MC Modern Family Bath

ONLINE DESIGN: A dated 60’s bathroom getS reimagined

We recently completed this modern bathroom design through our TheDesignShop online services which was part of a whole home redesign for a young family of four who’ll soon be returning to their home in Canada after an extended period living abroad. Their Toronto house is an original mid-century modern split-level bungalow which inspired the direction of the renovation to take on a mid century modern-scandi aesthetic.

Room Design and Render by Carol Reed | TheDesignShop.ca

The new bathroom design worked within the existing footprint of the small space plus extended into closet space from the adjoining entryway half a level below - including relocating that closet to make this work. With this newly claimed space we completely reconfigured the bathroom layout while working with its existing window location. The added and improved features of the new bathroom include double sinks, spacious walk-in shower plus increased storage and counter space.

The key design elements utilized to maximize the floor space included:

• floating shallow depth vanity with drawers

• recessed mirror medicine cabinet

• in-wall tank toilet

• sliding glass shower door

• single lever sink faucets with small scale sinks

• wall-mounted adjustable LED make-up mirror

Room Design and Render by Carol Reed | TheDesigShop.ca

The new materials and colours are light and natural. We paired blonde wood with textured white artisan tile and stacked watery green-blue shower tiles accented with warm brass metal. The contrasting shower wall tile emphasizes the rooms tall sloped ceiling and is reminiscent of the watery coastal colours of Australia that the family love so much.

Learn more about our ONLINE Bathroom Design Packages

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Sweet Dreams: Sourcing Affordable & Quality Bedding

My Go to sourcEs for bedding

There are occassions when I’m designing a bedroom that I’m not just tasked with selecting the bed frame or headboard but everything else needed to make it sleep ready - from the box spring to pillow protectors, including washing, drying and ironing for that first sleep. Outfitting and dressing a bed for multiple bedrooms at once is daunting when you consider all the components needed alongside the varied choices and price points. Usually if I’m hired to take this on its when everything is needed new from scratch, whether its for a seasonal second home or for a newly designed guest bedroom or primary suite.

What makes the shopping process complex for bed sheets and covers is that when a bed is dressed, often a high priced sheet set might not look any different than a low priced one. Trying to understand what makes for the difference in price can be confusing. The key features of the manufacturer’s quality are the material content and construction (is it cotton, linen, microfibre?) but the perceived quality to the user is in the feel, weight and longevity. This is when price and quality can become disconnected or random because personal preference and level of use can really skew the perceived value/quality of bedding. A 250 thread count cotton percale sheet can be more breathable than a 1200 thread count Egyptian cotton sateen one, thus more comfortable if you sleep hot. Some prefer the smooth crisp feel of percale versus the silkiness of sateen. Excluding the most high end labels, which I’ve never slept in, in my own experience the price of the bedding hasn’t been indicative to how soft or comfortable they are to me, I’ve splurged for $700+ plain white sheets, but my favourites to sleep on (and also some of my longest lasting) were less than $70.

MY GO TO SOURCES

When I lived and worked in Toronto my go to sources for bedding were Aut Lit Fine Linens, Elte and Restoration Hardware, where I often shopped in person. West Elm was also a fave and Pottery Barn bedding is great too - always a client fave. All these options require a significant spend as I wouldn’t categorize their bedding as super inexpensive or for small budgets. Bedding is much more widely available now than ever before with vast and growing online sources. When the priority is for simple comfort and essential white or neutral pieces rather than decadent high investment level bedding (most people are usually not investing at this level, including myself) there ARE affordable and quality options that can create a luxuriously comfortable sleep and beautiful looking bed.

Since living in rural Nova Scotia my options for shopping for bedding in person are limited and my criteria for bedding has also significantly changed. To me few things are worth the over 4 hour return drive into Halifax shops if the same options or better are online with quick delivery to my door. Additionally living on a rural property with well water, our water contains high iron content which even with filters, discolours our bedding leaving a visible orange/yellow tinge on fabrics. I typically have to pre soak bedding in bleach or rust-out to keep them white, but this quickly deteriorates the fibres causing the fabric to breakdown and tear. I won’t even get started on sunscreen that contains avobenzon - even when not visible, if washed untreated it will leave permanent orange stains on bedding, towels and clothing.

I’ve shed tears at the sight of permanently discoloured $700 sheets, and seeing large holes appear in my softest, favourite duvet cover, deteriorated by harsh laundering. It was shocking to witness expensive Belgian linen bedding turn from lovely fog grey to banana yellow in a split second because I mistakenly used some ‘Rust Out’ in the water (never do this with coloured fabrics!!!). Locally my only option when I need bedding in a pinch is Walmart, Superstore or Winners, where I simply look for 100% cotton in a light neutral colour or classic print. Who needs bedding in a pinch you might wonder? We’ve had our share of bedding emergencies (caused from laundry disasters) occurring just before house guests were scheduled to arrive!

Because I also love to touch and feel first, my in person go to sources for bedding in Nova Scotia for my home and clients has been Home Sense, The Bay, Ikea, and inevitably Walmart. At The Bay I’ve really liked Gluckstein Home and House & Home selections. At home Sense I love the Ralph Lauren bedding the most. And although I’ve bought many duvets at Bed Bath & Beyond I find shopping for sheets there just too overwhelming - so many brands having the same description but with wide varying prices. One of the softest sheets i’ve used was from there but I now have no idea which ones they were.

MY PREFERENCES FOR BEDDING

My criteria is consistent, I prefer 100% cotton or linen only. I’m not a fan of bamboo or microfibre or cotton poly blends. I look for duvet covers with corner ties and zip closure or at least button closure. I like light neutral colours especially for duvets and shams, I find dark colours fade quickly from washing or if exposed to direct sunlight, and white is easiest to maintain with bleach or other whiteners. I love a stone washed cotton and stone washed linen also because I love a relaxed wrinkled looking duvet cover and shams - but I’ll always iron cotton pillow cases and top sheets (if I use a top sheet on guest beds). I prefer percale sheeting over sateen, percale is crisp and smooth like a button down shirt. Some sateens (not all) can look too shiny or feel too satiny to me however I do love the Ralph Lauren Dunham sheeting (Home Sense!) a long time personal favourite, which is a sateen but not shiny.

For colour & patterns I avoid busy and bold patterns for duvet covers (especially king size beds) and prefer them in solid light neutral colours, or a classic stripe or check pattern. For sheets I love small and mini prints or accent colours that contrast and compliment the duvet cover. For added detail I LOVE a frayed edge, or a french flange on pillows, a hemstitch detail, and also a classic embroidered stripe or contrasting border/flange detail. For texture, duvets or shams with a pintuck, pleating or sheer sucker stitching can add interesting texture to solid colours. You can’t expect to find these details on lower priced bedding but when you do its really a special find. If you want to add a strong colour, bold pattern or woven textiles I recommend doing this by adding a blanket or quilt layered on top of your duvet, rather than the duvet cover itself.

My linen closet is now quite a mixed collection of high and low bedding. The ‘high’ pieces have been taken out of circulation for day to day use because our harsh laundering will deteriorate them. Once again I’m need of a new duvet cover and willing to explore the online options so I recently took a deep dive to search out the best inexpensive options online. Below is a round-up of the best options I found, and which I’ll continue to add to. I ordered several of these pieces, I’ll be back with an update on which ones I selected, and how I’m liking them. Stay tuned.

CURRENT FAVOURITE ONLINE BEDDING FINDS

You can find a round-up of my current favourite finds on Amazon for sheets here and Duvet covers here. BELOW is a preview of those plus some finds from non-Amazon sources which I’ve saved on my ShopMy page, just scroll through to view and select for more info. I’ve categorized them as under $100, but most are under $75 for King size.

favourite FINDS: SHEETS Under $100

Favourite FINDS: duvet covers Under $100

Our ShopMy page is a new resource I’m using to save, organize and share my favourite go-to products and new finds, in the same way I do on our Amazon store front - but ShopMy lets us do this with items from any source on the internet, and also including Amazon. What I love about this tool is its an open platform, meaning publishers (me) can share links to any website whether those sources linked participate as an affiliate merchant or not. The platform is pubic and free to use, no app or registration is required. Going forward we’ll primarily be sharing these product links on our The Design Shop website, organized in categories to compliment the related virtual design packages.

When it comes to bedding essentials I’m always on the hunt for affordable options but also looking for ways to make the purchasing process less time consuming and more informed. I dived into this search for my own needs and saved it all for future reference, but hope anyone who’s shopping for bedding will find this info helpful and time saving too.

This post contains affiliate links to products I know and/or love, or, are simply inspiring me to want to try them.

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MODERN ENSUITE DESIGN FOR A SEASIDE NEW BUILD

Over the past 6 months we’ve been working on the interior finishes and details for a new seasonal home on the Sourth Shore near Hubbards, Nova Scotia. With the Architect’s floor plan already developed we began by reviewing the potential of some pending changes due to the deletion of a staircase and basement level including the layout of the home’s two bathrooms. The entire floor plan with the exception of the inner block of rooms (utility room, Linen Closet and bathrooms) would remain as planned and we proceeded with developing all of the finishing details and material selections.

PARTIAL FLOOR PLAN - BEFORE & AFTER

The initial floor plan had a jack and jill style set up for the ensuite and guest bathroom, with shared use of a shower. After deleting a staircase there was more potential for two full separate bathrooms but further tweeking was needed for a larger utility room and closets. Additionally a small den situated outside the Primary Bedroom provided bonus space but needed to deliver more function. Scroll below to see the After & Before plans.

Ensuite Floor Plan - After

Ensuite Floor Plan - Before

Our proposed changes included adding a recessed built-in desk, a wall to wall double walk-in closet in the Primary bedroom, larger utility room and shifting a linen closet which resulted in two separate 3pc bathrooms - with an oversize vanity in the ensuite and improved sight lines from the bedroom. All achieved by utilizing some pocket doors and stealing only a bit of space from the primary bedroom - but well worth it.

MATERIALS & DETAILS

The home’s architecture is contemporary, the concept for the interior details and finishing will be simple and minimal, with a nod to scandi style. Blond wood, white walls modern fixtures, punctuated with some colourful teal and blue accents.

The mood board below represents the materials and finishes envisioned for the Primary Ensuite, the final spec’s varied only slightly from this, with a darker, walnut wood tone for the vanity.

The materials feature a dramatic textured deep blue tile, stacked horizontally, this feature tile will clad the entire vanity wall and tub/shower wall, contrasted with matte white plank tiles and painted shiplap walls with brass accents for a crisp nautical inspired palette.

Ensuite Vaniy Elevation } Room Design by Carol Reed Interior Design Inc.

The layout of the bathroom incorporates an oversize floating single wood vanity with wall mounted faucet and an alcove tub shower combo each highlighted with the dark blue tile.

View of Vanity from Shower | Room Design and Render by Carol Reed Interior Design Inc.

View of Tub/Shower | Rood Design and Render by Carol Reed Interior Design Inc.

Here’s a look at some preliminary 3D views we generated illustrating the materials and details in context. The design details include a tiled tub skirt as well as a recessed light cove and reeded glass pocket door to maximize the sense of daylight in the windowless room. The 3D renders are not exact replications of all products but assist in tweeking and finalizing details in true to life scale. For example, the tile pattern will be stacked not staggered and we’ve also selected a hinged glass screen option for the tub for easier access.

The builder broke ground on the project early this year and work on the interior build-out and finishing will be underway soon. We’re looking forward to seeing it progess over the coming months and sharing some peeks along the way.

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