Styled in Stone—Design Awards 2015 Gold, Bathroom $30,000 to $60,000

Bathroom $30,000 to $60,000

Michael Nash Design Build & Homes, Fairfax, Va.

Project goals: Update the bathroom of a 25-year-old colonial. The clients wanted a large walk-in shower with no threshold, better lighting, and more storage, allowing them to age in place. They also wanted the bath to have a bit of an outdoor feel.

Solutions: Borrowing space from an adjacent closet, the remodeler enlarged the existing shower stall, building up and waterproofing the bathroom floor to make the shower level with the rest of the room. The bath was widened to enlarge the commode area, which now has a frosted-glass pocket door and built-in storage space. Incorporating stacked stone and river rock gave the room the desired outdoor ambience.

Stacked stone covers the feature wall surrounding the free-standing tub and back wall of the toilet. Recessed and hanging shelves have low-voltage backlighting. A heavy, floor-to-ceiling glass panel open to the tub area on one side encloses the shower, which has upgraded fixtures.

French doors, matched to the vanity, let in natural light. The vanity features a rare granite-slab countertop, vessel sinks, and a river-rock backsplash. Linear niches and pendant lights complete the contemporary look.

What the judges said: “Great use of different textures and a combination of colors.”

Updates to this bathroom provide a no-threshold shower, better lighting, and more storage to allow the homeowners to age in place