ARLINGTON HEIGHTS BATHROOM REMODEL
PROJECT TYPE:
BATHROOM REMODEL
DESIGNER:
CHRISTINA CATALANO
LOCATION:
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILLINOIS
PROJECT TYPE:
BATHROOM REMODEL
DESIGNER:
CHRISTINA CATALANO
LOCATION:
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILLINOIS
BATHROOM REMODEL OVERVIEW
Our clients had purchased their Arlington Heights new construction home five years before undergoing their Master Bathroom remodel. Unfortunately the plumbing for their tub was installed incorrectly and they were experiencing a leak, which prompted their exploration of remodeling. They considered remodeling the entire bathroom to their taste, as they were lacking storage and Kate was hoping for a seated vanity area.
However after much consideration, they opted to salvage some of the areas of the bathroom to keep costs down. There were features of the bathroom that were of less desire, such as the drop in tub and closed in shower, which were needing a gut due to the plumbing issues, so that is what we focused on. Their existing vanity and flooring they opted to keep, but added decorative lighting, mirrors and accessories to dress it up.
BATHROOM DESIGN OBJECTIVES
USABILITY
Fix plumbing issues and repair properly so they did not have to worry about it leaking again. Update the builder grade materials including mirrors and lights.
FIT FOR PURPOSE
Enlarge the shower, add more light and space with a bench seat.
VISUAL APPEAL
Create an elegant and timeless bathroom. Add materials that would look cohesive and blend in nicely with their existing floor tile, vanity and countertop.
BEFORE THE BATHROOM REMODEL
Our clients purchased a newly built home, but unfortunately had plumbing issues. Their kitchen is below their Master Bath and the ceiling in the kitchen was dripping water when the tub was being used. The drop in tub was of less desire, and the shower felt dark and closed in.
Their shower glass was also not sealed properly and it was leaking water onto their trim work. They had a white vanity with beautiful quartzite countertops which they decided to keep. The porcelain tile was a nice neutral greige color and we were able to work with it in order to save costs in having to completely gut their bathroom.
BATHROOM DESIGN CONCEPT
We wanted to upgrade their builder grade bathroom with more elegant touches. We removed the drop in tub and replaced it with a beautiful free standing tub with a floor mounted tub filler. We enlarged the shower as much as possible while still keeping the tub on center with the window and being cautious to not crowd the tub. Dropping the half wall in the shower really opened up the space and added much needed light into the shower. We then had enough space to add a bench seat, while keeping adequate floor space in the shower. Their double thick wall allowed us to add an oversized niche which also doubled as a feature wall in their shower.
We selected a beautiful and timeless Calacatta Gold Marble Mosaic to sit inside the niche/feature wall. We paired it with a zellige ceramic tile that has soft cream and grey tones that picked up the calacatta colors and pulled in the existing floor tile. We decided to run this vertically to blend in nicely with the mosaic pattern that also had more of a vertical/waterfall effect. Since we were keeping the floor tile and the vanity in their existing bathroom, we needed to find materials that would blend well with what they already had. Because we removed the drop in tub and installed a free standing tub, we needed to add tile underneath where there was non.
We did find the same material that was used in their existing bathroom floor that we could have installed under the tub, but there were a couple of reasons why we decided to do something different. The dye lot of the tile was slightly off and it also didn’t do much to create a more elegant space which we were trying to achieve. We decided to create a rug detail under the new free standing tub. These two marble mosaic tiles were blended together to create a custom pattern. It gave the space that little extra special touch. The vanity area just needed a little sprucing by adding tile up the wall and replacing the basic mirrors and lights.
DURING THE BATHROOM REMODEL
Here you can see the rough plumbing has been completed and the walls closed and sealed. The wall tile has been installed at the shower and vanity wall. At this stage we are waiting for the custom shower door to arrive.
MATERIALS IN THIS BATHROOM DESIGN
We reused the existing vanity
White Macubas Quartzite
Existing tile remained in place with the exception of the tile rug under the tub:
Anthology Tile – Hive and Dominos in Manor Grey
Bedrosians Cle Zellige Ceramic tile – White
Calacatta Gold Waterjet tile
Kohler Artifacts in Chrome