Let there be light

A home can often be dated by the presence of oddly angled walls and ceilings. So a simple way to modernize may well be to remove these relics of a bygone era.

The master bathroom suite shown here was outdated, with angled walls, a vaulted ceiling and a trapezoid window high up above the bath. A separate toilet and shower room made it seem crowded.

Certified designer Becky Sue Becker says the owners wanted their ensuite bathroom to be a luxurious personal oasis that they could escape to.

"They requested warm, natural materials, better light, a larger shower and a more functional space," she says.

The first move was to drop the ceiling to a flat 9ft height.

"To overcome the loss of light from the trapezoid window, we added windows behind the tub and the vanity. These help to bring in more light and give a view of the woods outside the window," says Becker.

The flow was improved by removing the wall separating the toilet and shower from the rest of the space. Instead, a panel of Lumicor acrylic with prairie grass embedded in it and wrapped in a maple frame, provides partial privacy for the toilet. Lumicor was chosen because it obscures the view while still allowing light to flow through the space. The rearrangement also resulted in extra space for a larger shower enclosure.

Originally a set of his and her closets was accessed from the bathroom. These were combined to make a single large closet, and an angled closet wall was made straight. A second closet was positioned in an unused corner of the bedroom, and tall cabinetry for storage of linens and toiletries was built into the space created where the angled closet wall had been removed.

"The owners wanted the bathroom to have a feeling of Zen-like calm, and to bring the outdoors inside, so we have used organic materials as much as possible," says Becker.

Maple was chosen for the vanities and tall cabinetry, the mirror surrounds and framing around the toilet partition. The wood complements the warm, brown tones of the travertine slab countertops and travertine tiles in the shower, around the tub and on the floor.

Story by: Mary Webb