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Privacy and intimacy go hand in hand in this space-efficient bathroom for two

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Sharing a bathroom with a partner is all part of the intimacy that makes being a couple worthwhile. However, sometimes it's nice to know whose towel is whose, and maybe have a sense of privacy when getting ready for the day.

This project addresses the issue of two people sharing a modest-sized bathroom, says the interior designer who created the space, Lee Bryan.

"While the room is the result of a merger of two existing adjacent bathrooms, a sense of personal space still had to be considered," he says. "Placing the two vanities back to back, for example, provided a degree of separation for the couple and made effective use of the floor space. Similarly, the shower stall is entered from two opposite sides, with each half of the stall having its own shower, body sprays and controls. Only a steam generator and the rainhead shower are shared utilities."

Storage space was also an important consideration for the bathroom and several of the room's wall panels and mirrors open out on touch latches to reveal hidden storage solutions. Grooves in the wall panels are partly for decoration and partly to disguise the presence of the cupboard fronts.

"One cabinet front has a two-way mirror coating, rendering a television housed in the cabinet visible only when it is turned on," says Bryan. "In fact, this home has a high-tech influence throughout and the bathroom is no exception. A keypad beside the door can control electrical devices throughout the home, meaning you can turn on the heat in the living room when you first step out of the shower."

Another contemporary feature of the bathroom is the slender column of water that falls from a spout in the ceiling to fill the tub.

"The pourer is designed to prevent the water becoming aerated as it falls this prevents splashing and achieves an eye-catching effect," he says.

In merging the two original bathrooms, the designer had to reroute air conditioning pipes that were concealed in the dividing wall. These had to be accommodated elsewhere in the room, so the shower is situated on a stepped-up pedestal, which provides space for the relocated pipes.

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The principal materials in the room are granite and wood. Bryan took care that the praline-toned veins in the granite chimed with the delicately grained lacewood surfaces.

"From the back-to-back vanities to the concealed storage and air conditioning elements, everything about this bathroom dovetails together for maximum efficiency," says Bryan.