The New Hall Bath

My client’s home in the Cleveland Park neighborhood of Washington DC is a 1970’s “modern” home with a vaulted living room ceiling and great views.  But it basically hasn’t been updated since it was built.  The bathrooms were 1970’s generic with cultured marble countertop and shower surrounds that were typical of the period.  This bath measuring 5 ft by 8 ft is slightly larger than the generic 5’ x 7’ boxes found in earlier homes allowing for a slightly larger vanity.  But the vanity was largely useless for storage.

The wife uses it as her main bathroom – leaving the Master Bath – for the husband.  But she was frustrated at the lack on storage and the aging fixtures. 

What Makes The Remodeled Bath Work Better:  I’ve listed, below, the features we added to make the same space work much, much better.

Bath tub to Shower:  Few adults take baths on a regular basis.  For daily use, a 30 x 60 shower – replacing the standard tub – is a much more useful option when space is limited.  Multiple shelves plus a soap dish keep the shower organized and shampoo and body wash at hand. 

Extended Countertop:  We extended the new Crema Marfil Marble countertop over the toilet.  This is often called a banjo countertop because of its shape.  It makes the bath both feel and function larger. 

Custom Vanity for Extra Storage:  For a few hundred dollars more, we custom specified the vanity for lots of additional storage.  The central door leaves space to access the plumbing and for cleaning supplies.  The side drawers are shallow and great for make-up items.  The bottom drawers are more than large enough to store extra towels.

35 Cubic Feet of Additional Storage – Recessed into the Adjacent Room:  The adjacent room wasn’t used much especially in the front corner adjacent to the bath.  So we stole some space from that room and recessed a 24” Deep, 30” wide Full height cabinet into the adjacent room.  Drawers on bottom act as dresser space and shelving above is more than adequate for additional clothes or for linens or other storage.  We placed a GFI outlet in the cabinet perfect for keeping the hairdryer and electric toothbrush recharger close at hand but out of sight. 

Lot’s of Energy-Efficient Light:  The sconces installed on a wall of mirrors feature warm-white fluorescent bulbs with instant-on and non-buzzing electronic ballasts.  At 18 watts each, they are the equivalent of 75 watt incandescent bulbs.  The light bounces off the mirror magnifying the brightness.  A medicine cabinet is recessed into the wall with its mirrored door flush with the surrounding wall mirrors.  A small stainless steel disk over the magnetic push latch provides unobtrusive instruction about how to open the door. 

A 2nd Medicine Cabinet:  We mounted a 2nd medicine cabinet on the adjacent wall.  By adjusting both doors, you can view your back to check your hair or clothing.  It, of course, also provides conveniently located storage for makeup and toiletries.

Luxury of Some Spa Features at a Small Price and with Water Efficiency in Mind:  We located a rain shower head on the ceiling.  It’s designed to provide a drenching light rain at reduced water flow.  A multi-function hand-held on a bar is mounted where you might normally find the main shower head.  It can be lowered  and set to massage your back while also using the overhead fixtures.  Both fixtures can be operated at the same time or separately and both temperature and flow can be set independently. 

Heater:  Rather than go to the expense of in-floor heat, we opted for an exhaust fan/heater/light combination.

Few Grout Lines:  We used 12” x 24” oversized tile for a clean look and fewer grout lines.  This client wanted a monochromatic, serene feel.  I might have used a darker grout in other circumstances to highlight the vertical feel of the tiles and to add a little definition.

Tactile Enjoyment:  We replace the hollow-core doors and brass doorknobs with a single recessed panel solid wood door that reflects the cabinetry and has a nice feel of solidity with greater sound-proofing.  We used stainless steel lever handles by Omnia.

We borrrowed 35 Cubic Feet of Storage From an Adjacent Room

Spa-Like Features Without the Expense

A Wall of Mirrors Adds Depth & Light - The Medicine Cabinet is Mounted Flush with the Mirrors

We Added Tactile Pleasures Like a Solid Wood Door & Stainless Door Levers

BEFORE The Remodel

Concrete Counters w/ stone inlays

I love concrete counters!  I love their flexibility — just look at the inlaid stone in the counter, above.  I love the color possibilities — in this article I show counters in purple, indigo, grey and brown.  You can also have muted to bold shades of green, gold and wine.  I love their feel — to my hand they don’t have the cold feel of granite.  I love their earthiness and that they patina over time.  I love that I can do it myself — if I’m feeling strong and ambitious.  [I made the purple counters as well as the sandcast concrete backsplash with stone and glass inlays.]

You can see from the counters in this article that the material — as used in countertops — is quite refined.  It’s a 5000 to 6000 psi concrete (compared to the 3500 psi concrete used in sidewalks).  This is what allows for the fine finish.  They are reinforced with a mesh structure for strength.  The color is integral to the concrete so the color is through and through.  Just like for stone counters, a template is made so that the counter conforms to your walls.  A form is made — usually of melamine which give the clean finish.  The counters I use are usually cast upside down which allows for inlays and for the marbled or veined finish that you see in a few of these counters.  Other counters are cast right side up with a trowel finish.  After de-molding the counters are polished with diamond grinding and polishing equipment.  You can see — especially in the indigo counter, below — that you can use colored aggregate that you can reveal in the grinding.  This can add a lot of dimension to the countertop.  After polishing the countertops are finished with a sealer and then buffed to a high shine with a paste wax.

Concrete is definitely not for everyone.  It is a hand-made product and will have imperfections.  It is more prone to staining from the oils and acid in food than is polished granite.  In my mind, this creates a patina that gives the countertop character over time.  Concrete counters are usually also thicker.  Granite is usually about 1-1/4″.  The minimum for concrete is 1-1/2″ and more frequently they are 2″ thick. 

Here is a selection of concrete counters I’ve put in my projects.  Click on an image to enlarge. 

Dark Transitions Make Rooms Brighter

Yesterday’s article (link) covered the major elements that make color palettes work in architecture using a home with a bold, bright color palette.  This home uses the same conceptual elements with a more somber palette of grayed-greens, deep wine, and a touch of creamy yellow.  This home also features two elements that weren’t as apparent in the other home:  The effectivness of Darker Transitions and moving from Dark to Light as daylight increases.

In the image, above, notice how the dark wine colored transition beyond the kitchen makes the kitchen all the more brighter — highlighting the architecture and separating the kitchen from what’s beyond.  Similarly, the dark transition from the family room to foyer (right hand side of the image) has the same effect.  The sunny yellow/green of the kitchen is a near compliment of the wine transition — stengthing the impact of both.  Similarly, the grayed-green of the family room is also a near-complement of the wine transition.  We also move from darker to lighter shades as we move from the enclosed transition to the family room to the kitchen with light streaming through skylights and windows on 2 sides.  This accentuates the effect of the light.

Color Elements At Work

Notice the view from the Living room through to the Family Room and to the Side Family Entrance.  The main foyer (where the dog is lying) is a similar grayed-green of the family room except many shades darker.  [Notice how it accentuates the artwork above the mantle.]  Notice also the darker transition before you get to the family room and we’re pulled through the transition to the lighter room beyond.  The transition is both lower and darker — the ceiling is also the dark wine color.  Notice the same wine color on the angled wall coming into the living room from the Family Side Entrance.  It leads one from the entrance through to the living room.  The living room’s color is similar in intensity to the family room but with more yellow to better match the southern exposure.  And finally, notice (below) how when moving from the Family’s Side Entrance through to the kitchen how another dark transition area again pulls you through to the kitchen.   For reference, also see the floor plan.   

Floor Plan

Use of Near Complements

We looked at this home yesterday and I promised to discuss what makes the color scheme work.  I’ve used several bold colors but none overwhelm.

I’ve listed, below, the main elements I use when selecting a color palette for a client.

Look at these additional images of the home (click on image to view larger).    Each demonstrates one or more of the elements of color composition.   After the images, is a fuller explanation of each element.  In other articles, I’ll talk about the same elements using dramatically different color palettes.

Energy Level & Taking Advantage of Light Exposure
Some of want to be in an energizing environment and some of want our homes to be a serene refuge.  This is the most critical decision in the selection of a palette.  Obviously the owners of this home sought energy and vibrancy but not so much that it would overwhelm their living.  While many of us have learned that greens and blues are cool colors and reds and oranges of warm colors, it’s not as easy as that — in part because the colors are additive and relative.  The soft pumpkin color of the living room is calming compared to the brightness of the breakfast room.  The kitchen itself is quite calming even with yellow tiles — in part because they have a hint of green and because it is calmed by the blue in the countertop.  Similarly, the blue of the countertop and green of the walls helps calm the red and oranges.  The wood tones — while golden — are calming not energetic.

So in this home, the brighter red and orange were only used near the patio door on the south side of the home.  On the north and east side of the home, I only used less saturated tones.

All images courtesy of Braitman Design/Build

Dining Room "After"

This remodeled Tudor revival home in Silver Spring MD features
an open floor plan that helps a very modest house “live large”.
The original floor plan was busy — with small rooms running
into each other (see “before” images below).

The walls between the kitchen and Dining Room and between the
Dining Room and Living Room were removed and the small kitchen
received a much needed expansion visually and physically.  
The cook is also now part of the action instead of being hidden
away.  The budget was kept relatively low by leaving
plumbing fixtures in their original locations limiting plumbing
costs.

In the Living and Dining rooms, windows were replaced with
French Doors leading to the outdoor garden rooms — dramatically
expanding the visual space and scale. The doors were sized to
fit under the existing lintels limiting the cost of structural
modifications and masonry work on the stone & brick exterior.
Now every room has daylight coming from 3 or 4 sides and you
have long views through each room into other rooms and out into
the garden.  There are garden rooms on 4 sides of the house
furthering the expansive feel of the small house.  The
transformation was made within the existing footprint –
allowing a modest house on a modest remodeling budget to feel
much larger. 

All images courtesy of Braitman
Design/Build

“Before” Pictures

Dining Room “Before”

Kitchen “Before”                             
Living Room “Before”