Another reveal of the rooms that are done in my brother’s house – this one being a really quiet, neutral bathroom that makes me want creamy beige everywhere and dare I say a pony wall (shout out to Max). This bathroom has a small footprint, off the mudroom near the family room, and will be used for guests and dirty kids from the river (probably not that frequently). It turned out really pretty, quiet, clean, and simple with high-quality materials and a timeless contemporary style (with a touch of PNW whimsy). As a reminder, here we are:
The shaded pink area is where we are located in the house (right next to the also finished mudroom:)), and the layout of the bathroom is relatively classic and simple – small vanity, toilet, and shower. The layout was done by Anne Usher (then I came in, with Max Humphrey, to choose the finishes).
Bathrooms are so hard to shoot (because they are small) but here you can see the whole space – the mix of tiles, the layout with this rather adorable pony wall, and simplicity in shapes and colors with a really nice contrast. As a lover of tile (and I LOVE these creamy tiles) we wanted to see them more instead of more glass, so we added this pony wall with the glass panel above it to help create a sense of a shower “room” and have more visual interest. I pitched this house to Kohler and Ann Sacks early on (3+ years ago), knowing that inventories run deep, quality is high, and we’d be able to make every bathroom feel custom and yet cohesive. So this bathroom is in partnership with Kohler so almost everything is from their many lines of plumbing, vanities, mirrors, and now lighting! And thank god their plumbing designs are so timeless because things change a lot in 3 internet years, but our choices still look really fresh and perfect for the house.
The Plumbing
Wall Tile | Thermotoer Valve Handle | Volume Valve Handle | Handshower
We went with the Purist Faucet line and the Components handles. I love how clean and simple they are (but they look cool). We put the main handles to be reachable from outside the pony wall, further away from the shower so you don’t have to get drenched before you get in.
Showerhead | Showerhead Arm and Flange
For the tile, we chose the MADE Provencal for the walls in two different shapes, staggered them, and paired them with a really warm black hex on the floor. For a contemporary house (read: new build) we wanted to stay within the simple parameters of the home, but keep it warm, timeless, and use high-quality materials that wouldn’t date. But we didn’t want boring. So finding that balance between interest but not trendy felt really good in here.
Floor Tile | Trim Stone | Wall Grout | Floor Grout
If you are a grout nerd (which I am – my GOODNESS it changes the look of a tile and room) we chose Dove Gray for the floor, lighter than the tile but not too bright, and Oyster Gray for the walls. The wall grout added depth and brought out the pattern, without making it too busy and we triple obsessed about the tones of the grout to make sure they had the right level of warmth without being too “brown”.
The Vanity
Mirror | Sconce | Vanity | Toliet Paper Holder | Faucet | Sink Handles | Soap Dish | Black Ceramic Tumbler | Towels
For the vanity side, we chose the 36″ Winnow Vanity which is a super transitional style (i.e. can be classic or contemporary). It comes with the stone countertop which makes life so easy (one order and done) and for a guest bath I like to break up the bulkiness and have a shelf at the bottom). This color is mostly black but has a slight blue hue as you can see in the photos.
The mirror is a simple pill-shaped called “The Essential Mirror”, which they sell in so many different styles and finishes and works so well with all the shapes in here – it contrasts the squareness of the vanity and calls back to the shape and finish of the faucet. The sconces are part of Kohler’s newer line called “Jabot” and have a really creamy, oyster-like color which we really liked with the tile and wallpaper. We flanked the mirror with two double sconces (they have single sconces, too) and a semi-flush light fixture that matches.
The faucet is part of the Components line which I LOVE – there are a lot of different faucet and handle styles to choose from, again making it easy to customize in a way that you know will look good together. These knobs are easy to twist on and off, hot and cold (obviously), and look so unfussy and simple.
The Natural Light And A Window
Robe Hooks | Bath Towel | Black Planter (vintage) | Hand Towel | Wood Bench (similar) | Toilet | Window
Around 3 pm the light in here gets so dreamy that we had to capture it. There is a window in the shower that floods the room with reflection and brings out all the gloss and texture in the tile. It’s soooo beautiful.
Terra Cotta Pumice Stone | Shampoo | Conditioner | Pumice Stone/Brush
The Tile Pattern
Max Humphrey and I played around with the tile pattern, wanting it to feel staggered and yet random and the tile installer totally got it. I was nervous about some of the lines being too close or not looking random enough but they did a great job.
The Wallpaper
Once again I chose a wallpaper that in person is so perfect, warm and fun to look at but it’s so hard to see in photos. It is QUIET. It’s a Nordic treescape in all of our neutral colors. It brought so much to the room, without adding any busyness or style contrast. We did end up adding wallpaper to now 5 of the spaces in this home and almost all of them have this nature element that brings together the contemporary vibe of the house with the sense of a young fun family.
There she is:) It’s a bathroom that people see the most right now and it’s undeniably lovely to be in. The light, airy quality mixed with the high contrast faucets and tile creates a neutral yet interesting bathroom that is totally timeless. The resources are below. A huge thanks to Anne Usher, Sierra Custom Construction, and Max Humphrey for all the work on this project. xx
Bathroom Resources
Tile: Ann Sacks
Trim Stone: Caesarstone
Trim and Ceiling Color: Alabaster by Sherwin-Williams
Hardware: Kohler
Lighting: Kohler
Vanity: Kohler
Mirror: Kohler
Plumbing: Kohler
Wallpaper: Scandinavian Wallpaper
Windows: Marvin
*Architect: Anne Usher
**General Contractor: JP Macy of Sierra Custom Construction
***Interior Designers: Emily Henderson (me!) and Max Humphrey
****Styling: Emily Henderson (me!)
*****Photos by Kaitlin Green
Beautiful room! What type of glass did you use for the window? Is it high enough off the ground that privacy isn’t an issue?
Wow! Quiet in the best way. Well done
Beautiful as always but more importantly, where is that blouse from??
I did a reverse image search :).
https://alixofbohemia.com/collections/shirt-shop/products/annabel-olive-lily-valley-shirt
Found it! But maybe there’s a less expensive look-alike. 🙂 It’s gorge. https://alixofbohemia.com/products/annabel-olive-lily-valley-shirt
Looks very nice! Can you explain the need for a second bath on the main floor – I see there is already a powder bath, and there is not guest room on this floor, so who do you predict will be using the shower and why have two baths on the main floor? Thanks!
At the beginning she explains this is off the mudroom and serves to shower kids and guests that are getting out of the river (and need to shower). I think from earlier posts that the family room can also serve as a spare room for guests, which is right next to this bathroom.
Those sconces are everything! Now I want to redo my guest bathroom!
Beautiful. Knocked a simple space out of the park with your considered, thoughtful, and cohesive elements, and restrained touch. Brava.
Beautiful space and I especially love the staggered tile pattern. We had our main bathroom (very small and narrow space) renovated last year and added a pony wall instead of doing a full-height glass shower panel. (The previous owners had installed a pony wall but in a bizarre location.) We love it!
For reference, here’s the “before” photo with the original odd pony wall. (I couldn’t figure out a way to attach more than one photo in my original comment.)
A pony wall being used to block the vanity from the toilet isn’t all that uncommon and when done well, improves the visuals when looking into a bathroom.
Thanks for sharing your bathroom photos. It is beautiful! I like how you do not have to step over anything but does the whole floor get wet or it the floor angled to drain in the shower?
In curbless showers like this, the floor in the shower area is angled toward the drain. Imagine an X drawn from the corners to the drain (literally how it gets drawn in plan!) – the drain is the lowest spot, and the corners are level with the floor outside the shower. It works beautifully!
Hi! It’s exactly as Meredith mentioned in her comment–our contractor worked hard to angle the floor tile towards the center drain. (He used a marble to make sure it rolled just right from all four sides.) On a sidenote, we also installed radiant heat flooring and we’ve noticed any small amount of water that splashes beyond the shower area evaporates quickly.
Beautiful room (of course!) It’s hard to pick a favorite, but I think I love the wall paper best. Or maybe the pony wall. More importantly, where is your shirt from???
I need to know more about Emily’s blouse, please!
Could you tell me the size of the shower? As someone who is trying to make the most of a very small bathroom, I’d love to know what the absolute minimum a stall should be to make it enjoyable to use.
I’d love a post with the measurements of all the River House rooms revealed so far. Also measurements of the Farm House. I remember how helpful the kitchen measurement one was. Maybe I missed a post about other Farm House room measurements.
Minimum shower these days is 36″ square. But you can bump it down to 33″ one direction if you have to. Anything smaller and you will bonk your elbows.
I would say 30” wide is as small as feels comfortable- that’s a standard bath tub. You can get away with smaller, but you probably won’t like it! Standard tubs are 30 x 60. But try holding up a sheet or a piece of cardboard near a corner, and testing out sizes in real life! It will help you visualize so much.
My style is timeless and I love the opening shot as it looks quite timeless to me.
Love it! Could you please share whether you painted the vanity after delivery? Looking on Kohler’s website, I don’t see one in that color.
How lovely. Pleas share your outfit too. 😍
This may be my favorite bathroom of yours. Timeless and classic. Love the tile work in the shower. So much texture and whimsy.
Congratulations to all involved -this room is stunning…
Really beautiful! Funnily, I did a strikingly similar low budget version of this in my basement bathroom. It’s a very similar layout with a pony wall. We used cheap square subway tile in an offset pattern in the shower and black hex tile for the floors, and have a curtain hung from a ceiling track instead of more expensive glass. We have lower budget but similar style lighting, vanity, and mirror. I did the tiling myself and only hired out the wall framing and electrical and did the whole thing for less than 10k, if anyone is looking to do a knock-off version of this bathroom!
I like the ponywall. Shower glass is so difficult to maintain, especially the lower half.
It’s beautiful! We’re remodeling a small ensuite bathroom and also put in a pony wall. I especially like that there will be built in shelving on the inside of the pony wall for bottles and soap. Less clutter and no distraction from the beautiful tiles we’re using!
Yes!! We did this and there’s the added bonus of being able to set the lowest shelf at the right height to be a shaving toe-rest!
Wow! This bathroom is absolutely gorgeous. I love how it’s so understated but so warm at the same time.
I’m a huge fan of a carefully executed pony wall, honestly! I installed one exactly like this in my primary bathroom a couple years ago, with the niche built into the back of it so you can’t see any of our stuff from within the bathroom. Used one in my son’s bathroom to block the toilet from view from the shower and door, instead of looking through a glass wall directly at the side of the toilet. We are doing a final bathroom now and I had a layout like this planned again (but way wider because it’s a strangely large room); I’m sort of second guessing the changes I made to get a free standing tub into the room on that wall instead.
Obsessed with the tile and pattern of installation. So great!
Pink pony cluuuub
I live the tile and faucets, but I just know that water is just going to get everywhere.
I’m really into the texture of these wall tiles, and in loveeee with those sconces!
Thank you so much for this beautiful post and details! I’m getting ready for our bathroom/master bedroom remodel, so this is just in time for us. Our tiny bathroom is about the size of this guest bath, so it’s helpful to see the design choices you’ve made (like how high the tile goes around the whole room). Kohler is beautiful, we’re also looking at Brizo (Odin), and Delta (Trinsic). I’m curious, given the use this bathroom will get, why did you opt to have a curb in the shower? Our contractor recommended curbless with a sloped floor (age in place… we’re 50 but keeping the house forever.) Thank you again!
Ha! We’re planning a bathroom remodel and considering a pony wall! In the case of our (tiny) bathroom, the vanity is adjacent (aka, attached) to the shower wall and the wall contains the electrial outlets/switches. The previous owners did a wall to the ceiling, which is dark and poorly ventilated. A pony wall would give us light in the shower and a sturdy wall for the vanity and electrical.
I’m curious about the decision to have the doorway open. Not because of water spray, but because of the air flow created by the hot water and cooler air in the rest of the room. I find the breeze uncomfortable. Are other bathers not bothered by this? Or are there ways to prevent this (beyond heating the entire room to the water temperature)? Potentially it wouldn’t be an issues in our tiny room; the handful I’ve used have been in spacious bathrooms.
I like the bathroom (LOVE the tile), but I kinda hate the sconces. They look like they’re broken? Unfinished?
But the wallpaper is simply lovely.
I love the tile design! I was looking at the website you linked to – Did you use 4×4 and 2×4 or 6×6 and 3×6 tiles? Trying to look at the picture to figure it out but I couldn’t quite tell. Thanks so much!!
Oh, my good grief. Like it so much …
The ivory tiles are beautiful. I love how they’ve been applied in a sort of uneven/imperfect way (although maybe that’s just the nature of the tiles?). The variation gives it an organic, natural look that is just so perfect for the house. Nicely done!
I love how the height of the pony wall matches the height of the ledge. The tile is also to die for, thanks for sharing!
I love the picture with the sunlight streaming in! It plays off the tiles so beautifully. Lovely space!
It looks so good and beautiful! Thank you for sharing.
This is so inspiring! What a beautiful bathroom. Every detail is perfect and works together so perfectly.
I’m wondering what specific line of Marvin window this is (we are looking to install a new Marvin window soon).
I love every inch of it! Masterful!