Grey Scale: Powder Room

Clients powder room in various stages of progress.

I was sorting through room photos of past projects and came across these images of a powder room from a recent renovation, the 70's Bungalow project.  It dawned on me that I hadn't ever posted any photos of this room before, probably because its just such a difficult room to capture without a wide angle lens.  Like the entire house this room underwent a complete gut so we started with a clean slate - dark grey slate in fact which I chose as a wall colour for the small room.  

Small rooms are the perfect spaces to play up drama and scale - whether its a large print wallpaper, deep paint colour or graphic floor pattern, going bold will have lots of impact and kick the wow factor up a notch for your guests when they excuse themselves to powder their noses. It makes the entire experience a little more special.  : )    The drama in this little room doesn't come from the colour, its neutral in that sense but the walls are deep and dark and quite a departure from the rest of the home's all white modern interior.  The large calacatta marble floor tiles have beautiful dramatic veining.   

A bevelled tray mirror adds some elegant sparkle to the dark room but the floor to ceiling bare grey wall was crying out for a piece of artwork and I wanted large scale.   What I had completely forgotten about until I came across these room photos the other day was that we had one of my own photographs framed and hung on the wall.   For this room it was an affordable alternative to what would have needed to be a very large  original piece (or a smaller pair) of art.  I sent my file to Elevator Digital and once again, Kevin worked his magic on it to make sure when it was enlarged that the image quality was maintained and then the print was beautifully matted and framed.

The photo chosen was from a series I took of buildings on Wall Street when I was in NYC two summers ago. The homeowners have both travelled to NY for business over the years and now have a son who lives in Manhattan, they're pretty fond of the city and were quite taken with many of my architectural photos.   Its hard to tell from this not so great snapshot but the size of the framed piece is over 3' wide and over 4' tall.  Its not actually a black and white image but the colours are all monochromatic greys that it reads that way.  My favorite thing about this photo is the perspective,  its so dynamic that it brings an amazing sense of depth to the room. 

There's been lots of finishing touches and a massive landscaping overhaul happening at this house over the past year so they'll be more after photos coming soon.

Room Design and all Photos By:  Carol Reed

70's Bungalow: Makes A Modern Impression

70's Bungalow with new front facade and door (new landscaping still to come!)

As you approach this door,,,,you can almost hear it say "Welcome! Let me introduce you to my stylish homeowners who will so graciously invite you into my warm modern interior......please come in...".   Its a far cry from what this front door used to say....

"Come in if you dare".  Front Door before.

When I began working on the 70's Bungalow project over a year ago I immediately saw such huge potential for the exterior.  What I disliked about the exterior of the house was its horrid fleshy peach coloured stucco (that's an understatement!) and its white vinyl slider windows. What I loved most about the exterior of this house were its lines, it had great long horizontal lines.  Everything about these lines screamed modern to me, they were just wanting to be heard.

To begin the transformation of the dated exterior the chunky traditional plaster mouldings were removed from around all the windows.  Next a new roof, and windows were installed.  Then new black aluminum windows were custom designed with an asymmetrical mullion detail. I had the front door and sidelite reversed (from the original positions) so the handle side of the front door wasn't up against the adjacent wall.  New lighting locations were roughed-in and finally a new dark grey stucco was applied to the entire exterior and the new eaves and soffits were fit into place.

  

The new look is monochromatic and distinctly contemporary.  I chose a black shingle for the roof and a dark warm grey not only for the facade of the house but for the eaves and the soffits too, I wanted these elements to blend in with the body of the house rather than be in contrast.  Not chosing white tones for the aluminum work created this monochromatic effect and emphasizes the expanse and volume of the house, not breaking it up with contrasting trim.   What I envisioned as the highlight of the exterior would be the front door.  All of this sophisticated grey and black was the perfect setting....

For a beautiful, solid, natural wood door.  The wood tones are a striking feature against the grey exterior and gives a strong presence to the entry.  Because the door location is a bit unconventional in that it doesn't face the street, (its positioned sideways/perpendicular to the street), it could easily disappear and become very nondistinct.  But I didn't want that - I like a house to have a definitive front entry that's distinguishable and also sets the tone for the interior beyond, even if its understated.  I talked the homeowners out of both a glass door and a painted door option.  I wanted to make sure this new door was in no way mistaken for a window or have the less important look of a side door.  Designing a new custom front door wasn't part of my original scope of work but as we discussed all the design details for the windows with the contractor the door design was created on the spot.  Oh how I love to hear the words "we can make anything you want, just tell us what you'd like".  So I did, and.....they did.  To finish it off on a truly collaborative note, the homeowners selected the new light fixture and mailbox. I approved.

After waiting months and months for the new door to be delivered - the homeowners and I unanimously declared it was worth the wait!  (the colours are a little off in the photo above).  Next year they'll begin the landscaping redesign which will include new stonework for the front entry area and a  new cladding treatment for the stone planters.  So please ignore all the landscaping (or lack of) in these photos as the grounds have remained unchanged to this date.   As for the interior, all construction work has finished up and we are currently working on all the window coverings and artwork.

Previous posts on this project:

Kitchen Design

Bathroom Designs

Progress 1

Progress 2

Progress 3

All Photos:  Carol Reed

70's Bungalow: Progress 3

Finishing details are taking place at the 70's Bungalow project.  It's truly my favorite part of the process seeing all the custom elements being perfectly fit into place and witnessing the entire house transform as fresh paint is applied and new millwork is installed.   Its the custom details and thoughtfully coordinated specifications that distinguish a well designed home from your average Developer's build or DIY renovation.  Only with hands-on involvement and the direct supervision of an Interior Designer is this quality of detail possible on a project.  Just having the plans or the ideas for specific design details is not enough,,,,,,communicating directly with the fabricators and installers throughout the process is critical in order for it to come together properly and effeciently.  With this interior nearing completion,  I've been on site almost daily giving instruction and direction as the finishing details are coordinated amongst several different trades and installers, if just one element is wrong its a domino effect of very expensive mistakes.    

A custom double sink, floating vanity with matched horizontal veneers was installed in the master ensuite.  The faucets will be wall mounted into a calaccatta slab backsplash which disappears up behind a custom floating full height mirror with sconces mounted on top of the mirror.  The desired effect is all about simple, clean modern lines but the amount of coordination required to get all these elements perfectly aligned and installed is anything but simple.  For this one vanity I had to meet with the rough carpenter, the plumber, the electrician, the cabinet maker, the cabinet installer, the marble supplier and the glazing contractor, each separately and on different visits.   The junction boxes for the sconces have been moved twice, the vanity re-installed once.  Finger's crossed the rest of it goes smoothly

Slabs of calaccatta were selected for the countertop and shower jambs to try and match the large calaccatta floor tiles.  This beautiful section of the slab was specifically chosen for the soap niche in she shower and you can see how perfectly the fabricator matched the veining, its like a piece of art.

We had the large floor tiles cut down to small 2" x 2" tiles for the shower floor so we would have consistency in the marble colouration and veining.  Freshly painted walls await towel bars and artwork...

The custom vanity in the guest bathroom awaits its new Caesarstone countertop and undermount sink.  The walls and trim are ready for paint.

The kitchen cabinetry with beautifully matched select veneers has been perfectly fit into place.  

Counter depth appliances with custom front panels create a truly integrated look.

Crisp white paint is applied in all the common areas and living spaces.

There's simply no other wall colour that I react stronger to than Cloud White, it takes my breath away every single time, every single house I see it in, its eatheral.  The newly painted interior was the turning point in the transformation, instantly the spaces looked fresh and modern and sophisticated all at the same time.

Invisible hinges and automatic light switches are meticulously routered into the front closet door jambs.

Flat cut walnut veneer gives a beautiful furniture quality to the closet doors, the wood grain is simply stunning I'm almost afraid to put handles on them...

The rest of the interior doors have been installed and painted and the pair of rolling doors are almost ready to go up (on the left).

This stainless steel rolling track hardware has been a mini project all on its own but the master trim carpenter has patiently figured it all out with a little help from me and a few espressos.

Non-custom cabinetry was installed in the laundry room, the new counter, stainless steel backsplash and sink will be installed next week.  (That's a blue protective film on top of the door fronts right now).  Although the cabinetry units themselves were ready-made, the installation details are fairly customized, I worked one on one with the installer to explain how every component was to be cut/installed.

The only other non-custom piece of cabinetry in the house is the Powder Room vanity, a freestanding unit with a furniture look. The walls have now been painted the sconces are up and the mirror is ready to be hung.  Almost ready for guests....

The exterior of the house is undergoing a dramatic transformation. In addition to a new roof, the old windows and chunky mouldings have been replaced with modern aluminum windows. The entire house has received a new smoother stucco finish in a deep warm grey (not as brown as it looks in this photo).

New soffits and eaves being installed and finally the temporary front door will soon be replaced with a gorgeous custom wood door - its arrival will signify the complete modern transformation of this dated facade.

Next week its all about the eye candy: marble counters, backsplashes, stylish faucets and stunning light fixtures.  I can hardly wait.... 

For previous posts about this project including the before pictures, design plans and sketches, check out the links below:

A New Project: 70's Bungalow 

70's Bungalow: Progress 1

70's Bungalow: Progress 2

70's Bungalow: Bathroom Designs

70's Bungalow: Kitchen Design

All Photos:  Carol Reed