In partnership with Grohe
Here is the story of our ensuite bathroom renovation. I’ve recently read a lot about the importance of bathrooms. This might sound silly because of course bathrooms are important but other than the functionality of them, there is a deeper meaning to this.
We’ve all been spending a lot of time at home. Our homes have had to become offices and schools but they should also still be sanctuaries. A place for retreat and wellness too. We aren’t able to fly off abroad right now or take a trip to the spa, so we need to find a way to create something at home instead. And, that’s why I think there is a lot of conversation around the importance of bathrooms – as spaces for wellness, calm and serenity. And, things that are functional can be beautiful too.
With all of this in mind, I wanted to take you on a little journey through our bathroom renovation, which was a big but such worthwhile project. You can find all about our bedroom renovation in here.
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Bathroom renovation
Our bathroom project was a little more than just a renovation. We actually had to create a new room for it on an entirely new floor too! When we first moved into the house we had this 70s style en-suite. It worked absolutely fine but the layout was terrible. Actually the whole building had a terrible layout, hence the new floor.
We had tiny bedrooms and three big bathrooms but with separate separate bath tubs and showers, it made no sense at all. So, we needed to expand bedrooms and create a smaller but lovelier bathroom space. This is the thing – bathrooms don’t need to be huge to work, be beautiful and provide a calm retreat for you.
The design
In the beginning of our bathroom renovation process I had some less than successful attempts at using a bathroom designer to help me with the process. We just weren’t on the same page at all, and he kept ignoring what I wanted.
So, in the end I decided to have a go at it myself and I had great time designing our dream bathroom! I started off with the room dimensions and the window locations and sort of went from there.
We used a local company to source our bronze coloured shower screen and stone effect shower tray. I wanted to have a wet room but my husband was dead against it so we have a tray instead!
I really utilised Pinterest for inspo’ too, I saw some lovely bathrooms with wooden vanities and baths in front of the window on there. The colour combination of mint green, gold, concrete, white and light wood was something that I knew I wanted early on.
The room turned out better than I could have ever hoped for – my vision for the bathroom turned into exactly what I wanted. Read more to find out how we did it…
The project
I thought I’d put together a rundown of how I did it – how I planned the space, how I designed the room and what obstacles we ran into. If I’ve missed anything, feel free to ask anything in the comments.
Bathroom before…
The en-suite bathroom we had in our previous bedroom didn’t look too bad at first glance. But like the other 2 bathrooms, it was taking up too much space from the bedrooms. So, this room is now my daughters room, and she has a little en-suite shower room that makes the space work so much better.
Building the new bathroom:
Obstacles
I really didn’t want the toilet to be the first thing I see when I open the bathroom door. The bathroom designer we initially used told me I couldn’t have the toilet where I wanted to due the location of the waste pipe. But, we used posi joists when constructing the new floor, which allowed more flexibility to have the toilet situated in the place I wanted (as you can’t have too many bends in the waste pipe). I’m glad we managed to solve this problem and listen to our own gut feeling.
My wish list for the bathroom renovation
As you can see, I was very much starting with a blank canvas with this room but I had a very definite idea of must-haves for the design, which included:
- To be spacious
- Have a double sink
- Toilet not the first thing you see
- Freestanding bath next to window
- Big walk-in shower
- Gold/brass hardware
- Calm neutral colours
- Warm but inviting space
When I thought about my must-haves I very much had in mind how the space would make me feel. So, I planned it by thinking about opening the door and entering the space. What would I be looking at first? As well as thinking about using the space.
I knew there would be days where I would just be jumping in the shower and going but there are also those rare moments where I want to retreat to the room and have a nice long bath and pamper. Being able to lie in the bath and look out of a window into nature seemed to me to be the most glorious idea.
It was also important to me to have some cohesiveness and synergy with the design of the rest of the house. So, I didn’t stray too far from the aesthetics of the other rooms, whilst maintaining a calm colour palette.
The details
Contains some PR products
For me, the devil is in the detail. I think it is so important to invest in really good quality finishes that can make a room. By investing in the finishes you will always have a beautiful room that will last a lifetime. Good quality tiles, flooring and hardware is so worth it. Bathrooms get a lot of use and it’s important to use products that will take that wear and tear over time.
Hardware
It was important to me to have good quality hardware that is also stylish.
I decided to go for brush gold fixtures in the bathroom, Grohe has a great range of hardware for bathrooms that suited my style perfectly. The quality and finish is beautiful, and they kindly gifted us the pieces we needed for this room. The wall hung toilet is also from Grohe’s range. The taps, bath filler and adjustable shower are all perfect for this space.
It’s no surprise to me that the Grohe Design Studio is situated one of Germany’s centres of the fashion and design sectors. They are a leading global brand for bathroom and kitchen fittings. Made in Germany, their luxury products are both high quality and beautiful. They really added the perfect finishing touches.
Tiles
Our bathroom tiles came from Claybrook Studio. They were so helpful, working with me to design my dream space.
I knew early on that I wanted long mint green tiles on the walls and white mosaic on the floors and they came up trumps with this.
Sinks
I love our Kast concrete sinks – I love concrete as material. These sinks are gorgeous shape and colour and they really complement the gold brassware and
Vanity unit
I was set on having a wooden vanity unit since the very beginning of the design process. Turns out they aren’t easy to find at reasonable price so I was super excited about this Crosswater vanity unit in light oak!
Lighting
Our wall lights came from Dowsing and Reynolds. They are well worth checking out for some cool, striking and stylish pieces for the home. As well as lighting and hardware they also sell other lovely finishing touches like dried flowers and wallpaper.
Bath tub
I love our freestanding bath tub from Waters Baths – it’s such a pretty shape and fits perfectly in front of the window!
Mirror
Our mirror came from Cox & Cox. They do some lovely pieces for the home in neutral colours and natural textures.
Wall shelf
Our bamboo two tier wall shelf was bought from Trouva.
Bathroom accessories:
I love a colourful bath mats, pretty candles and lovely bathroom accessories:
