Cleansing Experience Baths are about getting clean, so it stands to reason that bathroom design should be clean too. This Minneapolis master bath illustrates that logic with perfect clarity. Its symmetrical layout, pale color palette, and understated details all underscore the essential purpose of the room.The plan centers a simple vanity cabinet and freestanding tub under a north-facing shed dormer. Flanking this washing area, a water closet and a glass-tiled shower tuck under the steeper pitch of the main roof.
The theme is Modernist, says architect Jeff Nicholson, “but all the materials are used in as natural a state as possible.” The limestone floor has enough texture to feel warm underfoot. The maple vanity cabinet combines
Uncomplicated forms, natural materials, and an abundance of daylight give this bath the feeling of an outdoor room. Photo: Karen Melvin subtlety of grain with toughness and durability. The white marble countertop offers a gentler feel than tile, glass, or harder stones. Exposed fir timbers link the room visually to the structure of the house. Light, too, is a key ingredient. The dormer windows enjoy a treetop view to the north but supply faint illumination, so Nicholson lined the opposite wall with frosted glass panels that borrow south light from the adjacent stair hall. To block as little of that light as possible, he affixed a relatively small mirror to a timber post. “It’s sort of like when you’re camping,” he says, “and you hang the mirror on a tree in the woods.” Project Credits:
Builder/Architect: Choice Wood, St. Louis Park, Minn.; Project size: 125 square feet; Construction cost: Withheld; Photographer: Karen Melvin.
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Photo: Karen Melvin
Fittings/fixtures: Dornbracht and Duravit; Hardware: Valli & Valli; Lighting fixtures: Flos and Zaneen. Details For the tub that is the focal point of this bathroom, architect Jeff Nicholson had a rather basic idea—“essentially a bowl to hold water,” he says—but fulfilling that vision without blowing the budget was another matter. In the end, the nod went to a simple flared design in acrylic. “It isn’t a porcelain tub,” Nicholson admits, “but it also wasn’t over $10,000.” Raising the tub to take advantage of a backyard view proved a more straightforward job. “We took some of the scraps from the timber frame of the home to build the platform for the tub,” he says: a couple of 8x8s, three 2x6s, and done. Finished with spar varnish, the wood deck offers good barefoot traction, reasonably low maintenance, and “a warm place to put a towel down.”
