Louise Ashdown, head of design at West One Bathrooms, reveals how she created a sophisticated bathroom environment for a client after a unique space in a characterful period property.
Q: What type of property was it in and who was the project for?
A: We worked on 2 projects side-by-side with this client. ‘His’ bathroom in Sussex and ‘her’ bathroom in London. The pleasure is that they could both run loose with what they wanted and loved without any compromise as it was to be each their own space.
Q: What type of property was it in?
A: This project was 'his' bathroom in an old cottage in a picturesque Hamlet in Sussex.
Q: What was the brief from the client for this project?
A: He had a strong vision of what he wanted – he had dealt with another supplier for years, but been disillusioned with his last project with them. He visited our showroom, loved it and started chatting. With an architect’s background, he was clear of the plumbing needs and how to navigate around an old property, and wanted to create a contemporary bathroom for himself, which would still be sympathetic to the heritage of the building. He already knew the basin vanity he wanted so that was a foregone conclusion, so we introduced a Gessi bowl to match the Gessi brassware.
He knew Cielo and could only fit in a small bath – so that was easy. I introduced different elements with the Smokey Bronze mirrors and the fabulous bespoke wallpaper to enhance his vision, and complement the colour of the bat.
Q: How did you go about meeting the brief?
A: We had several showroom meetings to iron out any issues and complexities. We worked together, with the period property in mind, considering weight, access, drainage and aesthetics.
Q: What were the particular challenges that you faced during this project?
A: There were several challenges – first of all access was tricky, along with space in the room to fit all the items in. Also plumbing was an issue, and some areas needed casing to conceal plumbing as the floor is ceiling for the room below so there was no void.
Q: What materials did you use? Did you use anything different or unusual?
A: The floor is uneven in places, and unable to level as would affect the heights in the room, so a vinyl flooring had to be installed. Initially we were looking at tiles for the wall behind the WC and bath, but I persuaded him to consider the bespoke wallpaper as it's less weight, has a warmer texture, and is much more characterful in the space. It helps transition the contemporary bathroom with the old house. He came in with his wife who fell in love with our most recent display by my desk – leopard wallpaper – so I showed him Tiger boy!
Q: What were the different products that you and the client chose?
A: He had a good grasp of how he wanted the bathroom to look, so we enhanced his choices with brassware finishes and stunning Gessi metal basin. We had to ensure that all the items were compatible with each other and ensure bespoke alterations were manufactured into the basin vanity to accommodate.
Q: What is your favourite part of the finished project?
A: Definitely Tiger Boy peeping over the bath rim.
