Renovating Two Bathrooms and a Cloakroom in Arnold, Nottingham

The owners of this detached Arnold home were sick of their outdated and problematic bathrooms. With poor ventilation and persistent dampness on the wall and ceilings, they brought in renovation specialist Newton Fraser to breathe new life into their two bathrooms and cloakroom. 

Developing a new bathroom design

Newton started by listening to the clients and understanding exactly what they wanted. They explained that they wanted a complete overhaul, except for the tiled floor, which they wanted to preserve.

Bathroom renovation

Newton and his team then began removing all the existing sanitary-ware, fixtures, and radiators, while avoiding causing any damage to the existing tiled floor. “We replaced all the furniture with modern vanity units, sanitary-ware, and fixtures,” explains Newton. “However, the tiled area ended up being larger than the previous version, so we had to extend that.” Additionally, “we treated the dampness issues and gave the walls and ceiling a fresh new look with quality Bathroom paint.”
Wanting new amenities to go with the updated aesthetics, Newton sourced and installed modern heated towel rails in all three rooms and made sure to install these through the wall, not the floor, to keep the tiles intact. 
“We even installed new recessed LED down-lights and illuminated mirrors complete with demisters and shaving points,” elaborates Newton. 
“In both bathrooms, the client asked us to swap the toilets and basins around, which was complicated by the need to preserve the existing flooring,” reveals Newton. Used to dealing with challenges on the job, he was quick to come up with a solution: “The design that incorporated vanity units meant that any breakage to the floor tiles that was necessary to enable the toilet and basin swap over, could be hidden from view underneath the units.” Towards the end of the project, Newton had to source similar tile to fill in small holes that couldn’t be covered with the vanity units, and you can’t even notice the difference!

Included in the design were recessed alcoves in the shower and bath areas that would act as shelves for all their shower needs. “This required avoiding existing pipework behind the walls,” reveals Newton, highlighting that even the simplest of additions need to be well thought out and planned in advance, taking every possible aspect into consideration. 
“Originally, the client wanted clean lines and believed the modern look would only work if everything was white in colour,” says Newton. “However, we suggested grey wall tiles to contrast with the white and explained how this would bring the existing grey tile floor into the aesthetic.” After all, what is the point of a renovation specialist if they are not challenging you to consider new options? “We also suggested using white grout in the grey brick effect tiles that really bring all the elements together,” reveals Newton. 
For the cloakroom, Newton suggested using a corner basin with a vanity unit, as well as a corner cabinet as they lacked storage options in that room. With the ceramic wall tiles, a fresh coat of paint, and brand new plaster, the rooms were completely transformed.
“The clients were extremely accommodating with the levels of disruption involved, but we were able to programme the work to avoid any major downtime for the facilities during the day, which was very important as their children were on holidays at that time of the project,” says Newton. In the end, even the clients agree that the result was well worth the wait!

Final thoughts

“I really like the corner basin and mirror cabinet we sourced for the cloakroom,” reveals Newton. “We also sourced specific mirror cabinets for the main bathrooms to incorporate illumination and shaving points. I particularly liked the grey metro tiles and antibacterial white grout we used as they complement the existing tiled floor very well,” tells Newton when asked about his favourite aspects of the end result.

Thinking of renovating?

If you would like to get started on your own renovation project, get in touch with a Refresh renovation specialist today for a completely free consultation!