WHO LIVES HERE?
Patsy and Lyndon live here with their two teenage daughters.
Choosing a design-and-fit approach was the perfect solution for Patsy and Lyndon when it was time to upgrade their dated en suite.
‘The bathroom was designed around a badly thought-out 1990s re-fit, the main issue being that the doorway from the bedroom looked straight onto the toilet,’ explains Patsy.
Having previously been told it wasn’t possible to move the bathroom fittings because of the concrete floor, she was resigned to looking at the loo when she went to bed. But after a design meeting with Sophie Harrold, director at Simply Bathrooms and Interiors, Patsy realised they were on the same wavelength.
‘The first thing Sophie said when she saw the room was that the toilet should be moved!’ says Patsy. ‘Sophie suggested we could reposition the bath and loo under the window and install a washbasin unit and barely-there walk-in shower opposite the bedroom door, while boxing in the new plumbing to create a streamlined look.'
'I loved her way of thinking, and when she perfectly captured the look I was after in a CAD drawing, with cement-effect bathroom tiles and a pink vanity unit, we decided to ask her to see the project to completion.’
When it came to choosing fittings, Patsy went for brushed brass to add a touch of luxe and prevent the room from feeling stark, which Sophie leaned into by suggesting the use of four different tile styles to introduce texture, depth and gentle variation in tone. And because the company project managed the whole build, Patsy barely had to worry about it.
‘The en suite was out of action for three weeks so we moved into a different bedroom,’ she says, ‘but the whole project was virtually stress-free.’ Though she does admit to a slight worry when the bath arrived: ‘I didn’t think the fitters would get it through the bedroom, but luckily the en suite door is fairly wide.’
Now she’s moved back into her bedroom, Patsy loves the new en suite. ‘The level of planning and detail that went into the project was huge, and Sophie came up with clever design ideas,’ she says, ‘so now it’s just a case of getting in there before my daughters!’
The clever design ideas, like the niche in the shower and bath area, are elements we wouldn’t have thought about.
The Greenwood's double-ended bath feels freestanding and allows for comfortable soaking at either end, while the fitted back and side help conceal pipework.
‘My husband was initially cautious about going for a wet-room style shower with the frameless shower screen, but it’s completely sturdy and the adjustable arm adds extra strength,’ says Patsy.
‘The wall-hung toilet offers the updated, sleek, minimalist design I wanted and is practical as it’s easy to clean underneath and makes the room feel more spacious,’ says Patsy.
Get the look
‘One of the ideas I particularly loved was the boxing in behind the vanity unit because not only does it frame the tiled wall, creating a focal point, it also conceals the pipework, and as the vanity unit has been recessed slightly, it’s created a better walkway to the loo, making the room feel bigger,’ says Patsy.
Here, the dark tiles in the recess cleverly frame the bespoke pink vanity and create a feature of the area.
‘The boxed-out shelf runs the full length of the wall, creating a sleek ledge perfect for displaying pictures and plants,’ says Patsy. The design company mirrored the recess in the shower with the bath niche.
‘I assumed the towel rail would also be brushed brass, but I preferred the mushroom coloured design that was included on Sophie’s CAD drawing, which compliments the concrete-effect tiles,’ says Patsy.