Bathroom of the Week: Soothing White and Gray in a Roomy Layout
A Minnesota couple work with a designer to ditch their tub, create a larger shower and embrace a classic color palette
Frustrated with a rarely used, oversize jetted tub taking up valuable real estate and a toilet crammed between the tub and tight shower stall, a professional couple decided enough was enough. They wanted to rethink the dated master bathroom in their home in Plymouth, Minnesota, and create a smarter layout in a clean style.
They hired designer Mary Maney of Crystal Kitchen + Bath to help them achieve their dream transformation within the existing footprint. Maney removed the jetted tub and shower stall to gain extra square feet for a capacious shower. She also freed up space around the toilet and added a new double vanity, full-height linen cabinet and overall soothing gray-and-white palette.
They hired designer Mary Maney of Crystal Kitchen + Bath to help them achieve their dream transformation within the existing footprint. Maney removed the jetted tub and shower stall to gain extra square feet for a capacious shower. She also freed up space around the toilet and added a new double vanity, full-height linen cabinet and overall soothing gray-and-white palette.
After: Maney didn’t remove or change any walls, but she ditched the tub to create a roomy shower that includes a built-in bench. “It’s such wasted space if you don’t use a tub,” says Maney, who used Houzz ideabooks to exchange design ideas with her clients. “This allowed them to have a nice large linen cabinet too.” (There’s a bathtub in another bathroom of the home.)
Soft gray walls (San Antonio Gray by Benjamin Moore) with off-white trim (Distant Gray by Benjamin Moore) provide a soothing, classic backdrop for the pops of crisp white in the cabinetry and tile. “Color can be added through towels or artwork, and changed out per different seasons as they wish,” Maney says. “In winter, you might want to change things out to accessories with a nice warmer color.”
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Soft gray walls (San Antonio Gray by Benjamin Moore) with off-white trim (Distant Gray by Benjamin Moore) provide a soothing, classic backdrop for the pops of crisp white in the cabinetry and tile. “Color can be added through towels or artwork, and changed out per different seasons as they wish,” Maney says. “In winter, you might want to change things out to accessories with a nice warmer color.”
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Maney added a longer vanity that provides more storage than the previous one. “They wanted to keep the double sinks but needed to gain storage at the vanity,” she says. “Each sink base now has two drawers, plus there is a three-drawer cabinet between the sink bases for additional storage.”
The semicustom vanity is painted white, with brushed nickel hardware. The faucets and three-light fixtures above each tall mirror are also brushed nickel.
Custom mirrors: Minneapolis Glass; vanity lights: Jameson three-light, Capital Lighting; vanity hardware: Hartford pull, Nouveau II collection, Top Knobs
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The semicustom vanity is painted white, with brushed nickel hardware. The faucets and three-light fixtures above each tall mirror are also brushed nickel.
Custom mirrors: Minneapolis Glass; vanity lights: Jameson three-light, Capital Lighting; vanity hardware: Hartford pull, Nouveau II collection, Top Knobs
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A seamless engineered quartz countertop and 9-inch-tall backsplash mimic gray marble with white wisps. A 4-inch shelf made of a solid-surface material provides a spot for makeup and toiletries. The shelf was inspired by hotels the wife has visited during her frequent travels for work. “It is easy to keep clean, and the shelf wraps around and becomes the top cap of the half wall in the shower,” Maney says.
Countertop: Queen Anne, Cambria
Countertop: Queen Anne, Cambria
Before: The location of the shower stall in relation to the toilet seemed like a hasty afterthought.
After: By relocating the shower to the former tub space, Maney had enough room to add a full-height cabinet for storing towels, linens and toiletries.
A hook on the side wall by the shower keeps robes and towels handy. A 24-inch towel bar over the toilet and an 18-inch bar on the side of the linen closet keep hand towels nearby.
This photo also highlights the polished 12-by-24-inch porcelain floor tiles. “We offset some of the gray in this bathroom by using the floor tile in white,” Maney says.
An anchored toilet paper holder doubles as a grab bar.
A hook on the side wall by the shower keeps robes and towels handy. A 24-inch towel bar over the toilet and an 18-inch bar on the side of the linen closet keep hand towels nearby.
This photo also highlights the polished 12-by-24-inch porcelain floor tiles. “We offset some of the gray in this bathroom by using the floor tile in white,” Maney says.
An anchored toilet paper holder doubles as a grab bar.
The spacious 38-by-72-inch low-curb shower features a variety of tiles that add depth and interest to the space. “She wanted less seams and grout lines, and some of her [Houzz] inspiration photos showed bathrooms that used different-sized tiles for interest,” Maney says.
Larger porcelain tiles on the shower walls make the shower appear larger, while smaller (3-by-3-inch) tiles with grout lines on the shower floor offer grip for safety.
Larger porcelain tiles on the shower walls make the shower appear larger, while smaller (3-by-3-inch) tiles with grout lines on the shower floor offer grip for safety.
A band of mosaic tile that includes gray glass pieces and polished white marble pieces adds a decorative touch. “It separates the different field tiles,” Maney says.
An anchored shampoo shelf also doubles as a grab bar.
The same solid-surface material used for the shelf above the vanity tops the built-in bench. Glass blocks let in natural light while providing the privacy the couple wanted.
Before: Previously, a wood door swung into the bathroom from the couple’s bedroom, often colliding with the door to the shower.
After: A new six-panel pocket door now connects the two rooms.
The couple now have the airier, serene bathroom they wanted. “It was all about relocating where everything was,” Maney says. “I didn’t move any walls, but everything feels bigger.”
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The couple now have the airier, serene bathroom they wanted. “It was all about relocating where everything was,” Maney says. “I didn’t move any walls, but everything feels bigger.”
More on Houzz
See more bathroom stories
Browse bathroom photos
Find a bathroom designer
Hire a cabinet pro
Shop for your bathroom
Bathroom at a Glance
Who lives here: A professional couple with three young adult sons, one of whom is in college but lives at home part time
Location: Plymouth, Minnesota
Size: 80 square feet (7.4 square meters)
Designer: Mary Maney of Crystal Kitchen + Bath
Before: The tub and tight layout weren’t the only things the couple disliked about their previous bathroom. Green walls, a cultured marble countertop and stained oak cabinets had fallen out of favor.
The couple also wanted to address the fixed window above the tub. They wanted to keep the natural light of the window, which overlooks the backyard, but add more privacy.