But first, let's see the big picture - finished. The project included that enormous bathroom space, along with the existing dining room, which had been three white walls with a built-in wine cooler and cabinetry of questionable taste.
That boring dining room is no more. The horizontal cedar and fir on the fireplace wall warm up the room, and integrate the two-sided fireplace into the room.
The previous incarnation had the fireplace tiled—badly and set off visually from the dining area.
The natural wood is inset into a sheetrock frame to the left, and the VG fir extends through the fireplace opening, creating a clear delineation between the dining and living areas without blocking light.
The other side of fireplace also had a makeover, with a full sheetrock wrap, steel detailing and subtle but beautiful tile. Note the blackened steel baseboards that wrap around the end.
The new cap for the fireplace is polished, blackened steel with a C-channel detail in front. The teeny tiny tile by Brix is about 1/8 x 1/8 inch but has a powerful visual impact on the living room side.
Brace yourself for the bath. It was huge, it was tile-filled and it included a sauna, hot tub and shower. The quality of the materials was excellent, but the workmanship not so much.
More importantly, this giant spa was useless on the main floor for a family with young kids. The 200sf room became a place for the cat box.
By removing one wall and half of another, and rebuilding the roof system to accept a proper skylight, the space is open and ready to use.
To remove the wall, a new steel beam was required. The architect turned that beam into a design feature, with decorative steel extending in a square around the new sitting/TV room adjacent to the kitchen. Infilled with good light and tongue and groove VG fir, this is a beautiful place to sit. The decision was made to leave the steel beams as is, which means they will patina over time.
In the corner where the hot tub used to sit, there is now a beautifully appointed main floor laundry room, with stacking washer/dryer and a built-in wine cooler.
Word around the office is that this is one of the most beautiful laundry rooms ever. With its own skylight, quartz counters, Bluestone Honed Brick mosaic backsplash, and maple cabinets built custom to match those in the kitchen, this is a happy place to fold clothes.
We especially like the tile backsplash and the under cabinet lighting.
From the laundry room, you can see the powder room door.
You might almost over look the desk area in between if you didn't notice the open cabinet.
An expansive skylight illuminates the desk area, which features upper storage and a low-profile desk area made from dark Walnut.
Each side of the desktop opens, locking into place at the top without running into the wall behind. The interior of each side of the desk features two outlets - a perfect place to work and then hide your laptop from view.
The powder room is conveniently tucked away with a laminated glass pocket door.
A small sink and mirror is tucked into the other side on a wall clad with marble subway tile.
The finished space is elegant, functional and filled with light. Our clients can now reclaim all that wasted space and really use their main floor. Only question remaining: where to put the cat box?
