our bathroom
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The first big project we have tackled since moving in was sorting the ensuite bathroom. An enormous space, it sits off our bedroom through a small dressing room and is 8 metres by 3.5 metres wide. With three exterior walls plus a roof it was horribly cold in winter, not helped quite a few holes in the walls from a previous renovation. Everything about the space was wrong, but we didn’t really know how to make it right until we’d lived with it for a year or so. I knew I didn’t want it to be feel clinical but instead a continuation of our style, but getting there took a village..
We looked at various ways of changing the space, contemplating splitting it into two for a while and putting a utility at the end. But as Rita Konig always says “put the purpose of the space ahead of anything else” and we realised that that the flow wouldn’t work as there would be no hallway to get from room to room. Light was no issue as the space has three windows, but the electrics were a little eccentric and I just couldn’t master it by myself. So armed with a Pinterest board and so photos from hotels I’d stayed in I called Simply Bathrooms who helped get on track and product CAD drawings to help us visualise the space.
Sophie on the team highlighted some really important practical aspects. The space had some serious heat, electrical, plumbing and damp problems. Most of our budget went into fixing these and it took a lot of time to dry out sodden walls in winter. With the money we had left, we didn’t actually end up changing the location of any of the fittings, just giving them an intense upgrade with new pipework in places where the levels weren’t quite right. We completely gutted the room to its bare bones and started again, keeping only the window frames (which we’d replaced a year before) and the bath (albeit with resealing and a lick of paint).
I should also note that we added a water filter/cleaner as I knew we wanted brass taps with with the lime of the water down South being so high we were advised to fit one if we wanted the brass to do the test of time.
Flooring wise we had to completely re-do everything as the existing wooden floor (whilst it looked beautiful) was ruined by water as nothing was draining properly. I was a bit gutted to say goodbye to the floorboards, but when our builder crushed an existing floorboard with his bare hands to show how destroyed they were I couldn’t really argue.
I settled on wanting slate and had lovely visions of getting it from a place in Wales my family of got stuff from before. But I was reminded that natural slate is a pain to clean and doesn’t work with the underfloor heating we fitted, so Ca Pietra’s porcelain look slate tiles were a perfect choice. On the heating, fitting underfloor heating as far more cost effective than I realised but didn’t remove the need for a radiator in a room of this size. We have an additional heater under a window.
The shower area was tricky, the previous one wasn’t working and leaked water everywhere and the tiles weren’t sealed meaning the wall behind was sodden. We removed the existing tiles and replastered and repaired the walls before retiling. I chose a Ca Pietra zellige-look tile, but made from porcelain so they’re easier to clean. I love the varied tones which we paired with a grey-beige grout.
By extending the area with a half height wall right the way into the eaves it meant it gave the space purpose, and it a brilliant place to dry off after a shower. We complete re-plastered the area, including realigning the window sill as water was getting stuck there before - seeping down behind the tiles adding to the damp problem.
I knew I wanted brass finishes and was prepared to spend on a good shower as it’s often the start or finish to our day and should feel like a lovely experience. We settled on a Victrion 12 inch shower with all the trimmings. We fit it 8 inches higher than the standard to suit my husband’s height, which also meant getting a larger-than-normal glass panel so that he didn’t accidentally ricochet water all over the place.
I knew I wanted the tongue and groove panelling but hadn’t considered it from the perspective of extra insulation which was super helpful. We added the alcoves behind the bath so we had somewhere to put things, made from the same stone as the shower tops and basin counter. We kept the bath, adding brass taps and a new sink plug - again from Victrion at BD Designs. Cool thing about the sink plug? The plug fits neatly into the drain so it doesn’t dangle around - it’s the small things!
The towel rail was an extravagance but one I wasn’t willing to compromise on having found an image of one before we even moved into the house. Made by hand in England, Bard and Brazier’s work is stunning. My rail is from the La Fayette range and its one of my favourite things in the space. Handily placed between the bath and shower, it sparks joy every time I see it.
The vanity area was the bit that took forever as we had to change carpenters halfway through. I had a picture I’d snapped from a restroom in New York for inspiration, Sophie brought the picture to life by commissioning Parker Howley to make a custom double unit for us. The taps are Victrion again, in brushed gold. On a practical level I really like that I can turn them on and off with my wrists if I have mucky hands, and they’re the thing people ask about the most when they visit. The unit itself has two super deep soft close drawers and after years of bathrooms without the right storage it feels like a complete luxury just to have something to put our stuff.
Lighting wise I’d already seen the ones I wanted from Pooky, and the mirror is exactly the same as the one in our bedroom as I knew I loved it. The stone isn’t marble, it’s imitation. Not just because of the price, but for practicality - this surface doesn’t stain or get water marks in the way marble does. I can’t remember for the life of me what it’s called but it has the same veining as marble, just not the price tag!
Once all the fittings were in place I could get on to decorating. I knew I wanted a neutral colour which I’d then accessorise with the greens from our bedroom. This was for practical reasons; I didn’t want a bathroom which was a particular colour in case I fell out of love with it, made it more difficult to sell the house if we ever needed to and I like continuity - adding the green details in really make our bedroom space flow into it.
I tried about 30 different neutrals and ended up settling on one we’d used before, Joa’s White by Farrow and Ball for the woodwork and then Slipper Satin for the walls and ceilings. Since these photos were taken we’ve had blinds made for the windows in the same fabric as the bedroom, Osier by Sanderson. Adding fabric had really helped stop an echo in the space which I was worried about with the size of the room.
My final piece de resistance was where it all started for me, I wanted an armchair in my bathroom. I chose the Florence armchair from Love Your Home and have a matching one in the bedroom.
I’m thrilled with how it’s turned out and whilst it took a long time to complete, wouldn’t change a thing. Every decision we made has worked out well and its completed our bedroom space. I couldn’t have done it without Sophie and the team at Simply Bathrooms - cannot recommend them enough!