Powder Room Project.......Countertop Conumdrum

What material do we want to use for our charming custom vanity? How do we decide what will set off our lovely orchid sink (see photo in previous post)? It is one thing to have an idea in my head but another to find what I am looking for. When your counter top is for a small area it is best to find a remnant of marble, granite, quartz or whatever kind of stone you like because these materials usually come in large slabs. If you want to use corian or another surface that is manufactured to size then it does not matter.

For this project we wanted something beautiful, a natural stone product and something that would not only compliment our scheme but also cost efficient. We need a remnant. So how do we find that? First call our fabricator. This is the person who actually cuts the countertop, finishes the edges and installs it. Frequently they have usable pieces of larger slabs left over from other installations. He said there were several options that sounded like they might work for us so off I went.

He was right. He gave me samples of 4 slabs. I was looking for basically a pure white but that does not exist in granite....so what did I find? There was white quartz, white quartz with dots of green and beige, green granite, and, if you can believe it, fuchsia quartz! The fuchsia quartz was very close to the color of the orchids in our sink and flowers in our wallpaper. That color on the countertop would make a powerful statement for sure. The white quartz had a yellow cast and that would not work, the green granite was a bit muted while the other colors in our palette are more vibrant so that did not work. Hmmmm

As luck would have it I got an email from another supplier about a new product and a follow up phone call. During this call I asked about remnants. Yes, they did have a few and they would email me photos. There were good possibilities. Hopeful, I drove to their showroom and there I spotted a display with a fabulous granite that I had seen in the photo. It looks like stones cut in half. It is mostly whites but also has a bit of gray and a bit of golden brown. How pretty it looks with the wallpaper and faucet! After showing all the samples to our client this last one was it!

When the vanity base is installed the fabricator will measure or make a template for the top. He will fabricate the top and backsplash and finish the exposed edges in the style we select. Some styles are standard and others are an upgrade....which is code for ...more expensive. So when planning for countertops there is alot to take into consideration. Future posts will have more tips and info on granite/marble selecting.

Cabana Bath.....Asian garden inspired

Inspired by a bowl of goldfish? This delightful cabana bath was a collaboration between myself and my client. In this project we found the wallpaper first. Since the bathroom leads out to the pool we wanted a it to have a touch of whimsy but also sophistication. This is also a guest bathroom so it must be totally functional as well as beautiful.

The first thing that draws your attention is the fabulous coral paper. If you look carefully you will see glass jars with goldfish. We were debating between this paper and another but when we walked into a showroom and spied the glass goldfish vessel sink....we were charmed.

The custom vanity has a simple Asian design. We removed a corner linen closet and had a linen cabinet made to compliment the vanity. A white corian top is lovely and practical too.

When you use vessel sinks there are a few things to keep in mind. Your vanity top needs to be a bit lower and the faucet a bit taller or as we have done....wall mounted. When we found the river rock tile we new it would be a terrific back splash. By wall mounting the faucet it seems like the water is flowing out of the rocks. The floor tile was another great find. The 24 x24 tiles look like grass cloth and we installed them like in an alternating basket weave pattern....like a grass mat. Fun! Speaking of grass cloth, look at the ceiling. Yes, it is grass cloth but a printed grass cloth rather than real woven grass in a vibrant green. Don't forget the ceilings, even in bathrooms.

The tile in the shower is another Asian inspired touch. We found narrow rectangular white tiles, stacked them to look like a shojii screen and accented the walls with green glass tile bordered by a wonderful tile that resembled bamboo. To complete the feel we used the river rock on the shower floor, which we found out when the guests were showering, feels like a foot massage!

One of our goals was to make the shower bigger, so we took down the wall next to the vanity and built a new "knee" wall a few inches further out. This made the shower door larger and with the wall down it opened up the shower tremendously. Our plumber moved the plumbing to the adjacent wall. It was also cost efficient to use an all inclusive shower panel that opens to reveal body sprays! More fun.

Since the back splash was high, we needed mirrors that tilted down. We discovered these, after scouring the Internet, at a local store and took them home with us. The pendant lights resembling coolie hats, the simple hardware and bamboo towel ring and accessories added more detail to enhance our Asian garden theme. My client found a wonderful table/bench to place in front of the white wainscoting that we designed to balance the large vanity. It is so pretty when guests walk in to the room and look right out to the pool through the French door.

Yes it was alot of work and quite a messy job. Don't let anyone tell you that renovation is all laughs. However it does help to keep a sense of humor, too. It was fun to work so closely with my client. We were always on the same creative page resulting in a delightful, beautiful and, if I do say so myself, stunning cabana bath, or as my client would say, "ab fab" (absolutely fabulous)!

What kind of fun have you had renovating or redesigning a guest bath?

Powder Room Project.....The perfect papers

Wallpaper can set the design theme and color scheme. It is a great design element to use on walls, ceilings and in other creative ways. Do you like to use wallpaper when you decorate?...or for your clients' projects?

We decorators are relentless sometimes or should I say obsessed? Not being satisfied with the wallpapers we found at first, I went to a local showroom that carries many lines. There were several great options. We chose this whimsical but sophisticated botanical that has a nod towards tropical. There are orchids somewhere in there.

The brown background gives it alot of drama. The whites will tie in with the sink and toilet. The beiges will work with the marble floor. The fuscia will blend with the color of the orchids on the sink. This is exciting.

Even in this small room I don't want to ignor the ceiling. We picked a little green fretwork design. Since it is on a white back ground it will not lower the ceiling which is important in this room since the ceiling height is only 7 feet.

The original "bamboo" faucet set will work perfectly except for the chrome finish we saw when we first discovered it. So back to the showroom we go to see what other finishes it comes it.

I suggested we design a vanity in a Chippendale or Chinese Chippendale style. Our client loved the idea. So now I have to figure out how to accomplish this. There is also a closet in this room with large bifold doors and we will tie in the Chippendale look on the doors as well.

There is so much to do and decisions to make. Let's see, lighting, mirror, hardware, countertop, towel bar, accessories. When working with a client all this has to be approved and priced. We bettter get back to work.

I would love to hear from anyone who is doing or has done a project like this. Stay tuned.

Powder room.......change of plans

Ok, this is how things can change. After searching for wallpaper that had the perfect raspberry/fucia color that would compliment the orchid sink, we seemed to only find papers that had creamy or beige backgrounds. This created a situation. Our beloved sink only comes in white. So now we either have to find other papers or, perish the thought, abandon the orchid sink and perfect bamboo inspired faucet set. We are not exactly back to square one but I believe if we decide on one of the wallpapers we found , then we will need to select another sink and faucet.

Alas, this is the way it goes sometimes. Rest assured the powder room is still going to be sensational!

Redesigning a powder room .....wallpaper

With photos of the orchid sink and bamboo faucet/spout set in hand, Ellie and I set off for DCOTA. That is our local design center. It is 3 buildings of 4 floors each full of design showrooms. National and international manufacturers of every imaginable home furnishing are shown there. Fabrics, furniture, lighting, flooring, accessories and more. One showroom is more incredible than the next. It can be overwhelming. For sure it is exhausting. We wear "sensible" shoes and bring rolling carriers for our samples and files. Yes it is fun but it is still work. Designers spend countless hours going from showroom to showroom....we know what we are embarking on....we need to eat a hardy breakfast....and at least some strong coffee to keep us up to speed. So off we go.

Ellie and I split up to cover more territory. We confer by cell phone and meet up here and there to see what each other has found. The showroom I assume is going to have the best selection proves almost fruitless. I am disappointed. What happens to me sometimes is that I have an idea of what I think will be the perfect thing ( in this case wallpaper) but find it is elusive. Does it exist somewhere? I will search till I find it or change my mind. But I do not give up easily.

However, what I have learned is to keep an open mind because sometimes I discover something that is even better than my original idea.

What we did discover is that fuscia is a hard color to find in wallpaper. Of course we can custom but usually that requires a larger minimum than what we will need. However one showroom carried a line that did have some papers with fuscia. What I was looking for was neither too repitious of the orchid pattern or too busy which would take away from the sink. I had in mind a "silk" or grasscloth background with perhaps a design printed on top....or a scenic pattern or a different type of trellis pattern or butterflies, lotus leaves, bamboo, ....I think you get the picture. Since the sink style we like only comes in white we also need the paper to have white....not off white. We liked the idea of polished chrome with the sink as well, so that will influence the paper too. Did we find it? We found quite a few but we are not finished with our research yet.

When the paper is decided upon I will design the vanity accordingly. I have an idea already about what the hardware might be too. We will need to select a toilet, towel bars, a mirror, lighting and accessories. The floor will be a continuation of the marble floors we are installing in the main areas of the home so that will keep it simple. Keep it simple? Is that possible? There is so much to think about, even in a powder room!

I interested to know what any of my readers have done in their own or their client's powder rooms. What did you use as inspiration? Did you go for the drama or keep it understated? Did you dress it up? Did you make it fun or whimsical? Did it have a theme? It would be great if you would post a comment . I would love to hear from you!

Redesigning a powder room

Inspirations are everywhere. Have you ever seen something and thought, I would love to design a room around this?

Here is what I call a waterfall faucet. It looks like an interpretation of a piece of bamboo sliced to allow water to cascade into a bowl.
In this case a bowl of orchids.



I have embarked on a new project....0r should I say we, because I am partnering on this job with another design firm. Ellie and I have done many projects together. Design jobs frequently require more brainpower and manhours than one person can offer. She is extremely experienced in managing projects both large and small. Hooray for Ellie!

Our new endeavor is a powder room redesign. We will be gutting it and starting over. We need inspiration. We work closely with our clients so we all went on our first scouting trip together to see what would create a spark that would give us direction. There are so many choices. The first thing is to limit those choices by making a few decisions. Sometimes when that first design decision is made the rest falls into place.....sometimes it is not so easy.

Our client had remembered seeing a handpainted sink last year when we were working on another bathroom with her. Since handpainted sinks are more limited than wallpaper we decided to start with the sink and see how that would influence the rest of the room. To our amazment we found the sink in person at the 3rd showroom we visited (Although we had seen it in a catalogue it is even better to see it in person, if possible.) It is what I would call simple elegance. The design is a single stem of orchids in a fabulous fuscia color.

My mind was going in a few directions.....we could create a spa-like feel, an Asian inspired design or even a tropical garden motif. We could get dramatic with a burst of color on the walls or we could keep it light and airy, clean and simple. This is going to be fun. Powderooms are like foyers. They are a place you can do something dramatic. Because you spend little time there, they are not rooms you will get tired of easily.

I visioned a faucet with a spout like a waterfall....but not too contemporary....and the salesperson at the showroom guided us to the perfect one. It is shaped like bamboo. The spout looks like a stalk of bamboo that is cut on an angle that allows the water to cascade into the sink. It comes in lots of finishes too. I can't believe we are so lucky to find this so early in our research.

Now my vision is coming into focus. As I share this with Ellie and our client we talk about the possibilities and agree this could be the direction we want to go. Next stop.......wallpaper.

A Day in a Life of a Designer

Sometimes I think there is some mystique about what designers do so I thought I would share what my typical day might involve.

It began with sketching some design revisions for a custom vanity and faxing it to my client for her consideration. Then I faxed a proposal for furniture to another client for her approval. Next off I went to meet another client and my partner for our first scouting trip. Our new project is a powder room, marble floors and more. (Follow this project in future blog.)

We went to several showrooms and amazingly we found our inspiration. We were off to a great start.

After coffee and lunch at Dunkin Donuts...we ate in the car (this is a typical designer working lunch)....we frequently do not have time to for a leisurely meal.....too much to do and too little time. We stopped at the marble vendor and found several options....loaded them into my car...who needs a work out? We made our way to a wonderful new plumbing showroom and found just the perfect thing. It was almost like we were on HGTV. We were so lucky.

After dropping off my client and partner I returned to the office. I re-faxed the sketches and a floorplan. Made some phone calls and then went to a client's office to pick up a check to take to a showroom to place an order and schedule delivery. Of course there is always something.....my motto. One item the client wanted was on the floor at the showroom so I loaded it into my car to deliver it myself. SUV's do come in handy.

This was really a typical day. Designers run run run. We consult, discuss, research, shop, pick up, deliver, fax and phone. Sometimes we live in our cars. But we also create. We get to work with incredible fabrics, materials, furnishings and more. At the end of the day I am exhausted but very happy to be doing what I am doing and very grateful for the clients who hire me.