. “The blue is a really lovely tone. It has grey in it, which picks up on the shower and floor tiles,” Clare says. The countertop is marble-look quartz.
Colmar wall lamps in antique brass, RV Astley. Vanity unit painted in Juniper Ash, Little Greene. Mirrors, La Redoute.
The wall lights above the vanity unit chime with the era of the house. “That’s also why we picked out the pencil line border in black, as a nod to the Art Deco era,” Clare says, “as well as to create a little bit of contrast rather than it feeling too feminine.”
Clare slotted in the shower next to the window. “There was enough space for a good-sized cubicle,” she says. “It’s at least a metre wide – we didn’t need to compromise.” The floor is tanked to create a seamless, walk-in experience.
The shower screen is reeded glass, which echoes the subtle fluting on the wall tiles.
Floor tiles, CTD Tiles.
The shower screen is reeded glass, which echoes the subtle fluting on the wall tiles.
Floor tiles, CTD Tiles.
The taps and fittings, including the radiator, are unlacquered brass, which adds warmth and will develop a patina over time. The tiles in the shower are marble.
Bathroom fittings, shower screen and sanitaryware, West One Bathrooms.
Bathroom fittings, shower screen and sanitaryware, West One Bathrooms.
The toilet is screened behind a half wall. “When I’m designing bathrooms, I always try to tuck the loo away from the door, so you’re not looking at it as soon as you walk in,” Clare says.
Both the vanity unit and the toilet are raised off the floor for a clean, spacious feel. As Clare says, “Being able to see the expanse of floor from corner to corner celebrates the lovely floor tiles.”
Tell us…
What do you like about how Clare has designed this elegant bathroom? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Both the vanity unit and the toilet are raised off the floor for a clean, spacious feel. As Clare says, “Being able to see the expanse of floor from corner to corner celebrates the lovely floor tiles.”
Tell us…
What do you like about how Clare has designed this elegant bathroom? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Who lives here? A family with two young children
Location Walton-on-Thames, Surrey
Property A detached 1920s Arts and Crafts house
Bathroom dimensions 3.1m x 2.5m
Designer Clare Altarafi of Clare Elise Interiors
Photos by Chris Snook
Clare has been helping the owners of this house to renovate it gradually over time. When it came to the master suite on the first floor, they wanted her to give the bathroom a luxe feel and make it function better, asking for twin basins in particular.
Originally, the dressing room (from which this photo was taken) and the bathroom were part of one long space.