Subway Tiles @ Soho Grand Hotel

Posted on | February 22, 2010 | 13 Comments

I notice the funniest things since I started renovating a house. In our bathroom at the Soho Grand Hotel I was fascinated by the subway tile design. If you look closely the second tile from the top is not a standard rectangle. It’s square, interesting. I couldn’t find a reason why they did this other then to break up the line.

The hotel bathroom was simple but classic. A pretty pedestal sink with a gooseneck faucet and a stone hex floor. The floor tiles were cream, taupey brown/gray, and gray grout. Kinda funky and different. Look closely at the floor photo below. It may look out of focus on the edges but actually the floor really looked like this. It would change color as you looked at it in the distance. The sketch wallpaper keeps the space from feeling too traditional and adds a modern twist.

Below the view from our hotel room. How great is New York?

Soho Grand Hotel
310 West Broadway
New York, New York
sohogrand.com

update: The wallpaper featured in the bathroom is by New Yorker cartoonist Saul Steinberg. The paper can be purchased through Schumacher.

Picture 8 Subway Tiles @ Soho Grand Hotel

4378816857 d594d85025 Subway Tiles @ Soho Grand Hotel

view from soho grand Subway Tiles @ Soho Grand Hotel

Category: New York, bathrooms, tile, wallpaper

Claw Foot Tub with Shelves Around

Posted on | January 14, 2010 | 23 Comments

We have three bathrooms in our house that are the same basic shape that need to gutted and renovated. On the second floor I would love to put in a claw foot tub. I found this inspiration a few months ago over at Eddie Ross. One of the disadvantages of a claw foot tub is the lack of storage for toiletries. Check out the shelves and bench that surround the tub above. Kinda interesting idea? I think you could achieve the look in a number of different ways. I do like that the shelves are painted the same color as the beadboard. Have you found a solution for this common storage problem?

Category: bathrooms

English Bohemian Bathroom

Posted on | January 6, 2010 | 14 Comments

I am busy organizing my office to turn into a studio this morning. I’m trying to find a way to organize my piles of inspiration I have pulled from magazines over the years. This is my all time favorite bathroom. I loved it when it appeared in domino in 2007 and I still love it today. It’s totally my style. Effortless old school charm: clean, pure, and bright. I love the mirrored armoire, the built in cabinets, the marbled tops sinks, and the beautiful scented geranium on the counter. A list of sources that appeared on page below. Fyi the products listed below were available in 2007.

Sconces: (similar to shown) “Haines” Restoration Hardware
Mirrors: (similar to shown) “Bistro Oval” Restoration Hardware
Double Washstand: (similar to shown) “Gramercy” Restoration Hardware
Faucets: (similar to shown) “IV Georges Brass” Kohler
Toilet: “Promenade” Toto
Wastebasket: Darr (718) 797-9733

Category: bathrooms

Utility Sink In Bathroom

Posted on | January 4, 2010 | 10 Comments

country living bathroom with utility sink

I was cleaning out my office over the weekend and came across this bathroom from Country Living February 2009. I’ve spotted utility sinks in more modern bathrooms renovations but pairing the sink with wainscoting gives the space a more farmhouse appeal. Maybe this would work for a bathroom off my dream kitchen?

Category: bathrooms

Rustic Farm Table For Bathroom

Posted on | December 29, 2009 | 20 Comments

Our bathroom renovation is a bit stalled for the moment. I’ll share in another post. I’ve been thinking my ideas for the bathroom have been a little too clean. My house is pretty rustic but I want to find a balance between hard core country and modern. When I say “modern” I mean early 1900’s. The funny thing is I don’t think my house even had indoor plumbing till the early 1900’s. So what is really correct? Sometimes I feel like nothing makes sense nor does it really matter.

Anyway, what I wanted to talk about was rustic tables for the bathroom. I remember finding the below table on Absolutely Beautiful Things about two years ago. Then the other day I came across the above photo and was immediately reminded of Anna’s bathroom. How’s that for photographic memory? Unfortunately, my skill only works on pretty interiors. The above photo has the sink mounted on top and below the sinks are mounted inside. I kinda like the look.

Rustic Table and Subway Tiles in Bathroom

Category: bathrooms

Bathroom With Seperate Rooms

Posted on | December 1, 2009 | 9 Comments

A few weeks ago I shared one my favorite bathrooms designed by Molly Frey Designs. I got such great feedback I thought it would be fun to share one more. I love the shower stall in this bathroom. I dream of having a seat in a shower. How amazing would it be to sit and shave your legs in a light filled shower? Below Molly’s story of her bathroom renovation.

I am a big fan of separate rooms for separate functions in a bathroom—especially master bathrooms where two people are likely to be using the space at the same time.

Originally, you walked into the master bedroom through a long hallway, passing the master bath on the right. I designed an addition for the house, creating a new room to the left of the hallway. Rather than keep the entire bathroom in the original room to the right, we put the vanity sinks in the addition side next to the new dressing room. In the hallway, we added two built-in dressers and two interior windows that open to the vanity room to keep a light and airy feeling.

The original bathroom now houses the water closet in it’s own room, a large shower stall and two built- in storage cabinets. We also added a “scupper” skylight to add light to the shower (these are really paned windows that are made into skylights and look very traditional – this is the only way the historic district will allow you to add a skylight in an historic home.

Photos by Michael Partenio

Category: bathrooms

Old Town Bathroom Renovation

Posted on | November 16, 2009 | 3 Comments

I’ve been getting terrific e-mails from other old home owners wanting to share their renovation projects. This bathroom renovation comes to us from Molly Frey Design in Marblehead, Massachusetts. Molly is an incredible designer; be sure to check out her design portfolio for more inspiring renovations. Her kitchens and bathrooms are to die for: mollyfreydesign.com. Below Molly’s story of her bathroom renovation.

This is from the master bathroom of a house we lived in Marblehead. The project was completed a couple of years ago and was featured in Renovation Style in March 2007. We no longer live in the house – we sold it about a year and half ago and moved to another fixer down the street. My husband and I are serial remodelers, this is our 3rd house in 8 years.

The bathroom has a nice big shower with a window in it that gets tons of sunlight, the shower walls are done in a traditional subway tile. The shower is so big that there is no need for a shower door, just a glass partition that separates the shower from the vanities.

Because the bathroom is wide open to the master bedroom – separated by an old barn sliding door that we found at the White Elephant in Essex – we wanted the vanity to look less utilitarian and a more like furniture. I found the wooden table at Antiques on Nine in Kennebunk, Maine. We set two vessel sinks with deck-mounted bridge faucets behind. The mirrors above the sinks are extra deep medicine cabinets that fit tons of stuff – there is even an outlet in there so my hairdryer stayed on the shelf behind the mirror, plugged in and ready to use. To the left of the vanity is a separate room for the water closet.

Thanks Molly, for sharing for your bathroom renovation. You’ve totally inspired me and given some great tips. If you have an old house renovation you would like to share send me an e-mail: elliott.katy@gmail.com.