Bathroom

When designer Barbara Hill decided to renovate her 1960s condo in Houston, Texas, she stripped the bathroom down to its bare bones and saw beauty in the blemishes. photos by: Dean Kaufman

The master bath is clad in Area tiles from Mirage.

The latticework shell becomes a visual motif in the bathroom, furnished with appliances from Keramag, Kludi, and Laufen.

The wall and floor tile in the bathroom is from Statements Tile. The fixtures are Kohler.

For the bathroom inside a renovated Hollywood bungalow, architect Noah Walker used a simple palette of gray and white tile, black countertops, and stainless steel fixtures.

In the bathroom, plain white tiles line the walls and ceiling. The floors are natural stone and the fixtures are by VOLA. Lassen built the sink himself.

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On the house’s lower level, Schicketanz’s guests have a bathroom complete with a steam shower to themselves. Anodized aluminum windows pop against white subway tile from Waterworks. The vanity is from Ikea and the fixtures from Hansgrohe.

The entrance is immediately flanked on its left by a mudroom for hiking gear and the bathroom.

Home Renovation Tip: Decide on a Sensible Scope of Work

The sleek master bathroom features a freestanding tub, black mosaic tiles on the floor, and black natural stone on the walls. A natural oak vanity and oak accents add warmth to the otherwise cool and contemporary space, and a glass wall on the opposite side creates a sense of connection with the master bedroom.

Redesigning the cramped bathroom was one of the project’s biggest challenges. The original space had small and dated bath fittings, as well as intrusive plumbing pipework. The entire bathroom was taken down to the studs and pipes were redirected. The chimney was removed from the adjacent bedroom, increasing the available interior space. The tile floor in the bathroom is the only new flooring in the entire house.

In the bathroom, a teak live-edge countertop and custom yellow cabinet support a double wash basin by Duravit. A mirror from Restoration Hardware hangs below custom lights, designed by the homeowner for a steampunk look.

Adjacent to the bedroom, the bathroom features microcement-coated walls, along with a custom sink and vanity. Dornbracht Tara sink faucets and dual rainfall showerheads finish the space.

Prioritize either storage or easy cleaning. While extra storage is always nice, it is important to note freestanding vanities are also known for being harder to clean, since there are more corners and nooks where dust can hang out around them.

The owners were passionately involved in every aspect of the design, and pushed the team to make choices they normally might not have, including using Western red cedar for the master bathroom countertop. The spa-like space features a soaking tub, tile from Statements Urban, an MTI sink, a custom mirror, and a Vola faucet.

For the bathroom, the architects designed a clever tub that can serve as a shower, too. “Curved bath edges are not great to stand in so we wanted it to have a flat base,” Bright says. “We also didn't like that you would have to step over the edge of the bath to get in the shower. The solution to this was to sink it down.” The light is by Tub Design and fixtures by Duravit.

White Thassos floor and wall tile from thassos.com lines the bathroom surfaces. The vanity is custom, the sink and shower faucets are from Lacava, and the sink is Decolav. Photo by Frank Oudeman.

The minimalist bathroom boasts Cararra marble surfaces, Hansgrohe faucets and shower fixtures, and a skylight by Velux.