Kymberly's Blog

After - Vanity

Before - Vanity

This is one of the most incredible transformations I have ever seen.  Designer Mary Prager was given quite the challenge with Mike Greenfield’s extremely outdated yet spacious bathroom.

For the vanity area, Mike wanted something much more modern, and wanted some more functional storage.  The Riverside vanity by Bertch allowed him to keep the storage he had, but the ability to add drawers makes the space much more organized and functional, reducing the countertop clutter.  The dark wood pops against the lighter tile and countertop, and the rectangular undermount sinks add a sleek and clean finishing touch.  The medicine cabinets also added a significant amount of storage.  At 40″ tall, these Robern cabinets stretch across the length of the vanity.  The two mirrored cabinets above the sinks are flanked by light bars, and there is a decorative glass cabinet ganged in the middle.

Before - Tub

After - Tub

The tub and shower area made the biggest impact on me.  The biggest no-no in a bathroom is steps.  They are dangerous, especially when when the tile is wet.  There are so many different levels here, and the platform for the sunken tub causes a tripping hazard.  The floor was evened out, and Kohler’s freestanding Abrazo bath was put in the space.  The wall-mounted tub filler opens up the space and makes it feel very airy.

The shower was another area that was changed dramatically.  Before, the shower was cramped and had simply a single showerhead.  The shower trim was up so high it was difficult to reach, and it was set back due to a wall obtruding into the showering space.  With the trend leaning toward multiple-outlet showers, this shower was transformed into a dream shower.

After - Shower

Before - Shower

The new  shower, which is significantly larger, features a stationary shower head, a hand held shower head on a sliding bar and two body sprays.  The thermostatic valve and volume controls allows Mike to turn on simply one shower head, or all of them at the same time.

I haven’t mentioned much about the tile in this bathroom because unfortunately it did not come from Best, but I do have to say it is beautiful and very well done!  I love the contrast of the dark floors with the light walls, and the mosaic bands throughout the space tie all the colors in very nicely and add a great deal of interest to the space.

After I posted this on our Facebook page, I found out that the very talented QC Construction did this magnificent work.  Great job guys!

Like so many pre-war apartments in Manhattan, this small bathroom was in desperate need of a makeover.  As you can see, the room was covered with plain white tile, which from the look of it had been there a very long time.  The grout was covered with years of dirt and grime, and there was a tremendous lack of storage.  The toilet, original to the building, most likely used 5 gallons of water per flush.  That is over 3 times more than today’s standard of 1.28 gallons per flush!  The tub, also most likely original to the building, was too small to bathe in, and lacked the showering space the homeowners wanted.

Barbara Feinstein, owner of B Fein Interior Design of Scarsdale, waved her magic wand, and this fabulous and beautiful bathroom was created (below)!  The bathroom was completely demolished, re-built using every way possible to reduce the thickness of the wall to recover every inch.  She also had to change the swing on the entry door to make room for the new shower.

Storage was added in three ways.  First, the medicine cabinet was replaced with a new, deeper medicine cabinet.  Using two large cabinets instead of a single one or a tri-view allows for maximum storage while keeping symmetry in the space and keeping a seam out of the user’s face.  Storage was also added by replacing the pedestal sink with a vanity.  All of that enclosed space is great for storing extra toilet paper and other personal items.  Lastly, Barbara added a set of drawers that match the vanity (and medicine cabinet surround as a matter of fact!)  This additional storage fills what was a wasted space, and also gives additional counter space.

To keep with the pre-war architecture, Barbara selected a classic 3×6 beveled subway tile, capped off with a traditional chair rail.  The Carrara marble basketweave on the floor is very similar to what would have been used in the original bathroom.  The shower, which unfortunately is hard to see in this picture, features a bench and the same beautiful tile you see in the rest of the bathroom.

Beautiful job, Barbara!  I also love the red in the window treatment – it really pulls the color from the wood used for the vanity, drawers and medicine cabinet surround.

Every year Fairfield County creates a Designers’ Showhouse, where several local designers are chosen to renovate a room.  In 2011, this home was in Greenwich, and one of our fabulous customers, Elissa Grayer of Elissa Grayer Interior Design, was given a guest room and bathroom to work on.

Before

This bathroom was awful.  It looked like it hadn’t been renovated since the early 1980′s, with gray tile and fixtures, a hexagonal drop in sink and an extremely outdated light fixture and medicine cabinet.

Elissa used an eclectic mix of Kohler and Kallista fixtures, along with a beautiful patterned wallpaper and a new unique mirror to give this bath a completely new look.  Instead of replacing the tile, which would have cost a significant amount of time and money, Elissa brought in a tile refinisher and glazed all of the tiles white.  This gives a fresh new look – I even had to look twice at the tile because it looks so different!

Great Job Elissa!  We were happy to help!

After

Before - Sink View

Before - Appliance View

Last summer I wrote a blog about my kitchen and some of the changes I would be making in 2012.  Well, 2012 is here, and so is my new kitchen!

In order to work with the current cabinets, a few things had to change.  First I had to take care of that sink!  Because of the 90 degree cabinet, it was impossible to use a standard sink.  With the magic work of my contractor, we were able to re-build the cabinet to fit a standard rectangular sink.  The new cabinet looks like it has always been there – it is truly remarkable.  I was able to use Elkay’s ELU2115-10 with their new E-Dock and Perfect Drain technologies, and kept my beautiful Brizo Talo faucet with SmartTouch Technology.

For the counters, I knew the butcher block had to go.  I completely destroyed them after a few months, which also made me realize I was insane for wanting a marble counter instead!  So I searched for a granite that was unique and worked with my already selected backsplash, and came up with Minsk Green from Hindustan Granites out in Long Island.

After - Fridge View

After - Sink View

The next thing I changed was the hardware.  While the current hardware was nice, I wanted to use more traditional pieces in a satin nickel to match the faucet and give less contrast against the white cabinets.  I hit a rookie snag with the hardware – the new knobs stuck out a lot further than the old ones, making it impossible to close both of the cabinets to the upper left of the sink!  Thanks to the ease of working with Ikea cabinets, I was able to buy a new door front and quite easily change the hinges so one of the doors now opens in the other direction.  Problem solved!

Another great feature of Ikea cabinets is that they have glass front doors for many of the door styles, including my Stat cabinets.  I replaced the two doors next to the fridge with glass doors, which truly opens up the entire kitchen and adds interest to the space.

With the new backsplash and paint job, this project is almost complete!  The appliances are all being replaced in the upcoming months once I get my tax refund.  :)  I’d like to extend a special thanks to Dellon Sales, Splashworks, Arley Wholesale and Long Island Fabrications for making this kitchen possible!

As many of you have probably noticed, I have had a blast renovating the 1928 co-op I bought last year.  First I gutted my hall bath, keeping nothing except the original toilet and tub.  Then back in October I gave my master bath a major face lift and never posted about it!  So while I anxiously await my new kitchen (February blog), I thought I would share the Master Bath project with you.

Before Master

Right when I moved in, I knew that the pedestal and mirror were going to have to go.  While I love the look of a pedestal, I needed some concealed storage.  As for the mirror, it was up so high that I could barely see myself!  I replaced those items the first week I lived in my co-op.

Window Wall (Before)

While the tile work looks nice from afar, when you look closely you can see that this was a weekend project for a homeowner who thought he knew what he was doing.  There is caulk in all of the grout joints, nothing is straight, and the cuts are all crooked.  The worse was the wall to the left of the toilet – there was a caulk joint in the corner that started at about 1″ thick and got narrower the closer it got to the floor.    I would have loved to tear down all of the tile walls, but they tiled directly onto the plaster, so it would have been a HUGE project and a complete mess.  I also don’t think I would make my money back because to most people the tile looks fine.

Back in October I decided it was time to paint the bathroom.  While prepping the walls, I came across some serious plaster damage around the window.  I tried to patch it myself, but it was crumbling everywhere and needed to be professionally fixed.  Since I already hated the particularly messy and uneven tile wall, I decided to rip down all of the plaster and tile on that wall and expose the brick.  Don’t worry, I knew there was nice brick underneath because a lot of my neighbors have exposed their exterior walls.  While I had my contractor in there for the project, I had him add a medicine cabinet and shelf for extra storage, and well as crown molding to soften up the space.

After Master

The result is a calming, warm bathroom with lots of storage – and space!  The vanity is actually slightly smaller than the pedestal was, and the elongated tilting mirror adds height to the room and allows me to very easily see into it.  What we didn’t know going into this project was that we would gain almost 4 inches of space between the toilet and the exposed brick wall.  This was a huge added bonus, and makes the room feel much larger.

Window Wall - After

The glass shelf above the toilet gives me a place to keep soap, my toothbrush and toothpaste so I can keep my small vanity top clean and clear of clutter.  While the vanity is quite small, it gives me enough room for toilet paper and toiletries.  The medicine cabinet gives me additional storage for cleaning supplies and even more toiletries.

This “small” and fairly inexpensive renovation made me love my bathroom, and I hope you love it too!

As we welcome in a new year, I’d like to ask a favor from you, my 100+ followers.  While I truly appreciate the comments I receive on my blogs, I want more!  I would love to hear your feedback and opinions, as well as any questions you have about kitchen and bath design.  Let’s make this blog more interactive – ask questions and I will answer!  I would like  to write multiple posts each month, but in order to do that I need YOUR help.

Ask away!

Happy and Healthy New Year!

Clothing Fashion Meets Bath Design

Since this is my last post for 2011, I thought I would share with you some of my favorite new vignette designs we created this year.  Each year we strive to create designs that inspire, and this year was no different.  From new mosaic patters to bright colors, these designs have gotten some great responses.  While not all of these displays have made it to all of our showrooms yet, they can all be seen in our Somers showroom.

Houndstooth isn’t just for clothing anymore!  This display (left) features a houndstooth made out of White Carrara and China Black Marble.  The mosaic is mounted onto a 12″ sheet for easy installation and is made by American Stone, based in New Rochelle.  The Riverside vanity from Bertch adds a more contemporary look to the design, while the Carrara Marble top and traditional Rohl faucet with black handles make this design work in both traditional and contemporary homes.

Bold Color

Motivated by the discontinuation of the previous sink color and matching tile, we decided to change up some of the elements on this playful display (right) and bring in bold color.  We used Kohler’s Ledges sink in Iron Cobalt, and used matching cobalt ceramic tiles.  The small glass mosaics tie in the cobalt and white, while adding some other shades of blue as well.  The Villager vanity from Bertch has been one of our most popular sellers for years.

Ronbow Torino

This year we introduced a beautiful vanity line called Ronbow, and featured their Torino vanity with matching linen cabinet in one of our new displays (left).  We hadn’t shown a linen cabinet on display over 5 years, and this represents only one of dozens our vendors offer.  We chose a Corian countertop to show how much it can look like natural stone (this particular one is almost identical to Ephesus Dune limestone).  The faucet and light are from Newport Brass and show their new Venetian Bronze finish that is available throughout their line.  While the medicine cabinet may look very simple, it actually houses an electrical strip so you can hide away your electric toothbrush, shaver or curling iron.  Robern expanded it’s PL series to include an electrical option, and it’s a very reasonably priced upgrade!

Robern Vanity

Perhaps our most stunning new display this year features Robern’s new Vanity line and their M series medicine cabinet with a built in TV.  Robern has always been thought of as a medicine cabinet company, but when it comes down to it, they are a GLASS company.  They introduced the full-length cabinets and decorative glass options a couple of years ago, and last year introduced a line of glass and metal vanities.  Available in many different modular sizes, the vanity has really great accessories for ideal storage, including a hairdryer holder, electrical outlets and drawer organizers.  For the tile, we used a new porcelain line called “Layers” that has a similar look to vein cut travertine.

We added or improved about 5 more vignettes, so come in to see them!  Which one is your favorite?

Happy and Healthy New Year!

I recently went on a trip to Hong Kong and China – my first trip to the Far East.  I figured the bathrooms would be a bit different, and made it my mission to take photos of as many bathrooms there as I could without looking like a creep.  :)

Restroom at The Peak

In Hong Kong, the first thing that I noticed was the pride they have in their public restrooms.  The picture to the right here shows the public restroom at The Peak – the highest point on Hong Kong Island.  I highly recommend you stop there if you are ever in Hong Kong – it truly is amazing.  They cater to tourists there, so it’s not really surprising that the bathrooms would be nicer than most, but I was really impressed by the cleanliness and beauty of the space.  The soap and the hand towels are tucked away neatly under the mirrors, leaving the walls and counters completely clutter free.

The hotel we stayed at in Hong Kong was beautiful, but the rooms were TINY.  I didn’t  get any pictures of the space, but the bathrooms felt very much like a cruise bathroom.  Nothing out of the ordinary – the plumbing fixtures weren’t even Chinese – they were Hansgrohe!

The most interesting bathrooms (and designs in generally) were in Mainland China.  I had no idea what to expect there, but when we checked into the Panyu Hotel I was shocked by the beauty of the space!  The lobby and elevator had water-jet marble floors, beautiful crystal chandeliers, and incredible wall features.  The hotel rooms were huge, even by American standards, and the bathroom was gorgeous – fitted with Kohler fixtures!

Panyu Hotel Room

Panyu Hotel Lobby

Lobby Chandeliers

China Toilets

We went to a great Hibachi restaurant next to the hotel for dinner, and I was actually excited to see what the bathrooms looked like.  All of the stalls were full except for one, and when I went in, this is what I saw (right).  Typical American, I just waited for a stall with a real toilet to become free!  Thank goodness they had both.  I was not so lucky at the ferry station on my way back to Hong Kong.  I have heard that they have these toilets in Italy and throughout Europe – I don’t get it!

It was a great trip, and I strongly recommend visiting Hong Kong if you ever get the chance!

Winchester Mystery House

In 1884, the haunted wealthy heiress to the Winchester Rifle company was told by an oracle that in order for her to stop being haunted by the spirits of those killed with Winchester Rifles, she must build a home and NEVER stop.  She began building a Victorian mansion in San Jose, California, and construction lasted 24 hours a day, 7 days a week until her death 38 years later.

I toured this incredible mansion when I was out in San Jose two weeks ago, and it was the craziest thing I had ever seen.  There are staircases to no where, doors that open into solid walls, 6 kitchens and some of the most advanced heating and sewer systems of the time.  Now we were told not to take pictures, but I totally broke the rules (shhhhh, don’t tell on me!) because some of these things were just too cool not to show you.

Tile Fireplace

Front Sitting Room

The first thing that stood out to me was the amazing tile work on the fireplaces.  We sell similar tile now for up to $50 a PIECE!  Well over 100 years later, this tile looks brand new!  Probably because these fireplaces were most likely never used.  I kept picturing the artisans hand crafting this tile, and wondering if back then they used molds or if they hand carved every piece.  There were some incredible wood floors throughout the house as well, mixing different types of woods.  The floor in the sitting room took one craftsman an entire year to finish!

Shower Body

The coolest thing for me was seeing the plumbing in this house.  While toilets and bathtubs were already around at this time, apparently it was unheard of to have a shower.  This 160-room home had a single shower, shown in a photo below.  There were toilets located throughout the home, but they were each in tiny little rooms, some with sinks and some without.  I was very disappointed that many of the faucets had been removed, because it would have been cool to see the different decorative faucets they used.  The original claw foot tub, which seemed to be made of wood, was absolutely incredible to see as well.

Original Claw Foot Tub

Old Toilet

We got to go through two of the kitchens, one of which had this incredible ORIGINAL stove still in it.  It also had a huge sink, also shown below, which was made of soap stone and then enameled.

I highly recommend checking out this house if you ever make it to San Jose.  For more information, here is a link to their website!

Original Stove

Original Kitchen Sink

We just changed out one of our bathtub displays in our Somers store, and it got me thinking about all of the new and exciting freestanding bathtubs.  Freestanding baths have gained momentum, and are being featured in home magazines everywhere.  I’m not talking about traditional claw-foot tubs either.  These baths are made out of stone, cast iron and solid surface materials similar to a Corian, and come in some very funky shapes!

Kohler Reve Freestanding Bath

This is Kohler’s new Reve freestanding bath.  It is made of cast iron, and is available with a white or dark gray base.  It coordinates with the entire Reve suite, and is available in two widths.  This bath is both contemporary and transitional, and so beautiful!  This photo doesn’t do it justice – you have to come see it in person.  Like the look, but want an undermount bath?  No problem – the Reve bath is also available as an undermount, and even has the option of chromatherapy and a BubbleMassage!

Kohler also introduced a new material called Lithocast.   The exclusive Lithocast solid surface material has a matte finish that looks like stone, but feels warm to the touch and is easy to clean and maintain.  They created three freestanding baths with this material, and I can only assume they will add to the collection.  Below are two of the three designs.

Kohler Aliento

Kohler Abrazo

Want something even more special?  Check out Stone Forest’s carved stone baths!  These baths certainly make a statement, and are available in a variety of stones.  They can also custom make baths to suit your needs – they can even make whirlpools!  Check out the shots below.

What’s your favorite bath???

Stone Forest Old World Bath in Multicolor Onyx

Stone Forest Papillon in Bianco Carrara Marble