Bathroom remodels often involve making cramped spaces larger or more usable. But in this primary bath in Ken Caryl, space was definitely not the issue. At almost 400 square feet, the bathroom, which includes the primary closet, was bigger than many bedrooms. But the footprint was decidedly funky.
The twin vanities and sinks were on opposite walls, with nearly 16 feet of empty space between them. The closet was 14 feet long but only 6 feet wide. And the tub deck on the wall opposite the closet was “super huge,” according to the bathroom’s principal designer, Bonnie Bagley Catlin, founder of Signature Designs in Lone Tree. “Basically, the room was just a vast, open space,” she says.
There was also another complication. The bathroom appeared to have not been remodeled since the house was built in 1994. The vanities were heavy, dark wood. The shower looked its age, with a dated gold metal door and eight-by-eight-inch white tile.
The new homeowners wanted a design refresh and a more functional space. So Bagley Catlin reconfigured the footprint while using the existing plumbing. She moved the twin vanities to the tub area and shifted the tub to one of the vanity spaces. The toilet room and shower remain in their original locations, but Bagley Catlin expanded the shower, added a window, and partially opened it up to the rest of the room.
To remedy the awkward closet layout, Bagley Catlin turned what was once a narrow shoe closet in the hall between the primary sitting room and the bathroom entrance into a coffee bar, complete with custom white oak cabinets, a mini fridge, and a hidden microwave. She also reconfigured the main closet from a rectangle into a square, creating space for a central island and a washer and dryer.
“Now, the flow and the function go together,” she says.
