The San Francisco home that houses this bath dates from the teens of the last century, but the inspiration for its current remodel is older still: Ocean Beach, which is within walking distance. Architect Dan Phipps chose the limestone floor for its similarity in color and texture to beach sand, green glass for its suggestion of both sea-water and sand-tumbled beach glass. With the exception of the figured sycamore cabinets, Phipps says, “Everything from the floor up is glass.” The walls are covered with glass tiles; the countertops, tub deck, and tub facing are sheets of frosted glass. Two glass panels form a toilet alcove. Another delineates a minimalist shower enclosure. (To shed water in the right direction, Phipps says, the room’s entire floor is sloped toward the drain.)
The room’s single window is also frosted glass—for privacy—as are lighting strips at the tops of both mirrors. “The back side [of each mirror] was sandblasted to take the silver off,” Phipps says. “Inside the medicine cabinet, you change the bulb.” The detail is deceptively simple, and entirely in keeping with Phipps’s intent, which he describes as “Just seeing what you can do with the minimum amount of materials to get the maximum bang for your buck.”
Project Credits: Builder: Stroub Construction, Sausalito, Calif.; Architect: Dan Phipps, San Francisco; Project size: 103 square feet; Construction cost: Withheld; Photographer: John Sutton.
Resources: Bathtub: Waterworks, Circle 400; Cabinets: Architectural Forest Enterprises, Circle 401; Fittings/fixtures: American Standard, Circle 402 and Kroin, Circle 403; Floor: Stone Selection, Circle 404; Glass tiles: Ann Sacks, Circle 405; Hardware: Doug Mockett Co., Circle 406.
Details The glass tiles that cover the walls of this bath came out of a box. Getting glass counters, screens, and tub-deck surfaces in the same watery green, though, took some doing. The final color of the frosted glass panels is in part a function of glass thickness, architect Dan Phipps explains, and it shows only after sandblasting. “The thicker it is, the more green it is.” Getting the perfect shade, he says, “took a little bit of experimentation. We went through three samples to get the right match.”
