The highest quality bathroom renovations require an expert eye. Set yourself up for success by familiarizing yourself with five common remodeling mistakes.
Natural wood is a timeless feature to include in any home remodel. From rustic touches in the kitchen to gorgeous hardwood flooring, finished wood surfaces offer a versatile touch of craftsmanship that will never be out of style.
With that in mind, it makes sense that more and more homeowners want to include wood’s organic aesthetic in their bathrooms as well.
There’s just one problem: bathrooms are unique spaces with unique conditions.
Elevated moisture levels (think splashes, drips, and steam) are assumed to be hostile factors for a material like wood, leaving tile as the go-to option for a long, long time.
So, is this accurate? Should wood be left outside the door?
Good News! Wood Works Just Fine in the Bathroom
In reality, wood and water mix all the time (look no further than boats, docks, piers, etc.).
Whether or not wood will flourish depends on several key factors that you and your bathroom remodeling professional can discuss:
Where is it going in the bathroom?
What kind of wood is it?
Does it have the proper seal/finish?
Is it installed in a way that allows for natural expansion and contraction?
Is your bathroom properly ventilated?
What Kind of Wood Is Best for a Bathroom?
One option in particular floats to the top of the list because of its unique characteristics.
Teak.
Naturally water-resistant and extremely dense, teak is a gorgeous, functional choice that will excel in your bathroom, no matter how steamy things get.
Here’s an example from a home remodel we completed in Greenwich. Paired with a floating vanity and Arabescato Corchia marble, this guest bathroom is overflowing with modern, yet timeless, style.
How About the Look of Wood without the Concerns?
Maybe you agree with what we said above, but you’re still having trouble feeling comfortable with the idea of your toddler taking a bath over a hardwood floor.
We hear you.
Another option is one that we recommend to those who love hardwood but have pets with damaging claws. Porcelain tile flooring can be engineered to look almost exactly like your favorite varieties of wood, and with a massive spectrum of finishes mimicked as well. You really can enjoy the best of both worlds, pairing the natural warmth and character of wood with the moisture-resistant durability of tile. As an added benefit, you can use any cleaner you’d like, avoiding the need for special, gentler treatment.
We suggest that as you near the launch of your project, you sit down with a reputable remodeling professional. Discuss your needs, goals, lifestyle, and preferences, and they can certainly help guide you to the right decision.
The bathroom is certainly a functional room, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be devoid of style and beauty. As the place where you start and end your day, the room should put you in the right mood for your lifestyle. Invigorate in the morning, and soothe into peace and tranquility in the evening with these trends of 2017 — some that have been around for a while, and some that are up and coming.
Organic
We’ve been going green for a long time, but 2017 is the year when we’ll fully embrace the organic. Clean colors, seamless lines, and simple arrangements provide room for organic elements to add to a soothing atmosphere.
Add wood to the bathroom in a floor, cabinetry, or teak wood bench or mat to bring in an organic element that adds texture and warmth. Choose organic shapes in your tub, sinks, and more. Add organic patterns in your shower and floor tiles. Choose earth-toned colors, and allow windows to showcase the nature outside.
High Tech
Technology is entering our lives in every other room of the house; why not in the bathroom? Add built-in audio systems, tub-side refrigeration, chromatherapy, and more. How about a control system in the shower to control water pressure and temperature? Or radiant heating pads in your tub?
Water-Saving Fixtures
Using less water is on trend this year, and bathroom fixtures are stepping up to meet the need. The government’s new WaterSense label is encouraging manufacturers to be even smarter about water usage. Toilets offer two different flushing options: .8 and 1.6 gallons per flush. You can even install hands-free faucets with low-flow aerators, and you have options to install showerheads that use less water.
Universal Design
Aging in place can be stylish. Universal designs are not only functional, they’re downright on trend. Walk-in bathtubs and showers are great for people with reduced mobility. Shower seats and towel bars provide safe bathing options. But none of it looks like a hospital bathroom anymore; practical and safe meet design and style in a gorgeous, modern combination.
Smart Storage
We live our lives in a hurry. That means we can’t waste time looking for makeup brushes, toothbrushes, and hairbrushes every morning. Taking its cue from the kitchen, bathroom cabinetry is beginning to be built with a place for everything — so everything can have a place. Drawer dividers are now essential in vanity designs. You can add custom pullouts specifically designed for hair dryers and curling irons. You can even install a medicine cabinet with electrical and USB ports to keep your devices charged.
Dimensional Tiles
Waterjet technology advances have opened up a new world for tile. Tile manufacturers now offer dimensional tiles that add a sophisticated style to any bathroom. Excellent as accent walls behind a vanity or in the shower, they’re also a practical choice for your wall as their material is more durable and water resistant than traditional options.
Freestanding Tubs
Freestanding tubs are still standing. Gaining in popularity over the past few years, they continue to be a first choice for many people. Without the platform of master bathroom tubs in years past, the freestanding tub is given the space to take simple center stage. Because of this, the shape of the tub is important. With several options, from oval to round to rectangular, the freestanding tub is more like a sculpture than any other item in the bathroom. And it handles center stage quite well.
Floating Vanity
The floating vanity seems to hover in the air, with an empty space of 12 to 18 inches below. This not only looks incredibly stylish, it’s also easy to clean. Plus, with a floating vanity, you have more freedom to choose the height to suit your own needs.
It’s Yours to Design
2017 is the year of bathroom style. Incorporate these elements into your perfect sanctuary. The bathroom is no longer a utilitarian room; it’s your oasis. Make it yours.
Gerety Building & Restoration can help you design and build your dream bathroom. With more than 35 years of experience and plenty of five star reviews, Gerety is the top choice for bathroom remodeling in the Westchester, NY or Greenwich, CT area. Give us a call today at (914) 248-1300 to discuss your project.
Nearly every home building or remodeling project, no matter how large or complicated, starts in exactly the same way. It all begins with an idea; a spark of creative vision that says, “What if we…”
The next step is to align yourself with others who have the skills and talents needed to catch sight of your vision and begin crafting it into a reality.
Meet Our Clients
In the case of this Greenwich remodeling project, our clients have no shortage of creative vision. Working in the fashion design industry, an appreciation for style and unique blends of color and texture come naturally.
Their moment, that spark of creative vision, came when they decided to completely remodel this Greenwich property and turn it into their “dream home.” It would no longer just be a house, but a completely customized place that perfectly reflected their personality and met their needs. And, not just their needs, but also the needs of their two young children. While many custom homes are built with an emphasis on the “wow factor,” this house needed to offer the practicality that daily life as parents calls for.
The property is not just a show piece, but a home.
Planning This Incredible Greenwich Home Remodel
Our client supplied the overarching vision, working closely with well-known architect and designer Robert Couturier. We at Gerety Building & Restoration were invited to help with not only the design work in an aesthetic sense, but also to analyze the plans from a practical construction perspective. This is an area of specialty for us. We’re happy to not only provide design and architectural services, but also to work closely with a professional that our clients are already collaborating with.
In this case, we worked hard to determine how best to make the developing sketches and plans come to life. This included a thorough structural analysis, and we also invited an engineer to come and ensure that this new construction would endure.
“Once the infrastructure is built, we can move forward with confidence that the finished product will provide lasting results and stand the test of time.” -Keith Gerety
This analysis, collaboration, and planning was one of the most involved aspects of the entire project, but it laid the foundation for a build that was successful in every sense.
Exterior Building and Remodeling – A Breathtaking Welcome
We’ve all heard the term “curb appeal.” It refers to that feeling you get, whether positive or negative, as you pull up to a home, peer out the car window, and look around.
The curb appeal for this property is undeniably breathtaking.
We also built a section of the house that connects the children’s wings to the master bedroom
The colors, materials, details, and architectural lines come together to create a simultaneously stunning and warm style. It’s inviting and friendly while still offering more than you can absorb without a second and third look.
Creating a Beautiful, Custom Kitchen
No longer seen as a purely utilitarian room, today’s kitchen is often one of the most prized areas of the home. The potential for customization and letting your personality shine through is nearly limitless thanks to the unique combinations of colors, textures, and patterns that you can include in your design.
Remember how we said that one of our client’s goals was to create a blend of beauty and function throughout their home? This kitchen really exemplifies that. Yes, the gleaming countertops and bright, clean look are stunning, but this is also a place where snacks will be prepared for the kids, or friends can gather and chat while the meal finishes cooking.
So Much Is Great About This Great Room
One of the major highlights of the home is the great room. As we mentioned above, the homeowners wanted a place where they could easily entertain and enjoy time with visiting friends. Their other goal was to have a space where they could feature their artwork. This phenomenal room meets both these needs, and does so in style.
Tall ceilings, exquisite trim, endless natural light, and the central fireplace all work together to make this a functional, beautiful great room.
From Teak to Italian Marble, These Bathrooms Can’t Be Missed
While this complete, top-to-bottom home remodel had many complexities and moving parts, acquiring the materials for the bathrooms was actually one of the most demanding aspects of the work we did.
To show you exactly why this was, let’s start in the master bath.
The gorgeous material you see above is marble. And, not just any marble, but hand-selected Italian marble chosen by a fabricator that we sent over to Italy. Once custom-fabricated and in place, it creates a smooth, classy interior that really is unlike any other.
One of the guest bathrooms has another very unique and beautiful material incorporated into the design.
Can you spot it?
If the rich flooring jumped out at you, you have a good eye. Although, you still get points for noticing any of the other eye-catching features. This guest bath has a lot of wonderful details to soak in, including:
Custom floating vanity
Arabescato Corchia marble countertop
The shower ceiling, bench, and walls are also made of Arabescato Corchia marble tiles
The shower floor consists of honed mosaic tiles made from limestone
The flooring in particular, however, is worth highlighting. It’s made from teak, a wood that you often hear in association with boating. Wood flooring in bathrooms is generally frowned upon, but because of teak’s dense, water-resistant nature, it gets along beautifully with wet environments.
This Greenwich Remodel Was a Pleasure!
Because this remodel involved the entire house, we wish we could take you on a complete walk-through. There’s something to see around every corner, from the children’s wing with its bedrooms, bathrooms and playrooms, right to the beautiful new turrets. Every inch was carefully planned to maximize style and function.
This project took 18 months to complete, from conceptualization to the finished product. We truly enjoyed this experience and appreciate being entrusted with such an incredible home transformation.
If we can help answer any questions you might have regarding home building, remodeling, and design, why not contact us at Gerety Building & Restoration? This is what we love to do, and we make sure our passion shines through every detail.
Bathroom remodeling ranks up there with kitchen remodeling in terms of popularity, and in some years, bathrooms rank #1 as the most common remodeling job. 2016 is predicted to be a hot year for bathroom remodeling projects, but what specific features will homeowners be asking for?
We’ve done the research for you, from our own experience with customer requests as well as examining reports from industry groups such as the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) and others. The result is this comprehensive guide to 2016 bathroom trends that will fill you in on the most popular requests predicted for bathroom remodeling in 2016.
Style
The main style driving bathroom remodeling in 2016 will be contemporary. Contemporary refers to style based on what is being created currently and what is popular right now. This means it is constantly changing, and what is contemporary one decade will not necessarily be contemporary in the next decade. Today’s contemporary style overlaps significantly with modern elements, which gives us this profile:
A minimalist take on design.
Simple shapes and clean lines.
Natural materials.
The use of the color white and other design elements like large windows and natural lighting that make the space lighter and airy.
Sophisticated yet comfortable look.
Contemporary style will drive the majority of bathroom remodeling projects in 2016, and homeowners who choose other styles will likely also incorporate contemporary elements.
Feel
Going a step further from design into how the design is perceived and experienced, in 2016 we expect to see a trend of bathrooms with a Zen-like feel. Bathrooms will be designed to feel like spas – places to relax and rejuvenate after a long day at work. The Zen-like feel is light, open and airy, using neutral and earthy tones as well as natural materials. 2016 Zen-like bathrooms will make you feel like you have stepped away from the hectic world outside and into your own private sanctuary.
Colors
The most popular colors for 2016 will be white and gray; these colors will likely be used in well over half of all bathroom remodels. In terms of solid colors, beige and bone color will not be as popular, but will also be used in a fair amount of remodels. Since these colors aren’t really part of today’s contemporary style, if you use them you will have to be careful with all other elements in order to achieve the contemporary/modern look. If this can’t be achieved, the bathroom risks looking dated.
Some homeowners will also start exploring color combinations instead of the predominant white or gray solids. However, color combos will stick to the contemporary colors, meaning black and white or black, white and gray will be the most popular combinations.
Just because you have a bathroom using mostly solid contemporary colors of white and gray doesn’t mean you can’t have a little hint of color here and there. NKBA noted a trend toward purple, lavender and lilac tones in the bathroom. Another trend that adds color to the bathroom is the trend of adding plants in the bathroom to give a pop of green color.
Layout
In 2016, the major layout trend will be the move toward creating a focal point in the bathroom. The bathroom is typically one of the most utilitarian rooms in the house, but that doesn’t mean it can’t stand out in terms of beauty and elegance. The idea of creating a focal point means to add specific elements that your eyes are just naturally drawn to. Two of the most common focal points for 2016 will be the large walk-in shower and the freestanding tub. We will discuss these elements in detail later, but it is also important to note that homeowners are typically not choosing the traditional tub-shower combination anymore. 2016 bathroom remodelers will either choose the large shower or the freestanding tub for one focal point, or if space permits, they will choose both in order to create two focal points.
Showers
The large walk-in shower will be the top choice among 2016 homeowners, some of whom will decide that no tub is needed. Large walk-in showers are perfect for today’s busy lifestyle where some people do not have the time or desire to soak in the tub. Large walk-in showers will achieve the spa-like feel with a number of elements, the most important of which is the heavy glass enclosure that allows you to view the inside of the shower and the impressive tile work (often floor to ceiling tile). Spa features such as multiple shower heads and steam showers will also be popular requests. Finally, there is also currently a growing demand for shower seats and benches inside the shower.
Tubs
Other home remodelers in 2016 will choose to add a tub to their bathroom, either as the only bathing unit or in combination with the large walk-in shower. The tub achieves the spa-like effect because it is often centered and on display in the bathroom, much like a sculpture or work of art. The most popular tubs will be free standing soaking tubs, but tubs with jets will also be chosen among some homeowners.
Sinks
In terms of sinks, 2016 will see a demand for better function with more countertop space and multiple sinks. The double sink is one popular option, where there are two separate basins and faucets with plenty of counter space. Another trend is the trough sink, which has one large basin but two sets of faucets. These sink layouts are designed to accommodate multiple people at once, and are perfect for master bathrooms as well as family bathrooms that are shared among multiple family members.
For countertop material, the top choices for 2016 will continue to be quartz and granite, with solid surface coming in as the third most popular request. For sink fixtures we expect to see requests for several metals including polished chrome, polished and brushed nickel, and even brass/warm copper colors.
Cabinetry
Under the sink, the wooden vanity will remain the number one choice among bathroom remodelers. Frameless cabinets (a European style) will be very popular, as will cabinets with raised panel doors and drawers.
Homeowners conducting bathroom remodels in 2016 – who have the space – will also be requesting additional cabinets in the bathroom. When space permits, extra cabinets are perfect for linen storage. Additional open-shelf cabinets throughout the bathroom will also be a common request.
Lighting
Lighting is sometimes an afterthought in remodeling projects because remodelers and homeowners have, in the past, seen lighting more as a functional element rather than a design element. However, in 2016, every component of the bathroom deserves attention to detail, and lighting is no exception. While there are plenty of lighting options to choose in 2016 remodels – from crystal chandeliers to hand-blown globes to drum pendants and more – the trend will be to incorporate large, bold lighting that is full of personality and ready to complement the other design choices.
Tiling
In 2016 bathrooms, tiling will have a major role in the large walk-in showers, where elegant and unique designs help to create a focal point. The most popular will continue to be subway tile, chosen in a variety of neutral and soothing colors including slate gray, winter white and cobalt blue. Remodelers will also put their tiling skills to work to create unique patterns and designs.
One alternative to solid color subway tiling is bamboo tile that is set up vertically to mimic the look of bamboo and create that Zen-like feel we mentioned earlier. Some homeowners are also having fun with tiles that have floral patterns to break up the other basic solid colors.
Flooring
Tiles will also be the most popular flooring trend for 2016 bathroom remodels. Homeowner favorites are going to be ceramic or porcelain tiles, using the same color and pattern ideas in other areas of the bathroom that create the contemporary look. Beyond materials, the biggest growing trend in 2016 bathrooms will be the use of heated floors. Radiant heat flooring can be installed underneath the tiles, helping to control the temperature of the room and to create a warm surface for bare feet.
Technology
A final 2016 bathroom trend to discuss is the incorporation of technology into the home, including the bathroom. There are a growing number of technological options, but some of the most popular for 2016 will be:
Water resistant music systems that allow you to stream music from your smartphone or audio device wirelessly into the bathroom. These music systems can be added to any area of the bathroom, but especially popular are technologies that add this capacity into the shower itself, including high-tech showerheads that play music.
Digital showering systems, which allow you to control your shower with the touch of a button, including water temperature, water pressure, steam and lights.
Efficient technology which reduces your water and/or energy consumption. Some options are low flow toilets, water efficient showerheads and water-saving bathroom faucets.
2016 is going to be an exciting year for bathroom remodels, with endless customization options that put homeowners in control. Use this list to gather your bathroom remodeling ideas, then speak to your contractor who can use your ideas to create the bathroom of your dreams.
Do you live in the Westchester, NY area or the Greenwich, CT area? Gerety Building & Restoration is waiting to create the perfect bathroom for YOU. With 35+ years of experience, a beautiful bathroom remodel portfolio and plenty of five star reviews, Gerety is the top choice for bathroom remodeling in the area. Give us a call today at (914) 248-1300 (Westchester) or (203) 531-8100 (Greenwich) so we can discuss your project.
A Bathroom Remodeling Trend for Those with No Interest in Bathing
If we went back in time and showed the title of this blog to our grandparents when they were young, they might have been afraid that future generations would hold a general disinterest in personal hygiene. Thankfully that’s not the case… The reality, however, is that there has been a major shift in recent bathroom remodeling trends that has left the tub out in the cold. And, to be more specific, this shift has taken place primarily in the master bathroom.
If so, you’ll never regret it. Bathrooms (along with kitchens) are huge selling points in a home, adding long-term value to your property investment. For more about why bathroom remodeling is valuable, take a look at another article we wrote: Is It Worthwhile to Remodel Your Bathroom?
Beyond simply the investment factor, a comfortable, modern bathroom also makes life a little more enjoyable every day. What could be better?
When you think of ways to add style to your home, what comes to mind? Interior paint colors? Architecture? The quality of your kitchen cabinets, appliances, and fixtures? These are all good and valuable answers, but here’s another one to consider: stone tile.
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