Updating a bathroom

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As part of a house renovation project, Teresa and Gareth Williams turned a poorly designed bathroom layout into a bright contemporary space.

When we relocated here from Essex, we decided to buy a house that was in need of renovation, knowing that we could buy a bigger property for our money,’ says Teresa. ‘We soon found the perfect house with stunning sea views, near Lyme Regis. It needed a lot of work throughout, including the bathroom.’

The décor was an uninspiring mix of 1980s wallpaper and tiling with a fitted carpet – and the bath was hidden behind a low brick wall. However, Teresa and her husband Gareth could see that its generously proportioned space with a large window and high ceiling could be turned into a stylish bathroom.

‘We visited the showrooms at local bathroom specialist Ocean Bathrooms (oceanbathrooms.com), where we talked through our ideas with its head designer, Joe Muhl,’ says Teresa. ‘He took the room dimensions and devised a layout using computer-aided graphics.’

As the couple had extensive renovation work to do throughout the house, they set a strict budget of £10,000 for the bathroom project, which would include installation. ‘We wanted a modern yet classic look, with clean lines, contemporary fittings and natural-style marble tiling,’ says Teresa. ‘Joe assured us he could create exactly what we wanted within our budget, so we decided to go ahead and finalise the design and start choosing the fittings.’

To keep down the plumbing bill, Joe suggested leaving the existing pipework. He created a new look by relocating the fittings – the bath would be moved to where the old basin stood, with a walk-in shower in the bath’s original position, so there would be no need for additional plumbing.

Teresa and Gareth were not entirely convinced, however, as Teresa explains: ‘We thought a freestanding bath in the centre of the room would be perfect because of the large proportions of the space.’

Joe persuaded the couple that the contemporary bath-tub they had set their heart on would actually look better placed along one wall, with the taps in the centre.

‘He was right,’ Teresa admits. ‘He had also come up with a great new layout that paved the way for a luxury wetroom-style shower along the facing wall. We gave the go-ahead for the fitting.’

The couple’s new bathroom was installed by fitters who tackled the entire project from start to finish, including ripping out the old bathroom, laying the flooring, tiling the shower and decorating the walls.

‘It certainly took the stress out of doing the decorating ourselves,’ says Teresa. Once the work was under way, the fitters advised them to have a slightly raised shower cubicle, rather than a flush walk-in option.

‘They said it would keep down plumbing costs in the future as it would make it easier to access the plumbing,’ Teresa explains.

As the couple were keen on creating an eco-friendly bathroom, they chose an energy-saving Hansgrohe Ecostat shower for their wetroom-style enclosure and a water-saving Hansgrohe Puravida mixer tap for the basin opposite, which is housed above a large wooden-style vanity unit with deep drawers for extra storage.

With an eye to keeping costs down, they had a piece of mirrored glass cut to fit the space above the basin instead of buying a more expensive off-the-shelf option.

Teresa was thrilled when she sourced the marble tiles for the basin splashback from a supplier in Taunton.

‘They’re almost an exact match for the floor tiles that were supplied by Ocean Bathrooms,’ she says. ‘I do love our marble flooring – it’s just like stepping into a luxurious spa room.’

Everything went according to plan until the cold December weather kicked in just a few days before the couple’s bathroom was due to be completed.

‘Ocean’s vans couldn’t make it up our country lane, which was iced over, so the remaining equipment had to be brought to the house in wheelbarrows,’ Teresa explains. ‘Amazingly, our two-week bathroom re-fit was only a day over schedule – and all within budget too.’

Knowing that a house renovation would be a stressful experience, Teresa and Gareth are thrilled to retreat to their new bathroom.

‘It’s a wonderfully relaxing space where we can escape for a little “me time” amid all the upheaval,’ says Teresa.

WORDS JANE BOWLES PHOTOGRAPHS COLIN POOLE
Featured in the November 2011 issue of Real Homes