"From Cave to Happy Place."

Find out how our client worked with New Spaces to transform a dark, dingy guest bath into a bright, inviting space quickly and affordably.

Q: A bathroom is a very personal space—what wasn’t working for you?
A: Everything. I was embarrassed by the look of it — dark with no windows, a vanity with no storage, an awful fluorescent light. It felt tiny. You wanted to spend as little time as possible in it.

Q: I can feel your pain. What was your vision for it?
A: I wanted it to be a happy place. We have a Pottery Barn look for our home and wanted the bath to have the same style — a brighter and lighter feel, a shower instead of a tub, more storage for sure.

Q: How did you communicate your ideas to New Spaces?
A: I cut out pictures of bathrooms I liked and showed them to Kathe from New Spaces and she asked a lot of questions. She really wanted to understand my thinking, which I really appreciated. They showed me two drawings that addressed my needs in a very creative way.

Q: I can’t imagine how they did it.
A: They took out the tub and replaced it with the coolest shower. Not some cracker jack box — a real shower. They added wainscoting to the walls to match the look and feel of our decorating style. The storage was tripled in size. And one of the best things — we installed a solar tube that draws light in from the outside. You don’t even have to turn on the light to see. The bath feels one and a half times bigger than before.

Q: Any other cool design features you like?
A: We used 8-inch marble tiles on the floor laid out diagonally. When you walk in they look like diamonds. It’s a great look that matches the diagonal layout of our furniture in the rest of the house.

Q: What colors did you choose?
A: White and seafoam green to keep it bright. We use taupe as an accent for towels and accessories.

Q: Sounds like you spent a lot of money. Were you able to control your budget?
A: I told Kathe my budget upfront and she really respected it — she didn’t recommend anything that was going to add cost. They worked hard to make sure the preliminary drawing reflected my budget. That was important to me.

Q: The results sound wonderful, but what was the process like?
A: Good question. We had a bad remodeling experience in the past, so I have high expectations. Kathe spent half a day with me picking out paint colors, fixtures and materials—I’m very busy so that was extremely helpful. Bernie, the lead carpenter was fantastic — I really trusted him.

Q: Fantastic in what way?  
A: Bernie cleaned up at the end of every day and really respected our home. He was quiet in the morning so he didn’t disturb our children. His workmanship was meticulous. He updated me on progress and did a great job communicating. Overall the process was fast, efficient and within our budget. It couldn’t be better.

Q: Your guests and kids must spend a lot more time in the bathroom.
A: You would too.