Mercer Island

The built-in tub with three narrow windows on the far side dated this bathroom. Together, they felt like barriers to the room’s tree-filtered views of the water and mountains, blocking natural light and fresh air. The tub’s dominant presence meant the bathroom’s space was under-utilized. Grooming rituals were a chore, not a joy, especially with a boxy shower enclosure and a cramped toilet and bidet room with a small window.

Our clients have a shared love of nature and cherished their views. They wanted a better connection to both elements. So, we developed a design concept around the image of rounded stones in a stream which informed our design decisions throughout the project. As in nature, each stone would be different in scale and have a different orientation in the space.

Design Elements: A stand-alone tub, flanked by paneling matching the vanities, became one river “stone”. The other “stone” was a quartz oval shower seat. We placed it partially in the shower and the room, like an exposed stone in a stream.

We expanded their former shared grooming center into separate his-and-her vanities with customized cabinets and individualized storage. We even used space under the undermount sinks for pullout waste bins.

Instead of three narrow vertical windows, we used a single one above two sliders. The new horizontal presentation visually connects to the vanities, frames the views, and increases natural light, which lit the toilet room through a relight.

The spacious walk-in shower invites you to look out at the view and savor the natural light. A curved wall softens the space.

Biophilic accents like a frond-like chandelier and mountain-motif wallpaper support our concept. The floor tiles simulating edge-grain birch plywood envelope the space. Glass and porcelain tile on the shower walls in quiet blues pick up the lake blue color of the wallpaper. One tricky detail that provided a challenge to the shower glass sub was notching around the bench where the glass made a 45 degree turn.

Thoughtful lighting design provides evening settings. Automatic lighting provides illumination for nighttime use.