Transforming a principal bedroom and bathroom in a Toronto condo

When our clients came to us, they were looking to not only modernize their old North Toronto condo, but to completely redesign the small space and make it more functional to better suit their needs and lifestyle. Their condo was built more than 40 years ago and lacked a lot of the features found in newer builds. Their vision was simply to create a space that was calm and relaxing to come home to, with a functional layout and great storage that reflected the more informal, “boho” design they loved.

The first area we attacked was the principal bedroom and bathroom. This space originally consisted of a bedroom that was disproportionately cluttered with furniture, a very small two-piece “ensuite” principal bathroom that lacked any space for a shower or proper storage in its 24-in. vanity, and an oddly shaped and under-utilized adjacent walk-in closet. Creating a proper three-piece bathroom became our focus, as we started designing our client’s new space. We expanded the original two-piece bath space by removing the wall to the adjacent walk-in closet. This allowed us to now create a large walk-in shower, with a step up as we needed to allow for required plumbing and drains.

Personalized and relaxing space

As our client loves blue, we had fun with introducing various shades of the colour to create a personalized and relaxing space. The new large richly toned blue vanity boasts deep drawers and a tall cabinet hutch, the latter of which was kept white to blend with the walls and avoid taking up visual space in the upper half of the bathroom. A beautiful blue vertical-stacked tile creates a feature wall that is visible through the shower glass, and the patterned floor tile is a fun, stylized design which adds interest and detail without overwhelming the room.

The hardware and lighting provide a nice punch of black and gold to this bright space. We opted for a wood countertop for the vanity, which may seem a bit unusual for a bathroom, but we loved the natural, organic element it introduced to the space. The result is a modern and eclectic look which we carried through to the rest of the bedroom.

To create the haven our clients were looking for, we chose to adopt a “less is more” approach to the design of their principal bedroom. Unfortunately, this bedroom was neither overly large, nor overly bright. We continued with our client’s love of blue, this time using a wonderfully warm and inviting shade as our main wall colour. Simple wall panelling was added to create a focal point for our bed and eliminate the need for a formal headboard.

Proper and functional storage

As the poorly configured original walk-in closet had been eliminated to expand the bathroom, we opted to introduce custom wall units throughout the bedroom to provide proper and functional clothing storage. A platform bed with built-in storage drawers was also introduced and dressed in organic washed linens to create an inviting space to relax at the end of a long day. More storage was incorporated in the room with customized lower built-in wall units that replaced the need for any dressers. These lower units were designed to provide personalized storage for everything from shoes and purses to jewellery and clothing.

We also continued the relaxed, organic vibe of the principal bathroom and reintroduced warm wood into the construction of this piece. This added the perfect touch of interest, texture and cohesion to the overall space.

In the end, these are now two new, current and functional spaces with tons of well-thought-out storage solutions; as well as being great stylized spaces that are not only relaxing but are reflective of our client’s personality and love of blue.