14 Jul 21

How to design a tiny bathroom and holidaying at home, Podcast show notes S12 Ep1

We are back for another season of the Great Indoors podcast and we are delighted to welcome back our sponsor Geberit who are proudly Europe’s leading bathroom manufacturers. We kick off the series with a huge amount of gusto especially after so many recordings done via our duvet dens it was a real treat to have Kate over at my house – even if she is sitting on my new canary yellow sofa through gritted teeth! (some of you may know that Kate doesn’t ‘do’ yellow).

So let’s get started, on today’s episode we discuss how to bring holidaying home and we share our thoughts on designing small bathrooms. As always you can listen to the full episode here. On with the show….notes….

My new Holly sofa by Sofa.com taking centre stage. Photographed by Alun Callender

Holidaying at home

After so much uncertainty about what we can and can’t do, many of us will try and holiday in the UK – I say try as it seems so many hotels and holiday lets are fully booked. We managed to escape to Cornwall as our original Portugal holiday wasn’t going to happen. It was such an idyllic break and to be honest it was lovely just to have a change of scenery. I am lucky that I love my home and I’m surrounded by countryside but as many of us have felt over the last 15 months or so – the same view day in day out was getting a bit much. So it got me thinking, maybe we could refresh our homes and do things that we would normally do on holiday.

1. When we were in Cornwall all the restaurants were fully booked so my friend suggested getting a caterer to bring the restaurant-style food to us. and get this – they even wash up afterwards!! It was such a revelation – yes it costs money but not more than a night out at a lovely restaurant.
2. Be a tourist in your own city or town. Take the time to appreciate the sites and all it has to offer.
3. So, we’ve been on our day trip and come back to our ‘hometel’ see what I did there – think about what you enjoy about a hotel room. a) ring the changes – change your usual drink to something completely different and exciting.
4. Scent – even if it’s raining (which is quite a lot in UK at the mo) slap on a bit of suncream and let the smell transport you to your virtual holiday.
5. Bedding – crisp, freshly ironed and starched bedlinen, perhaps even some hospital corners!
6. Film night – in our household we have a homemade booth for snacks, printed tickets and even a poster thanks to my son Arthur.
7. Picnic in the park – pack some different food than the usual.
8. Have a proper relax in the tub and treat yourself to some special bath foam and toiletries.
9. Spa day at home – there are beauticians who do home visits so why not book some treatments and of course a massage.
10. Camping in the garden – not Kate’s cup of tea but we will be partaking.
11. Enjoy your outside space. If, like Kate & I breakfast is usually on the hop why not take your time to lay the table and eat outside. Or there are companies that will deliver breakfast baskets, even more of a treat!

If for whatever reason you are unable to go on holiday, get yourself into the right mindset and use some of the money you would have spent away on some treats.

What are you going to be doing to bring the holiday vibe home? Do let us know on Instagram I’m @sophierobinsoninteriors and Kate is @mad_about_the_house or do share your thoughts on our fabulous Facebook group.

Tiny bathroom design

Due to the compact size of my bathroom, we tanked it so we wouldn’t need a screen and the wetroom has offered much more space. Pink Sanitaryware, Burlington, Blind In Sporty Stripes Pink By Ottoline De Vries; Seaton Ceramic Wall Tiles In Sunshine, Ca Pietra. Photographed By Alun Callender.

Our sponsor Gebrit has said that bathrooms in new-build properties are getting smaller with the average size at 4.4 sq m.

Kate and I have both had to design these small spaces which can be quite tricky. Firstly, do you want a bath and a shower and therefore have a bath/shower combo or do you forgo the bath in place of a walk-in shower? According to estate agents, people do still wants baths so unless you are planning to sell or flip keep the bath. If you don’t do baths then having a large shower feels and looks much more luxurious and more pleasurable to use.

I think I could put up with accessing the shower here! Bert & May tiles; bathroom designed by @naomiastleyclarke

Bathrooms are obviously long term investments due to the cost and disruption so you need to think about whether climbing over a bath to have a shower is still going to work for you and the family in 10-15 years time.

When you have a tiny bathroom it’s about stripping out what you don’t need, be it the bath or shower screen and getting down to the bare minimum.

The Acanto range by Geberit

Nothing kills off a small bathroom more than clutter everywhere – on the window sills, around the bath or the bottom of the shower tray so storage needs to be clever. Planning: Every detail matters and every centimetre is crucial and so storage can be challenging.

• A tall thin narrow cabinet that could perhaps fit into a corner – preferably off the floor
• Anything off the floor will help – including loos
• A wall-mounted integrated vanity basin and cupboard
• Our lovely sponsors Geberit has created a magnetic storage solution so you can have everything exactly where you want it (see above).
• whether cabinets or shelves they only need to be a ‘bottle’ size in depth

Moving on to decorative elements..

Kate recently renovated her tiny bathroom and did away with the bath to make a wet room

You wouldn’t think it but it’s Kate towel rial that brought the room together. She’s not a lover of a shiny chrome option so had it spray painted to match the woodwork (paint leftover from her office, Arras by Little Greene) and the grout and it really does make all the difference.

What a genius idea – Kate has also painted the underside of the basin the same as the towel rail

Kate cleverly saved money and wastage by using the leftover floor tiles to frame the mirror and create some interest in the shower enclosure.

Wall tiles by Topps Tiles; wallpaper by Sanderson; Floor tiles by Claybrook

I tend to spend a bit more on tiny rooms – like my downstairs cloakroom – I spent more on the details. The taps in particular are very prominent so I think they need to be rather special.  We could wall mount them because it was a complete renovation, otherwise, it can be an expensive and messy job.

In summary, in small bathrooms, the devil is in the detail and it’s all about planning – they are one the most tricky rooms to design!

Huge thanks to our new sponsor Geberit, our wonderful producer Kate Taylor from Feast Collective and of course our lovely listeners.