A Clear Bathroom

This is a bathroom at the Fairmont Hotel in Singapore. I thought it was an ingenious way to treat a small bathroom--everything was glass, even the counter top.  It probably isn't practical for a home bathroom because not only would the glass counter be hard to maintain, the design only works if you can keep it as sparse and neat as a hotel bathroom--meaning no toiletries on the counter, or any other clutter that comes with regular life. 

But it works for a hotel where you'd probably spend only a few days, and keeping it neat and clean isn't really your problem.

 

I like the idea of the shower being partitioned off together with the bathtub. It's a space saver that also allows more elbow room while showering. Notice too that the shower controls are on the wall nearest the stall opening--you can turn on the water before even getting under the shower.

The glass partition of the toilet doesn't serve any purpose except to terminate the glass counter which would otherwise be floating, exposing an unsafe sharp corner.

The all-glass strategy makes this bathroom feel spacious. What I also found very interesting were the vanity lights. The whole mirror protruded about 5 inches from the wall, creating a space to embed a fluorescent tube on each side. A narrow frosted glass panel is hinged from the inside and opens up like a cabinet door for easy access to the bulb. Flat chrome strips form a border on it tying it into the main mirror.  I thought the application was pretty clever specially since it's hard to source sleek vanity fixtures.

I kept telling myself I needed to photograph the details but kept putting it off. Now I don't have those pictures.

Before coming to the Fairmont, we were at the Marina Bay Sands, which I admit is very impressive, but is also circus-like with so many people walking through the lobby. Since the place is massive, the elevators can be a trek away depending on which tower your room is located.

In comparison, the Fairmont is compact so more design tricks are needed to create a feeling of spaciousness, like this "clear" bathroom. After being in the middle of all the activity at the busy Marina Bay Sands, I appreciated the intimate feel of the smaller and quieter Fairmont.

Warm versus Cool

 

This is what I had in mind for the bathroom renovation. I'm only looking at the marble counter color and the contrasting white cabinets. I've always liked Emperador dark brown because it's "old world". So naturally, to get a nice light effect, I was going to pair it with white tiled walls and an beige tiled floor.

The look of white cabinets, after having dark or beige ones, is a refreshing change and will create a major impact. It also works the other way around. If you're tired of your white cabinets, do wood grain in modern straight lines. it'll be a welcome change. Going from dark to light, and from light to dark--It's all just a cycle.

 I totally love this cool blue-grey look

Anyway, mom mentioned that she really likes her blue-grey towels and bathmats and wants to continue using that color for a looong time. Ooops, that's a totally different color temperature. Here I was  thinking of something warm, and she was thinking of something cool (but didn't express it that way).  So much for "communicating with your client".  Blue accessories desired, therefore it shall be a cool color scheme!

I would never think of blue for me because I just naturally gravitate to warmer colors--yellows, mustard, ochre, burnt sienna, beiges, etc. After some online image research I see the possibilities. It really looks cool and relaxing. The walls in this bathroom look like Carrara marble while here they call it Kolakata marble (one supplier called it that, and spelled it that way too). I know Romblon marble looks just like it too. I would use it sparingly though, just for the countertops and maybe baseboards, otherwise the bathroom might looks like a mauseleum!

We will be able to fit in a dressing counter with an upholstered stool underneath so it will be nice to play with a print similar to this, and slip-covered with white terrycloth.

And this above is very similar to the layout of the current bathroom. Looks very promising. So it's decided,  everything will just be a cool white and the accent colors will be the towels, bathmats and other accessories.  If I use a rainshower, we might not even need a door, so it will just be open. For a woman's bathroom though, I prefer an adjustable-height telephone shower on a bar, for those days that you want a quick shower without having to shampoo your hair (the guys don't get this concept).

blue photos are from here.

Now to scout for some chrome faucets and lighting fixtures.  I already have some in mind.