A few weeks back, I spend a couple days in West Michigan with back to back Designed in a Day sessions.
The second of these sessions was with a lovely couple—parents to an adorable 6 year old and two cute pups (cutie pictured here is Red, an adorable corgi beagle mix 🥰).
Our goal? Think through a new layout and design details for their oddly laid out primary bathroom.
And, as I always say, day sessions are exceedingly more enjoyable with a friendly pup sitting on your toes for the duration of the appointment—siiiiiigh 💕
The Existing Primary Bathroom—Not Bad, but Could Be Better!
At first glance, this is a lovely bathroom. But when you start to get into the functionality of it, it has a few major quirks.
First up, the built-in jacuzzi tub is MASSIVE and takes up a huge amount of floor space. Maybe not the end of the world, but, there actually isn't a linen closet in this bathroom, so we definitely wanted to remedy that.
The next big quirk is the shower 👆👆👆
You'll notice in the floor plans later in this post that there's an odd little "hallway" type thing leading into the shower. This creates an odd wall that juts out into the bathroom, as well as making the shower feel like a dark cave—not ideal. Plus, because it's just a walk-in, it is incredibly cold to shower in there in the winter.
Lastly, the window to the right of the soaking tub looks directly out onto a very utilized deck. So, if ever there are guests over, or even just a family member using the outdoor space, the bathroom becomes a not-so private place—again, not ideal!
Style Discovery Conversation: Goodbye Beige!
Before each session, I have clients pull together images of a handful of spaces that speak to them.
Below are a handful of styles and color palettes that spoke to my client—she wanted some COLOR. Greens, or blues. And maybe some pattern too.
Their current space, while very tasteful and built using high end finishes, was exceedingly beige.
We sat down together and talked through each of the images and what they hoped for in their own space. Consistent themes within the inspiration images were some type of texture (see the shower wall tiles in each of these above examples), greens and blues, more modern elements without being too modern, and more storage!
Existing and Proposed Primary Bath Floor Plans
Once we had an idea of the general style direction and their needs as far as functionality, I got to work measuring the space and putting together a layout.
We knew from the start that we wanted to knock out the shower "hallway" wall and make the shower door flush with the wall. We'd plan for a tiled shower with a frameless glass surround/door.
Here, we also decided it'd make sense to reclaim a tiny amount of closet space to straighten out that now-odd wall. My client needed a bit more hanging space in the walk-in closet, so this would do the trick.
Additionally, I nixed the built-in tub completely and opted for a standalone soaking tub. This freed up some much needed floor space. We also decided to lose the poorly-positioned deck window in lieu of creating some more wall space, which is where we'd place our new built-in linen hutch.
The vanity and makeup counter would remain in the same location, however both would be new and designed to match the space.
We'd also opt for individual mirrors over each sink vs. one large mirror, which gives us more design elements to play with, as well as the opportunity for some interesting lighting placements.
Primary Bathroom Design Fixture and Finish Selections
After we agreed on the layout, I got back to work sourcing product while my client took a break to continue working from home (that's the great thing about day sessions—clients get to take lots of breaks!)
For the shower walls, I opted for a green textured glazed tile laid in a vertical stack which would tie in with the Sherwin Williams Evergreen Fog paint on the newly designed linen hutch.
The floors and shower floor would be a marble mosaic tile, which, while the pattern is busy, the overall color palette is quite muted, so it wouldn't fight with the wall tiles.
For our vanity, I chose a Stoffer Home vanity in a muted but warm wood tone, and selected a marble-look quartz for our vanity and makeup cabinet counter tops.
The tub would be clean and modern with just a slight flair to the top, and for our lighting, vanity mirrors, cabinet hardware, and plumbing fixtures, I mixed chrome, black, and aged brass for that delightful mixed-metal approach.
The Wrap Up
All in all, this space came together so beautifully! And the best part? We were able to create this entire design, which my clients could then execute on their own timing, all in a single 5-hour session.
I find that setting aside this focused, limited amount of time helps my clients to get really clear on their desires and come to our session very prepared, and it also lends to making decisions more quickly, along with coming up with some very creative solutions.
My clients left this session with their fully customized design plan. This included a style board for their bathroom, a to-scale floor plan they can take to their contractor, and links to all their fixture/finish selections to easily execute their project down the road.
Is "Designed in a Day" Right for You?
Designed in a Day has hands down become my most popular service, and it's easy to see why!
It's cost + time effective, and it's super flexible as far as the kinds of projects we can tackle, the range of budgets it fits, and the kinds of styles and functionality needs that clients have.
If you'd like to find out more, you can click here to view the service, and then complete our project intake form here and I'll reach out to schedule a discovery call to discuss your project. Can't wait to help you create a space that works for you!!