Bathroom of the Week: Light and Airy Look With a Wet Room
A designer transforms a couple’s aging bathroom with a new layout, a hardworking wood vanity and a bright style
This couple loved the character of their 1930 Tudor home. But their main bathroom was a different story. A lavender toilet and tub and a pink pedestal sink sat juxtaposed with green and lavender tile. If that wasn’t enough, a dark walled-in shower, an awkward layout and virtually nonexistent storage convinced the couple it was time for a major overhaul.
For help they hired designer Lori Brazier, who reimagined the layout and look. A wet room with a frameless glass enclosure combines a spacious shower with a partially sunken compact tub. White walls and lots of marble and marble-look porcelain give the design a light and airy feel, while a wood-look laminate vanity adds warmth and much-needed storage.
For help they hired designer Lori Brazier, who reimagined the layout and look. A wet room with a frameless glass enclosure combines a spacious shower with a partially sunken compact tub. White walls and lots of marble and marble-look porcelain give the design a light and airy feel, while a wood-look laminate vanity adds warmth and much-needed storage.
After: Brazier knocked the bathroom back to the studs and started fresh. This photo was taken from about the same angle as the previous one. The vanity now sits where the shower stall had been, the toilet is where the tub was and the wet room is at the end of the room where the toilet sat.
“We decided to use that whole back wall for the wet room and free up the rest of the space for a vanity with storage,” Brazier says.
The new single-sink vanity features a hefty mitered-edge sealed marble countertop and an 8-inch backsplash. “In their kitchen, they also went with marble for their counter and backsplash, and we used the remnants for this bathroom,” Brazier says. “Although it requires maintenance, it’s beautiful and that’s what they wanted.”
Shaker-style doors and drawer fronts are made from durable thermally fused laminate (TFL) with a butternut wood look. “Every single door and drawer in the vanity is operable, so they now have lots of storage,” Brazier says.
A luxe gold finish on the wall-mounted faucet coordinates with honey bronze vanity hardware and other similarly warm finishes in the updated space.
Vanity hardware: Brixton pull in Honey Bronze, Top Knobs
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“We decided to use that whole back wall for the wet room and free up the rest of the space for a vanity with storage,” Brazier says.
The new single-sink vanity features a hefty mitered-edge sealed marble countertop and an 8-inch backsplash. “In their kitchen, they also went with marble for their counter and backsplash, and we used the remnants for this bathroom,” Brazier says. “Although it requires maintenance, it’s beautiful and that’s what they wanted.”
Shaker-style doors and drawer fronts are made from durable thermally fused laminate (TFL) with a butternut wood look. “Every single door and drawer in the vanity is operable, so they now have lots of storage,” Brazier says.
A luxe gold finish on the wall-mounted faucet coordinates with honey bronze vanity hardware and other similarly warm finishes in the updated space.
Vanity hardware: Brixton pull in Honey Bronze, Top Knobs
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The flooring is honed marble and natural stone mosaic tile in a square pattern. “She had wanted this color tone, and I felt the natural stone worked really well with the vanity color,” Brazier says. “It also allowed them to keep some of the character they love about the home but update it in a modern way.”
Flooring: London Calling collection, 12-by-12-inch Trafalgar Square mosaic in Cloudy, AlysEdwards Tile & Stone
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Flooring: London Calling collection, 12-by-12-inch Trafalgar Square mosaic in Cloudy, AlysEdwards Tile & Stone
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Two sconces flanking the mirror feature linen shades and a brass finish that coordinates with the flush-mount ceiling light (seen in the mirror reflection), which has a white shade and antique gold finish.
Sconces: Clout in Soft Brass, Visual Comfort; ceiling light: Fu-Lighton, Crystorama Lighting; mirror: Dolan 40-inch rectangular, Renwil
8 Bathroom Features Homeowners Want Now
Sconces: Clout in Soft Brass, Visual Comfort; ceiling light: Fu-Lighton, Crystorama Lighting; mirror: Dolan 40-inch rectangular, Renwil
8 Bathroom Features Homeowners Want Now
A low-curb entry leads to the slightly elevated wet room. The ADA-compliant, 30-by-54-by-14¾-inch tub sits partially below the shower floor and flush with the main bathroom floor.
The walls are 12-by-24-inch polished marble-look porcelain tiles that give a light and airy look. “Less grout so it’s nice and clean-looking,” Brazier says.
The shower floor is the same porcelain tile as the walls but in a 2-by-2-inch mosaic version. Brazier laid them in a diagonal pattern for visual interest.
The wall-mounted shower head and handheld shower feature a luxe gold finish. “The handheld shower is incredibly useful for cleaning down this kind of space, especially the glass,” Brazier says.
She moved a new awning window a little higher than the previous window to improve privacy while still allowing in natural light.
Wet-room tile: Duomo Bianchi honed, 2 by 2 inches (flooring) and 12 by 24 inches (walls), Emser Tile
The walls are 12-by-24-inch polished marble-look porcelain tiles that give a light and airy look. “Less grout so it’s nice and clean-looking,” Brazier says.
The shower floor is the same porcelain tile as the walls but in a 2-by-2-inch mosaic version. Brazier laid them in a diagonal pattern for visual interest.
The wall-mounted shower head and handheld shower feature a luxe gold finish. “The handheld shower is incredibly useful for cleaning down this kind of space, especially the glass,” Brazier says.
She moved a new awning window a little higher than the previous window to improve privacy while still allowing in natural light.
Wet-room tile: Duomo Bianchi honed, 2 by 2 inches (flooring) and 12 by 24 inches (walls), Emser Tile
More marble-look porcelain tile forms a surround for the acrylic tub. “I did the wall-mount faucet here to coordinate with the wall-mount vanity faucet,” Brazier says. “We really did the tub based on the size and the fact that the kids are able to climb in and out of it easily.”
The updated space gives the homeowners the improved look and feel they were after. “It’s clean and sophisticated and a more functioning space that fits the aesthetic of their home,” Brazier says.
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The updated space gives the homeowners the improved look and feel they were after. “It’s clean and sophisticated and a more functioning space that fits the aesthetic of their home,” Brazier says.
More on Houzz
Read more bathroom stories
Browse bathroom photos
Find a bathroom designer
Shop for your bathroom
Bathroom at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple with two young children
Location: Sacramento, California
Size: 72 square feet (6.7 square meters); 6 feet, 6½ inches by 11 feet, 1 inch
Designer: Lori Brazier of House of Brazier
Before: The former bathroom had a curious mix of colorful fixtures, including a lavender tub and toilet and a pink sink. Green and lavender tile finished off the eclectic style. Meanwhile, a dark shower stall didn’t provide a great experience, and the pedestal sink offered no storage. “There was no storage at all, and it was a bad use of space,” Brazier says. “It was just set up really awkwardly.”