Chelsea Neighborhood Inspires Elegant, Urban Bath

I spent an awesome couple of days in New York during fashion week as part of a bunch of 19 designers and bloggers. Among our activities was a design challenge: we were divided into groups and had to design a bathroom predicated on a given area in New York. It was a part Project Runway and part The Apprentice as we ran around our community, looking for inspiration and debating about the design.

We took pictures of design, wrought-iron work, lifts, building lobbies, man-hole covers, looking to capture the essence of what would eventually become our Chelsea-inspired bathroom. Here is a little recap of this procedure, and suggestions for how you can find the appearance, too.

B•D•G Design Group

This bathroom epitomizes the look we were heading for: tasteful, classy and mature, with little vintage Deco influence thrown in.

The wrought-iron fencing and architectural details about the facades of all Chelsea’s buildings were among the first items to inspire the group. We immediately knew we needed a solid, graphic tile layout to remind us of the wrought iron we saw, not to mention marble to get a bit of elegance.

Vetromarmi Danse Lucido

Our first stop for substances was a tile shop. When it comes to bathrooms, that is typically my first inspiration. Find a tile that you love and the bathroom practically designs itself.

ANN SACKS

Michael S Smith Cosmati Stone Mosaic Tile – Ann Sacks Tile & Stone

This laser-cut mosaic tile is directly inspired by metalwork. This form of material defines a bathroom, and everything else has to be weighed against this primary inspiration. In the tile store we were like kids in a candy shop, but we finally focused and solidified our first choice: a graphic tile onto the ground only, and easy, large-format Calacatta marble on the walls.

The Lawson Design Studio

If you don’t want your bathroom to look like it’s brand-spanking new, consider mixing metal finishes. Don’t be reluctant to have polished nickel faucets and antique brass mirror or light, it gives a room personality and a collected look.

Waterworks

The Normandy Sink

This magnificent sink is just dripping in elegance and style. It’s like an ideal accessory for a costume.

Rebekah Zaveloff | KitchenLab

Tony Duquette – California Sunburst Chandelier – $8,695

I am crazy about this light fixture; it reminds me of a ’70s contemporary interpretation of a Deco piece. Glam with a sense of humor. New York is such a melting pot, our bathroom could not be serious and historical. It needed to have something sudden thrown in.

International Marble & Granite

Calacatta Oro

Nothing says timeless elegance like Calacatta marble, whether it’s used as a countertop in slab form or as tiles, the gold and grey veining is a classic favorite.

Waterworks

Empire Freestanding Rectangular Bathtub

A vintage style bathtub completes the look. We went for this pedestal-style bathtub rather than a clawfoot.

ANN SACKS

Artiste Stone Mosaic – Ann Sacks Tile & Stone

Strong geometric-patterned tile in neutral black, white and brown nearly has a Deco feel. This is just another way the bathroom almost took, in place of the natural shapes of this wrought iron.

Steven Miller Design Studio, Inc..

This tile which might easily be used on the ground of a bathroom for a solid graphic statement. Again, we are sticking to the classic neutrals and higher contrast drama of white and black.

Gast Architects

Afraid to do your entire floor at a pattern? Elect for the expression of a rug or at runner of patterned tile to get a bit of old-world glamour.

California Home + Design

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