It’s all in the details

I’m currently renovating my own bathroom. It’s rare these days to be doing something for myself rather than in another person’s house. In fact, this is a first. As a well-known long time renter, I’ve actually never fully ripped out a whole room and started from scratch and it’s thrilling. The absolute best.

The designs have been in my mind and on CAD/sketches for several months now, but a recent leak prompted a VERY swift decision to just do it. I’d always had a very strong sense that I want areas of my home to take me to another place, or make me feel something that I’ve felt on my travels. The hallway, for instance with its Le Nozze Stone from Pickelson, walls and reclaimed Spanish tiled floor from Bert & May, immediately transports me to anther place – an old medieval town in Italy or Spain.

For this family bathroom, I have had a very strong sense of a Moroccan Portuguese blend. By bringing in hand painted tiles, calm colours with a pop of pattern and moroccan Tadelkat plaster, I’m hoping to achieve just this. The tile search was long and intense. This was mainly because what I actually wanted was way above my budget and timeline, (always). However I miraculously found an almost identical hand painted version at Fired Earth, and the shower of my visual dreams was created.

I’ve opted for brushed brass fixtures and fittings, which inevitably adds lead time and cost, but I figured if I save on the bath, flooring and shower tray, it all balances out. This is a key trick to successful design and decorating, always mix high and low end. Mix styles too if you like, I think it adds a sense of personality to a space.

Now for the details. It’s been known that that I’ve had many a contractor raise an eyebrow at my ideas when it comes to the details. I like things done a certain way, which may been seen as ‘rule breaking’ by some older, more traditional fitters. Many fitters in the UK stick to the standard rules of tile trim everywhere, with silicone in every damn corner. (Yes, I appreciate silicone serves a purpose on an install, but let’s keep in to a minimum people). Not me. I recently read a really interesting article on Cle tiles, around the use of tile trim and its myths. It made me jump for joy! Have a read if you fancy finding out, like me, that you don’t HAVE to use it. Same goes with no wooden floors in bathrooms?! Boats are made of wood! As long as the correct waterproofing and sealing has taken place, I say go for it. Don’t even get me started on splashbacks, or the fact you can’t have wallpaper in bathrooms. You can. Do it all!

I’ve found in the last few years since becoming more accustomed to my UK contractors that “you can’t do that it really won’t work” is actually loosely translated as “that sounds hard, I’ve never done it before.. so I won’t start now”.

So in the name of not feeling like I’m asking too much, and the fact I get really hung up on details and transitions in bathrooms, I’ve decided to teach myself to do the Tadelakt plaster finish. For those of you that may not know, a transition is where one finish ends and another starts. They are my continual obsession.

More soon…..

Featured image : source unknown, Pinterest