Streamlining Tight Spaces Bathroom

A townhouse in Greenwich Village designed for a composer, an artist, and their son honors both the family's Japanese heritage and its hectic travel-heavy lifestyle with a serenely modern bathroom design.

In a tight bathroom, streamlining the space gives the impression of more room.

The couple wanted to indulge in their tradition of taking long, soaking baths but also wanted a separate shower and a double-sink vanity. The architect obliged with a soaking tub joined to the shower in interlocking units to save space.

Tub and shower stand side-by-side to conserve space.

The tub surround projects into a frameless shower to form a small ledge that the two fixtures share, an engineering tactic that made a 5-foot-4-inch tub and separate shower possible in the limited space.

Pocket doors at either end of the bath keep the room visually simple and the limited floor space unobstructed. To further streamline the space, medicine cabinets, mirrors, and shelves are frameless and built into walls.

To minimize the visual impact of the double sinks, a wall-hung vanity appears to float over the floor. A wall-hung toilet produces a similar effect. Overhead, a skylight also helps create a more spacious, open feeling.

A soothing palette was achieved with faux-limestone facing on the tub surround and shower walls that complement the slate floor tiles and light maple cabinetry.

As another space-saver, storage shelves are built into the bathroom wall.

The maple itself was chosen to match the woods used elsewhere throughout the home, a detail that further enhances the feeling of flowing continuity. To bring in more light, so important to eliminating that closed-in feeling, a light shaft, two stories high, takes the idea of a skylight to a whole other level. In a neutral-toned bathroom, choosing one or two vibrantly colored focal points can really complete the look.