The homeowners approached our team to redesign and remodel their cramped hall bathroom after they had already updated the rest of their home with a full remodel and primary suite addition. The small hall bathroom had been neglected in the first remodel to save on their initial budget. After a few years, they were finally ready to get it done so their kids could have more space as they grow up.
My design firm, along with Ashis Bhakta of Elite Construction Contractors, was hired to come up with a creative solution to give them more space for storage to make the bathroom more functional. They were open to changing the footprint of the bathroom to improve the layout. Before, the tile felt dated and didn’t match the updates they did in the rest of the home. The layout felt a little narrow and awkward.
We took 2′ from an adjacent bedroom and hallway linen closet to achieve the new layout which required moving all of the fixtures. The old window was removed to make way for a new window to be installed in the new tub/shower so they would not lose the natural light in the bathroom. With a remodel that changes footprint, the goal is always to look like it has always been that way and is not a remodel. This hallway is a great example of that with the hallway reconfiguration seamlessly blending with the surrounding trim and flooring.
The project required moving all of the plumbing and electrical, framing out a new window and moving the wall 2′ into the bedroom which affected the bedroom door. This also affected the outlets and switches in the hallway. The door to the bedroom was moved to the wall perpendicular the original and the flooring was patched in. A remodel that is beyond a cosmetic remodel is much more invasive and is something to consider when living in the home during the process. Our team always tries to contain the debris and construction in the affected rooms as much as possible by tarping off the spaces being remodeled and protecting the pathways to and from the room. Moving major fixtures requires bringing in multiple trades which extends the overall duration of the project. Once you start opening up the walls, you never know what you may find. Dry rot, mold, insect damage, and missing insulation are all possibilities with remodels which can incur additional time and costs. Luckily, nothing major came up in this project. In this case, the benefits of the gut job were well worth the end results with the new and improved layout.
For the design of the new space, the homeowner wanted to do some fun tile patterns and colors due to this being the kids’ bathroom. We used a black and white hex tile on the floor and created a starburst pattern with a radial install. The new vanity is now more spacious with two sinks and plenty of storage that will serve the kids well as they get older. The cabinetry that we chose is in a deep painted green finish called Olympic from a locally sourced cabinet maker that my firm is a dealer for. A solid white quartz countertop keeps the vanity neutral as well as light and bright. An elongated picket tile was chosen in two different colors and sizes to create a bit of whimsy while the combination of colors keeps it sophisticated.
The new layout allowed for the toilet to be tucked away behind a shower wall. Now when you enter the bathroom, you see the pretty green shower tile accent wall. The new bathroom design is a perfect blend of classic and modern with traditional fixtures mixed with fun colors and patterns.
If you are in the greater Seattle area or Eastside and are in need of cabinetry or interior design, please feel free to reach out to me. *Note: I may earn a commission from product links.
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