Vancouver and Chicago Interior Designers - Kalu Interiors Blog - All About Interior Design » Bathroom

Good Morning & Good Night.

aleem — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 06:20:58 +0000

decor.home-lux.com

It’s a GREAT morning to wake up to a beautiful, functional, and calming bathroom. It’s also a GREAT evening to attend to your needs in a beautiful, functional, and calming bathroom just before bed! You get the importance, and i’m sure you’re even more in-tuned with your own routine every morning and every night. A bathroom that speaks to your needs and to your eyes is definitely a treat that we all deserve. And one, if not THE most important space of any home the bathroom can sometimes be the most challanging space to design and to select fixtures for.

I love gathering inspiration from other homes, magazines, TV shows, trade shows/ fairs, new product catalogs and so on… with a slew of new products and innovations hitting the market on a daily basis it’s also sometimes hard to settle on a choice. So, i’ve decided to feature some modern bathrooms that I think do the job well and would make you happy for the rest of your life!

Some of the key concepts to pay attention to:

-Invest in the most important elements: the fixtures & plumbing (these are the most expensive to replace and can improve your daily routine)

-Utilize finishes that are timeless opposed to trendy

-Layer with materials & textures, but not with TOO many; limit finishes to 3-5 overall materials to apply to your walls, floor, millwork, countertop, backsplash, wet areas etc…

-CUSTOMIZE; if in the budget this will maxamize storage and ensure the everything is sealed nice & tightly

-Finish it to the TOP! What do I mean by this? Bring your wall finish up to the ceiling. This creates a dramatic experience and also is practical for wet areas

-Less is more- Simplicity is your best friend in the bathroom. The last thing you want to wake up to, and to see before going to bed, are a cluster of materials, finishes, products, etc…

image from www.chictip.com

Modern Mosaics

phyllis — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 16:00:40 +0000

Designer Michael Smith has recently designed some mosaic tiles for the presitious tile company Ann Sacks. I saw some of these designs in the latest House and Home and must admit I died a little. The designs are absolutely stunning but are quite steep in price……apparently they start at about $188/ square foot retail. Hmmm…..Can we say accent band?

Michael Smith "Venice"

Michael Smith "Valencia"

Michael Smith "Palais Royale"

Michael Smith "Chanilly"

Michael Williams "Crete"

Project Update: Richmond House

phyllis — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 16:00:59 +0000

We’re so excited……one of our summer projects is almost complete! It was a fun project and we’re so pleased with the end result! The house was from the 70′s I believe and hadn’t been renovated much since. It needed a massive overhaul which is what we did for the clients and within a reasonable budget. Now the space shows the fun and youthful vibe of the people who live there.

Here are a few images to tie you over until we can get some fully completed pictures! We’ll be sure to give you a more detailed look into what was done soon!

This first image is the kitchen before. As you can see, it is typical of a home of that age.

Kitchen Before

As you can see, it is still not complete but I think it gives you a good idea as to how drastic the change was…..

Kitchen After

The living room before had a lovely railing detail to it. As much as I loved it, it had to go =)

Living Room - Before

Living Room - After

Next we have the tub area of the Main Bathroom. Not sure why the coloured tubs and toilets were so big back then but let’s hope it is a trend that doesn’t come back. Not a big fan especially of the pink toilet fad.

Main Bathroom - Before

Main Bathroom - After

The Master Bath area was tough…..it had a vanity that was open to the bedroom as in hotel style and an accordian door to the rest of the washroom. We had to completely reconfigure the whole room to make the washroom more attractive. You can sort of see from the after picture that we changed the orientation of the room.

Master Bath Vanity - Before

Master Bath Vanity - After

more to come! Let us know what you think so far!

5 Amazing Faucets

phyllis — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 23:34:04 +0000

Image from http://www.styleture.com

We’re always looking for unique “feature” faucets…..they are usually best suited for a nice powder room since the form usually is better than the function. It’s always so nice to see faucets that are innovative and out of the norm which is why I was so impressed by these. They are definitely not your conventional 3-handled faucet!

Lacava - Embrace Faucet - http://www.lacava.com

Octopus Design - Latrava Faucet - http://www.octopus-design.de

Mamoli - Ortigic Faucet - http://www.mamoli.it

Lim Sun Liang - Ring Faucet - http://www.limsunliang.com

And of course I saved the best for last…….

Hego Water Design - Flower - http://www.hegowaterdesign.it

Standing Alone…

aleem — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 21:53:26 +0000

There is something very elegant, dramatic, and just sensuous about a ‘free-standing bathtub!’ Though seen as not always practical, and not suitable for a small bathroom space, you can probably agree that it is a beautiful look! Free-standing bathtubs allow for one to truly appreciate the look from ALL sides, and is a great way to step beyond the “norm” of traditional bathrooms- or shall I say what “traditional bathroms” have become! The following are just some examples of installations which depict free-standing bathtubs in both traditional and modern applications…

image from www.picocool.com

5 Great Bathroom Vanities

phyllis — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 22:15:56 +0000

Finding a vanity style that is unique and yet functional to your needs can be tough. There are so many typical ones out there and everything has been done…..even wall hung vanities have been around for quite some time now. I find it hard to get excited about a bathroom vanity…..boring….done before…..until I saw these ones.

Here are 5 great options for those of you wanting something a little different!

This first one has a nice twist to a traditional vanity. The countertop is continued onto the sides. Such a simple detail can make such a big difference!

Jeton Vanity - http://www.kallista.com

Must say this is so cool. Of course you’ll need quite a spacious washroom to pull this one off but love how it provides an alternative to the normal side by side sinks in a bathroom!

Nuda Vanity - http://www.laroccia.it

With this one I thought it was nice how they incorporated the vanity into the shelving beside it. It also comes with corresponding pieces like the small rolling cart shown in the picture.

ARBI Link22 Vanity - http://www.gruppoatma.com

This one looks definitely like a custom built in but love love love the simplicity of it. Must say it definitely isn’t the most functional one of the bunch but it is so elegant and pretty to look at!

Image from http://www.flickrfotos.com

This last one is not as timeless as the others but still beautiful nonetheless. This company features vanties with different graphics on them.

Italbrass TanteAnte Vanity - http://www.theitalbrassgroup.com

Project Sneak Peek – Burnaby Bathroom

phyllis — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 17:33:31 +0000

We have been working on the renovation of a bathroom in Burnaby for a few months now. It’s always so exciting when a project gets underway and you see the transformation of it before your very eyes.

Here is a before picture of the project:

Project Before - Burnaby Washroom

The before washroom was only a powder room style set up with a vanity and a toilet. The wall to the left was moved to accomodate a shower and the door was changed to a space saving pocket door.

For the scheme of the bathroom, the client wanted something that was warm and autumn-y. Here are some of our initial colour scheme and finish ideas.

Initial Colour Scheme

Finishes in the space were an oil rubbed bronze finish to keep with the warm colour palette. Warm finishes throughout help to transform the space from a small and not practical powder room to an inviting and updated functional space.

Some pictures of the progress so far. Sorry for the picture quality! All I had was my iPhone!

Will keep you updated on the progress of this place! It should be done soon along with the changes to the bedroom as well! Thoughts so far??

The Art of Your Clothing

aleem — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 20:19:20 +0000

image from www.lundbergdesign.com

This is one of those spaces that almost all, wait…ALL… of us would love to have; your own personal floor with a dedicated closet, dressing room, and bathroom. Though this just isn’t a closet, dressing room, and bathroom, but rather a masterpiece. Designed by Lundberg Design, this stunning space is comprised of fiber optic lighted translucent panels, ebony stained oak wood floors, and ebony stained millwork throughout. The translucent panels offer rare glimpses of dramatic shadows cast from the clothing, ultimately providing an artistic and decorative treatment. Very innovative!

image from www.lundbergdesign.com

Glass Tiles

phyllis — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 16:00:33 +0000

Glass tiles…..they’re nothing new….they have been around for quite some time now…..been used over and over again countless times and are bordering on becoming boring. I first saw this new glass tile featured in one of the recent Canadian Style at Home magazines. Made locally in North Vancouver by the company Edgewater, these back painted glass tiles can be customized in any paint color. The tiles come in 10″ x 10″ size and retail for $85/ square foot. Yes it is a bit on the pricey side but the results may be worth it!

Image from http://www.edgewaterjet.ca

Decorated Faucets

phyllis — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 16:00:13 +0000

Came across these new faucets by Italian company Daniel. They are part of his “Decorations” series. Thought they could be nice….if used in moderation! They come in a variety of finishes ranging from a contemporary brushed nickel to an old world shiny gold!

Thought some of the faucets were quite cool:

Image from http://www.daniel.it

Must say that some of them do get to be a bit overdone though!

Image from http://www.daniel.it

Your thoughts? Love them? Hate them?

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