For NKBA members Krista Shugars & Bethany Finn of Hanover, Md.-based KD Designs Custom Interiors, designing this bathroom required a thoughtful balance of preserving historical features – prime among them a fireplace – while meeting modern functional needs and creating a more open space with sophistication and the client’s love of vibrant colors.
Set in a 19th century Baltimore townhouse, the bath measured approximately 16×16. The room was dominated by a sort of “temple”: a freestanding tub defined by ceiling-height columns, with an open shower adjacent to it. The space lacked a private water closet; the existing toilet was located next to the sole vanity in the room. Edged in black and cream Minton tile, the 7-foot-wide fireplace is original to the house; as a focal point of the bathroom, it had to remain unchanged.
Designing around the fireplace while trying to incorporate the client’s main desire – two separate vanities for the husband and wife – was challenging, due to several factors. A pair of ten-foot windows occupied one of the walls and the fireplace sat in the middle of the adjacent wall, both features impeding the placement of the cabinets.
“We designed two custom L-shape vanities, each flanking the fireplace and angled to allow for sink placement and additional storage,” said Shugars. The husband’s vanity, with its sink centered below a newly dimensioned replica window, features a custom fabricated mirror that floats in the window jamb, supported by iron struts. Extending from the other side of the fireplace onto an interior wall, the wife’s vanity was crafted to a height of 32 inches and includes a seated makeup area.
The design team maximized the floor area by relocating the toilet to a corner of the room and installing a pocket door to create a private water closet. A state-of-the-art freestanding tub was placed in front of the fireplace, allowing ample clearance on all sides.
The Color Story
Beyond the bath, vibrant shades of blues, greens and purples dominate the interior design of the home. The clients very much wanted this to continue this striking palette in their primary bathroom, but in a more relaxing manner.
To accomplish this, the designers pulled the wall color directly from the background of the fireplace tiles so that the walls, hearth and large-scale light colored floor and shower tiles create a soft, light and airy feel in the space, allowing the intense hues of the glass shower wall tiles and bold vanity color to shine.
Lessons Learned
With so many moving parts to this project – the custom cabinetry, rerouting the plumbing, specialized electrical work, custom windows and mirrors, and salvage and restoration of as much of the historic pieces of the space as possible – Shugars and Finn found order and focus by holding weekly project management meetings. In memos and other written communications, all parties were encouraged to maintain meticulous, detailed descriptions of site conditions, scheduling, procurement orders and more, to make sure nothing slipped between the cracks.
Sources for Historic Fireplace Centers Cool New Bathroom
Design: Krista Shugars & Bethany Finn, KD Designs Custom Interiors; General Contractor: Matt Solel & team at Five One Eight Contracting; Photography: John Cole Photography; Cabinets: KraftMaid; Cabinet Hardware, Faucets, Tub Filler, Shower Fittings, Tub: Kohler; Countertops: Opal Ice Quartzite; Lighting: Hammerton Studio; Mirrors: Uttermost, Walsh Contracting (custom); Paint: Behr, Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams; Sinks: Duravit; Tile: Soho Studio, Milestone, Happy Floors; Toilet: TOTO
