Bathroom of the Week: Big Style in Less Than 43 Square Feet
A Toronto designer gives a compact hall bath an elegant and luxe look on a budget
It’s helpful to look at large aspirational bathrooms full of luxurious touches for inspiration. But many homeowners are dealing with compact bathrooms and limited budgets. That was the case for this Toronto couple, who had a dated 42½-square-foot hall bathroom. Interior designer Ketty Khuong gave it a luxe look while keeping a sharp eye on the budget. She sourced large-format digitally printed porcelain tile that looks like Carrara marble for the shower surround. And a white color palette and LED lighting make the windowless room light and bright.
Khuong had her clients fill out a questionnaire and share inspiration photos to get a sense of their style. “Seeing the photos is important because sometimes they show that their style doesn’t match the way they describe it,” she says. Khuong gleaned that her clients were fans of an elegant gray-and-white Carrara marble look and used this as a jumping-off point.
For the shower surround, she found a beautiful 36-by-36-inch porcelain tile digitally printed to look like Carrara marble. Note the way the veining pattern here is continuous, making it look as if large marble slabs were used. Accomplishing this look was no easy feat.
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For the shower surround, she found a beautiful 36-by-36-inch porcelain tile digitally printed to look like Carrara marble. Note the way the veining pattern here is continuous, making it look as if large marble slabs were used. Accomplishing this look was no easy feat.
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This photo was taken during the installation of the shower surround.
Before: Khuong was meticulous about getting the composition of these tiles just right. “I took photographs of each tile, put them in photo-editing software and rotated them around to get the right pattern. Then I labeled each tile and noted how to orient it,” she says. The result is a seamless look. This is the difference that hiring a designer can make — especially a designer who has an equally meticulous tile installer on call.
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Before: Khuong was meticulous about getting the composition of these tiles just right. “I took photographs of each tile, put them in photo-editing software and rotated them around to get the right pattern. Then I labeled each tile and noted how to orient it,” she says. The result is a seamless look. This is the difference that hiring a designer can make — especially a designer who has an equally meticulous tile installer on call.
Hire a local tile professional
For the bathroom floor, Khuong chose a 12-by-24-inch dark gray porcelain tile. “I continued the same tile onto the shower floor because this is a smaller washroom,” she says. Using a different tile on the shower floor would have chopped up the space and made it feel smaller.
The wall on the right side of the shower stall had to become the plumbing wall — there was too much going on behind the wall on the left, and the back wall is an exterior wall, where pipes might freeze in the winter. Because of these circumstances and the location of the existing toilet stack, Khuong had to install the shower controls in a way that requires entering the shower to turn on the water. This could have meant many cold awakenings from unheated water if not properly addressed.
Thermal controls within reach from outside the shower stall are one possible way to avoid a bracing blast of cold water. But in this case it would have been a budget-buster that wasn’t worth the expense. Khuong chose a shower head that offers a good solution. “When you don’t have thermal controls, you can divert the water to the handheld shower wand before turning the water on,” she says. This avoids getting soaked by cold water when stepping inside the stall to turn on the shower.
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The wall on the right side of the shower stall had to become the plumbing wall — there was too much going on behind the wall on the left, and the back wall is an exterior wall, where pipes might freeze in the winter. Because of these circumstances and the location of the existing toilet stack, Khuong had to install the shower controls in a way that requires entering the shower to turn on the water. This could have meant many cold awakenings from unheated water if not properly addressed.
Thermal controls within reach from outside the shower stall are one possible way to avoid a bracing blast of cold water. But in this case it would have been a budget-buster that wasn’t worth the expense. Khuong chose a shower head that offers a good solution. “When you don’t have thermal controls, you can divert the water to the handheld shower wand before turning the water on,” she says. This avoids getting soaked by cold water when stepping inside the stall to turn on the shower.
Shop for a dual shower head
The custom vanity has a warm look. The doors are thermally fused laminate from Egger. The wood-based boards are coated with a printed paper soaked in melamine resin. They’re durable and look just like wood. The countertop is white quartz. Khuong chose budget-friendly polished chrome for the plumbing finishes, then mixed in brass on the vanity pulls. “Mixing metals adds depth and interest,” she says.
She also added a pot light in the shower and replaced the dated dressing room lights over the vanity with an elegant LED light bar that will save energy. Another resource saver is the dual-flush O Jazz toilet from Kollezi. This one-piece toilet has a simple curved skirt that makes it easy to clean.
Over the toilet Khuong added some nature-inspired prints that add an organic touch to the room. Keeping the budget in mind, the designer purchased, downloaded and printed the artwork from an online print shop, then framed them in inexpensive frames.
Budget-Friendly Takeaways
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She also added a pot light in the shower and replaced the dated dressing room lights over the vanity with an elegant LED light bar that will save energy. Another resource saver is the dual-flush O Jazz toilet from Kollezi. This one-piece toilet has a simple curved skirt that makes it easy to clean.
Over the toilet Khuong added some nature-inspired prints that add an organic touch to the room. Keeping the budget in mind, the designer purchased, downloaded and printed the artwork from an online print shop, then framed them in inexpensive frames.
Budget-Friendly Takeaways
- Check out digitally printed porcelain tile with the look of natural stone.
- Keep the toilet in the same place to avoid having to move the stack.
- If thermal controls within reach from outside the shower aren’t within the budget, choose a shower head that can be diverted to a handheld wand.
- If a solid wood vanity is beyond your budget, check out the latest in laminate products.
- Water-saving plumbing fixtures and LED lights will save money on utility bills for years to come.
- Get creative with artwork. You can use ready-made frames for prints found online, children’s artwork, favorite postcards or plates from a vintage book of botanical prints.
More on Houzz
Read more bathroom stories
Browse bathroom photos
Find a local bathroom remodeler
Shop for your bathroom
Bathroom at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple
Location: Toronto
Size: 42½ square feet (4 square meters); 5 feet by 8½ feet
Designer: Ketty Khuong of Ke Design Collective
Before: This bathroom is mostly used by the couple’s guests. The existing design was a sea of beige and had dated finishes. The biggest change the homeowners wanted to make was converting the tub-shower combo into a roomy shower stall.
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