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Spring officially sprang yesterday, I’m not sure how that came around so fast. For what has felt like the slowest of winters we appear to be on the verge of renewal before I expected and a lot later than I hoped all at the same time if that makes sense! Anyway, all of which is to say I have taken a break from the blog for longer than I intended. I have had this in draft for so long that I’ve actually just completed this project this week, though I’m not ready to share it yet as I’m waiting on a few last accessories including a made to order mirror which won’t be here til late spring, but I will be posting a teaser of how it’s looking so far, and there’s a video tour of the room so far on Instagram.

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The Before – How the bathroom looked when it was decorated five years ago:

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So the downstairs bathroom, the tiniest space in the house and long neglected if I’m honest. When we moved in I put up some wallpaper, bought a tap, painted the woodwork white and used up some excess bathroom tiles for the surface. It was fine (when you didn’t look too hard, especially at the awful tiny window with rotten mismatched glass). But I always had a feeling that really small spaces like this are built for being able to go BIG design-wise  in a way you may not in other rooms you spend loads of time in, that they should feel a bit decadent, bold, use strong colour and feel a little luxurious too.

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I spent many, many fevered hours planning exactly the right elements for this space, choosing tiles I’d love forever, a daring colour that wouldn’t start to annoy over time, splashing out on a light from one of my favourite brands (&Tradition) when everything else fell slightly short of the mark. I pondered each element, and finally sorted the horrible window glass, but perhaps one of the biggest differences was a diy up-cycle of an awkward utilities cupboard which I’m excited to show you. 

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//   Piazza Geo Gris Porcelain terrazzo tiles, Ca’ Pietra   //   Paint Colours (all Proper good paint); Carter’s Rose, Amara’s Slipper, Maple’s Cloth   //   Grib Tray Cashmere by Ferm Living at Heals   //    Fine Edge Organic Mirror, Heals   //   Malia Striped Towel, La Redoute   //   Ferm Living Towel holder, Heals  // Ferm Living Toilet Roll Holder, Nest   //   Pine reed moulding, Wickes   //   Muuto Dots Door hook in Ash, Utility Design   //   Bamboo porcelain tile, Ca’ pietra   //   & Tradition Flowerpot pendant, David village Lighting. 

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When I started to plan my mood board, there were two things I knew I wanted, the first was a soft but direct pink, one that reminds me of Barbara Cartland and carnations, a sort of fifties nostalgic pink, the second thing I wanted was terrazzo, it’s been my favourite material for years, and worked so well in the kitchen. I was going for an Accidentally-Wes-Anderson vibe. I’ve been really lucky to work with purveyors of luxury artisan tiles Ca’ Pietra on this space, and have used their new paint range Proper Good Paint. I’m also going to be working with stylish homeware stalwarts Heals on the final touches for the space.

I’ve been so pleased with the result and each element of the mood board has worked out exactly as I hoped. I can’t wait to show you the finished result, here’s a sneak peak below.