Bathroom of the Week: Modern Family Bath in 85 Square Feet
A designer improves function and style in a bathroom for a Toronto couple and their three children
With 3-year-old twins and a newborn, this Toronto couple needed to make their shared bathroom perform for the whole family. They wanted the space to be durable and functional for young children and they desired a warm, modern style for the grown-ups. The design team at Two Fold Interiors gave them a light, bright, low-maintenance bathroom that makes the most of every inch.
After: The couple’s wish list included a vanity with two sinks and lots of storage, plus a tub and shower that were separate. “We needed to capture as much storage as possible in the vanity and have enough floor space for multiple people using this washroom,” Martin says.
The rift-cut European white oak vanity makes a stunning focal point — “it was important to warm the space and create a strong focal point when you walk into the room,” Martin says.
For the countertop, the designer recommended a white Caesarstone. The durable quartz is a good low-maintenance option when young children are a factor. The floor tile — digitally printed porcelain that looks like marble — is also durable and low-maintenance. Martin had it cut for a custom pattern, using 12-by-24-inch and 4-by-24-inch pieces. The material and grout lines make it less slippery than a real marble floor would have been.
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The rift-cut European white oak vanity makes a stunning focal point — “it was important to warm the space and create a strong focal point when you walk into the room,” Martin says.
For the countertop, the designer recommended a white Caesarstone. The durable quartz is a good low-maintenance option when young children are a factor. The floor tile — digitally printed porcelain that looks like marble — is also durable and low-maintenance. Martin had it cut for a custom pattern, using 12-by-24-inch and 4-by-24-inch pieces. The material and grout lines make it less slippery than a real marble floor would have been.
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The slab fronts and inset cabinet construction give the vanity a clean-lined, modern look.
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Matte black plumbing fixtures, cabinet hardware, hooks, towel bars and other accents add graphic modern touches. “Every room needs a little contrast to keep it playful and fun,” Martin says. “We used the black to provide contrast to the white room and we wanted to have the fixtures stand out. It was important for us to layer the same finishes and materials throughout the space to make it feel calm and cohesive.”
The linear sconce over the toilet is another playful touch. “We love this sconce from Sonneman — it’s so architectural and gives such a beautiful glow that’s hard to capture in a photo,” Martin says. “This was the perfect light to balance the adjacent thin cove light above the shower and tub and also coordinate with the black fixtures.” The sconce and cove light have separate switches from the recessed lights in the ceiling. This allows the family to switch up the mood of the room.
Wall paint: Chantilly Lace, Benjamin Moore; cabinet hardware: Marathon Fasteners & Hardware
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The linear sconce over the toilet is another playful touch. “We love this sconce from Sonneman — it’s so architectural and gives such a beautiful glow that’s hard to capture in a photo,” Martin says. “This was the perfect light to balance the adjacent thin cove light above the shower and tub and also coordinate with the black fixtures.” The sconce and cove light have separate switches from the recessed lights in the ceiling. This allows the family to switch up the mood of the room.
Wall paint: Chantilly Lace, Benjamin Moore; cabinet hardware: Marathon Fasteners & Hardware
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Martin continued the Caesarstone from the countertop for the backsplash, then mounted the faucets on it. Wall-mount faucets are great space savers in a room where every inch counts.
The side of the vanity has a toilet paper holder and an outlet hidden from view. “It was important for the vanity to be the main viewpoint when you walk in, and we didn’t want to take away from the visual with towel storage or outlets,” Martin says. Accordingly, another towel bar and outlet are mounted on the entry wall.
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The side of the vanity has a toilet paper holder and an outlet hidden from view. “It was important for the vanity to be the main viewpoint when you walk in, and we didn’t want to take away from the visual with towel storage or outlets,” Martin says. Accordingly, another towel bar and outlet are mounted on the entry wall.
Browse black modern wall-mount faucets in the Houzz Shop
Martin used the same marble-like porcelain tiles on the walls in a 24-by-48-inch format. “We wanted the flooring to blend with the walls to give an illusion of a larger space,” she says. The tiles also mimic a stone slab wall but at a more affordable cost. The porcelain is low-maintenance, and the minimal grout lines with the large-format tiles make cleaning easy.
Having a separate tub and shower stall was important to the couple. Placing these next to each other saved space compared with the old layout, which had a freestanding tub. It also provides a seamless look — check out the way the shower enclosure incorporates the tub surround.
Having a separate tub and shower stall was important to the couple. Placing these next to each other saved space compared with the old layout, which had a freestanding tub. It also provides a seamless look — check out the way the shower enclosure incorporates the tub surround.
“We used a standard drop-in tub but worked with the stone fabricator to provide us with an undermount installation,” Martin says. They cut an opening in a stone slab for the tub. This fabrication required no joints, which makes the tub surround easy to clean.
Try These Bathroom Remodeling Ideas to Make Cleaning Easier
Try These Bathroom Remodeling Ideas to Make Cleaning Easier
After: Now the shower is streamlined and thoughtfully integrated into the layout. The shower floor slopes toward a linear drain underneath the shower heads. “We wanted a clean and modern look, and for us linear drains always feel more modern,” Martin says.
Floor plan. Martin swapped the locations of the vanity and the bathtub to streamline the layout, open up floor space and make the vanity a focal point. The new layout allows the tub surround and shower stall to line up in a pleasing way.
Takeaways:
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Takeaways:
- When designing a bathroom, think about what the view will be when entering the space.
- Wood will warm a mostly-white room.
- When choosing materials for a bathroom young children will use, consider durability, slip resistance and maintenance.
- Create a versatile lighting scheme for the bathroom, such as bright light for makeup application and a soft glow for middle-of-the-night trips to the loo.
- The fewer joints there are, the easier cleaning will be.
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Bathroom at a Glance
Who uses it: A couple and their 3-year-old twins and baby
Location: Toronto
Size: 85 square feet (8 square meters)
Designer: Veronica Martin of Two Fold Interiors
Before: Though the style of the home was contemporary, the family bath hadn’t been updated in quite some time. The 85-square-foot space needed a smart layout. “They wanted their new space to feel fresh and bright and also maximize the usable space of the room,” interior designer Veronica Martin says.
As for style, conversations with her clients told Martin they were drawn to a warm, modern look. This meant lots of white to make the room bright, wood on the vanity to add warmth and the sharp contrast of black touches to enhance the modern style.