A spa-like 10 by 40 foot bath addition to the master suite features his and her vanities, a soaking tub, a doorless walk-in shower, and a stunning indoor water feature.
The bathroom created by Washington, D.C.-based Landis Construction for Sharon and Richard Janda can be summed up in one word: awesome.
The homeowner had her own word to describe her approximately 240 square-foot bathroom addition. “She just wanted a wow bathroom,” recalls Paul Irwin, team leader for the project. Together with the owners and LandisÍ director of design, Armin Bondoc, the team created a room that is spa-like in its minimalism, but where no detail was spared attention.
According to Irwin, “what was there was a 1960s construction largely unmodified since the house was built.” The couple asked Landis to update the bathroom as part of an overhaul of the entire master suite. (They also remodeled the kitchen.) “Sharon was pretty specific that she wanted a Zen-like bathroom,” says Irwin. “She wanted to use natural materials and colors. She wanted it to be a place that would be welcoming in the morning and very open to the master bedroom.”
After some consideration, it became apparent that the bathroom of the Janda’s dreams could not be created within the confines of their existing home, so Landis designed and built a 40 by 10 foot addition that restructured the closet space, a home office, and the spatial relationship between the bathroom and bedroom. The simple shed roof structure is sensitive to the original architecture and is punctuated by skylights to bring natural light into the room. The toilet is housed in a small private enclave at the end of the long, skinny addition, but the remainder of the room is completely open – there isnÍt even a door between the bedroom and the bathroom itself.
Sharon Janda explains that as empty nesters, privacy is not an issue. What she and her husband Richard wanted was something sleek and open, something that went against the grain of the typical cluttered home. “I like things that are cool and different,” says Janda, who works part-time in the fashion industry.
“My personality is that I don’t like standard things; I like to put my mark on things in terms of style.”Taking his design lead from Janda’s interest in clean lines and beautiful materials, Bondoc incorporated elements of stone, slate, wood, and glass into the rectilinear structure. The cabinetry is custom made of cherry and features special built-in storage for the everyday necessities–toothbrushes, hair dryers, razors–so the line of the cabinets is not cluttered by cords or sundry items. Transom windows over the vanities provide ample natural light so that the homeowners hardly need to flip on a light during the day. Honed slate provides a smooth and stunning floor surface. The slate is flecked with copper to bring complementary red tones into the room.
Cherry cabinetry features special built-in storage for such items as tooth brushes, hair driers, and razors.
At one end of the suite is a large circular tub–the room is balanced by a show-stopping circular shower at the opposite end. It is built with all the sensibility of an exterior shower, but with the luxury that can only come from the indoors. The shower has no door, features a large opaque glass window to the outdoors, and the floor is covered in smooth river stones that Janda says feel wonderful on her feet. The ceiling of the shower is lit by tiny LED lights that glow like stars. The contemporary teak showerhead and body jet unit is made by a Spanish company. According to Bondoc, “I thought it would be perfect because it carries the wood element into the shower.”
“[Sharon] wanted a water feature that they could see from the bathroom,” says Bondoc, explaining the large fountain that flows from the bathroom into the master suite. “That’s how we came up with the idea of having the shower area double as a water feature on the bedroom side.” The fountain drips down the glass mosaic wall of the shower and into a pool of river stones, creating connective energy between the bedroom and bath.
Despite the area’s openness and the lack of doors, Sharon says the thoughtful curvature of the walls and placement of windows is just enough that she never feels exposed. Even when her husband wakes up at 5:30 a.m., she rarely hears him, and the LED lights provide enough of a glow that he can prepare for work without disturbing her. Unlike the previous bath that didn’t have enough closet space and didn’t reflect the couple’s contemporary style, the new design creates a synergy between the rooms.
“Everything just works,” says Janda. “Now we have a house that we really enjoy and can be proud of. We like living in this space because everything works together.”
Christianna McCausland is a Contributing Editor for ChesapeakeHome.Contacts:
Landis Construction: landisconstruction.com or 202-726-3777
