We like to think of our business as more than just a craft. It’s the art of the possible. The very best remodeling jobs are the ones that deftly combine solid design and quality craftsmanship to address a need…and then go beyond the utilitarian to the imaginative. This case study is a good example.
Vision
This bathroom remodel was part of a larger project, and one that presented us with a client’s desire for not only a more pleasing environment, but for something they before had: a laundry room.
Challenge
To easiest way to “add” a room is to expand the square footage of a home — but that wasn’t in the budget for this bathroom remodel. What we did instead was to “borrow” the space we needed to create a laundry room from a less critical area: a hallway that led to the garage. Fortunately, we were also working with an oversized bathroom layout that had not been well thought out as originally constructed.
Accomplishment
We achieved our twin objectives of an improved bathroom layout and the addition of a laundry room by bumping the bathroom wall out into the garage area, then moving the wall between the bathroom and the hallway to create the laundry room space. In the bathroom itself we removed a spa tub (typically used as a clothes drying area), and added a frameless shower where the tub had been, while keeping the existing plumbing from the original shower in place. For privacy, we patched over the window that had formerly looked on the tub and added a smaller one above the new shower area to let in natural light. By increasing the size of the shower, we were able to add a second shower head on a slider bar, so it could now be used to wash the dog. We also redid the toilet room.
Highlights
More than just creating a new utility space and a more attractive and practical layout for the bathroom, this project made a difference to the rest of the home as well. The washer and dryer had previously been in the hallway leading to the garage — a hallway that was also open to the kitchen. Whenever they were in operation, the noise from the washer and dryer resonated throughout the house. As a result of the remodel, this noise could now be contained in a separate enclosure, without having to sacrifice anything more than wasted space.