Bathroom of the Week: Spa Feel With a New Sauna and Shower Area
A design-build team helps a Minnesota couple upgrade their basement bathroom for family enjoyment and relaxation
As parents of 10-year-old twins, this Minnesota couple wanted to bring more family fun and joy to their home. They turned their sights to their partially finished basement, where they saw an opportunity to create a functional family room. But the couple, who grew up in northern Minnesota and have Finnish heritage, really wanted to figure out a way to add a sauna.
For help realizing their dream, the homeowners hired design-build pros Steve McDonald and Angela Barnhart of White Birch Design. The team stole some space from a guest bedroom to expand the guest bathroom, creating a generous footprint for a custom cedar-wrapped sauna and shower combo. Black porcelain wall tile and black pebble mosaic floor tile create a dramatic look. Meanwhile, a cedar-clad wall and a new custom stained black vanity stylishly complement the new sauna area.
For help realizing their dream, the homeowners hired design-build pros Steve McDonald and Angela Barnhart of White Birch Design. The team stole some space from a guest bedroom to expand the guest bathroom, creating a generous footprint for a custom cedar-wrapped sauna and shower combo. Black porcelain wall tile and black pebble mosaic floor tile create a dramatic look. Meanwhile, a cedar-clad wall and a new custom stained black vanity stylishly complement the new sauna area.
The vanity’s countertop and short backsplash are Azul Celeste granite, which has streaks of silver, blue and charcoal. “It’s a small vanity, and to keep the countertop open we went with the single-handle faucet,” Barnhart says. The faucet’s champagne bronze finish coordinates with a nearby towel bar.
Faucet and towel bar: Stryke in champagne bronze, Delta
How to Choose a Bathroom Vanity
Faucet and towel bar: Stryke in champagne bronze, Delta
How to Choose a Bathroom Vanity
The fixed shower head in a champagne bronze finish includes a pressure-balanced valve with two separate handles that control volume and water temperature independently. Because the shower and sauna door swings out, the homeowners can easily reach in to turn on the water without getting wet. “It was something I discussed with them when we were space planning and placing all the elements for the sauna and shower,” Barnhart says.
Dark charcoal-colored 12-by-24-inch unglazed porcelain tiles on the shower walls offer dramatic contrast to the cedar. “We were looking at lighter tiles, but the homeowner had suggested we go with black,” Barnhart says. “Creating that contrast with the cedar and the gold accents in there gave them the sexy space they wanted. I added a metal strip with a champagne bronze finish between the cedar and the tiles at that angle, to add interest and also protect the cedar in this wet area.”
A shower niche with two shelves and a bottom ledge keeps bath products off the shower floor. Hexagonal glass-and-metal mosaic tiles on the back of the niche pick up the dark tones in the shower walls and floor. The pebble mosaic flooring adds another touch of drama and creates a nonslip surface.
Flooring: Pebble sliced mosaic in Tahitian Black, Shaw Floors; niche tiles: Posh glass mosaic in Light Bronze, The Tile Shop
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Dark charcoal-colored 12-by-24-inch unglazed porcelain tiles on the shower walls offer dramatic contrast to the cedar. “We were looking at lighter tiles, but the homeowner had suggested we go with black,” Barnhart says. “Creating that contrast with the cedar and the gold accents in there gave them the sexy space they wanted. I added a metal strip with a champagne bronze finish between the cedar and the tiles at that angle, to add interest and also protect the cedar in this wet area.”
A shower niche with two shelves and a bottom ledge keeps bath products off the shower floor. Hexagonal glass-and-metal mosaic tiles on the back of the niche pick up the dark tones in the shower walls and floor. The pebble mosaic flooring adds another touch of drama and creates a nonslip surface.
Flooring: Pebble sliced mosaic in Tahitian Black, Shaw Floors; niche tiles: Posh glass mosaic in Light Bronze, The Tile Shop
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The wall-mounted sauna heater on the left includes professional-grade stainless steel heating elements and a large rock capacity. “Given the space we had to work with, the heater was placed in the best location for the room and to keep it the best possible distance from the shower head,” Barnhart says. “There are specific requirements per the heater on placement off of the floor etcetera, and that met the needs we had for the shower as well. The shower floor was sloped properly for the shower, but the whole room was waterproofed and the whole floor of the sauna and shower has a tile shower base.”
Barnhart says to keep in mind that some sauna heaters aren’t specified for shower use and that installing one in a shower area could void such a unit’s warranty.
New to home remodeling? Learn the basics
Barnhart says to keep in mind that some sauna heaters aren’t specified for shower use and that installing one in a shower area could void such a unit’s warranty.
New to home remodeling? Learn the basics
The sauna has a built-in L-shaped cedar bench, with an additional bench above. “The wife grew up with a sauna in her home, and it was always a dream to have one,” Barnhart says. “They both work at home and their kids are home-schooled, so they’re home a lot and use it frequently and feel it was worth the investment.”
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Bathroom at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple with 10-year-old twins
Location: Lakeville, Minnesota
Size: 93 square feet (8.6 square meters)
Design-build team: Steve McDonald and Angela Barnhart of White Birch Design
In the updated bathroom, a bump-out into an adjoining bedroom created space for the new shower and sauna area, partially seen through the open textured glass door. In the main area, a poplar vanity stained black and tongue-and-groove cedar-clad wall coordinate with materials and colors found in the shower and sauna. “The cedar keeps the bathroom warm and inviting and gives it a natural finish instead of something hard and cold,” Barnhart says.
The flooring is easy-to-maintain wood-look vinyl. “They have two kids and dogs and wanted something durable down there,” Barnhart says. “It also keeps that natural, earthy vibe we have going in the space.”
An open shelf on the bottom section of the vanity offers storage for spare towels and other bathroom essentials. A shelf on the right wall offers more storage and display space and has hooks for towels and robes. A stained wood mirror frame matches the vanity and shelf.
A three-light fixture over the mirror has clear glass conical shades and a warm brass finish that complements the vanity pulls. “That’s the only light in the bathroom’s main area,” Barnhart says. “We added color-changing LED lights inside the sauna and shower.”
Vanity light: Lakewood, Savoy House; toilet: Cadet 3, American Standard; wall paint: Agreeable Gray, Sherwin-Williams
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