The way this California couple’s Minneapolis-area townhome came together was a little unusual, but it worked out well. Since they were living out of state before moving back to Minnesota for their retirement, their daughter, who lived near the townhome, took over the renovations for them. She hired interior designer Jami Ludens, who had completed work on the home of another relative she admired. This gave him confidence in Ludens’ skills, so he gave the designer free range on the project. The result is a prim bathroom featuring a mix of soft blue, cream, white and grey, tied together by a beautiful floral wallpaper.
bathroom at a glance
who lives here: a retired couple
Place: minneapolis area
size: 124 square feet (12 square meters)
Designer: Jami Luden’s Studio M Interiors
Contractor: Ben Garvin’s Garvin Homes
The existing bathroom hadn’t been touched since the 1980s, so the project was a down-to-the-studs renovation. ,The clients wanted a transitional design that was easy to maintain and mostly neutral,” says Ludens. “That’s why my color palette in this room has light colors everywhere.”
Trim paint: White Dove, Benjamin Moore
“The fun scalloped shower tile was my inspiration for this bathroom,” says Ludens. “I had just seen it in a showroom and knew I wanted to use it. The colors of these tiles are so beautiful that I wanted to base my design on them. They paired beautifully with the soft-blue-stained cabinetry color I wanted to use.
While there are a lot of light blue colors in the room, the designer considers them neutral. “Most people are afraid to use color,” says Ludens. “Soft tones can act as a neutral.”
The flush-mount ceiling light adds curved lines and matches a larger version of the fixture the Ludens chose for the primary bedroom.
Lighting Stability: Murray Feis Patrice Three-Light in the Deep Abyss
The cabinet profiles are beaded Shaker style. The dark finish on the cabinet hardware and faucets adds a modern touch to the transitional style mix.
The floor is ceramic tile in a variety of brown shades, laid in a herringbone pattern. ,The larger scale of this pattern plays well with the smaller scale of the scalloped shower tiles,” says Ludens.
cabinet makers: decoration cabinetsCabinet Hardware: Melon Knob, mtech
The designer chose oval mirrors to maintain a soft feel in the room. They provide a large enough reflective surface without covering too much of the beautiful wallpaper. They also reflect some of the oval shapes found in the petals in the wallpaper’s pattern.
Single-mount faucets save countertop space and make cleaning easier. Their Venetian bronze finish adds deep contrast to the softer colors in the room and coordinates well with the oil-rubbed bronze cabinet hardware.
Tap: Cassidy Single-Handle Bathroomdelta
Here’s a wider view of how the shower, toilet cubicle and linen cabinet come together. There is a pocket door in the toilet cubicle.
The shower stall measures 5 by 3½ feet. Ludens used inspirational scalloped tile around the top as an accent. The main shower tile is a subway tile with subtle variations in colors ranging from creamy white to light gray.
Throughout the process, the homeowner’s daughter would approve of Ludens’s selections, making very few changes. Once the project was finished, the clients moved into their forever homes. ,“These clients really let me create what I thought would be a great design and they loved it,” says Ludens. ,“Sometimes designers need to help clients find their style or show them a well-designed space that has been thoroughly thought out.”
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