The Powers Place: Bathrooms

June 15, 2022

CHRISSY:

When Sam and I started conceptualizing our designs for the bathrooms in our home I got overwhelmed. My mind was oversaturated with and ideas from Pinterest and Instagram to the point that I had no idea what I actually liked or what would represent us as a family. I reached out to my friend & designer Julie from @ampersandliving to help me with my design overwhelm. Julie created Style Guides for each of our bathrooms to help Sam and I choose the different styles for each of our bathrooms. We took Julie’s Guides and replicated them as best as we could with our budget and what we could actually get our hands on since it was 2021 and supply-chain issues had just started to happen.

At the beginning of 2021 it had been about 6 months since we designed our bathrooms and still nothing was happening. We lost the construction loan we had in place due to the pandemic and no one wanted to work on our home. I was working full-time in my counseling private practice and trying to keep up with Instagram partnerships. I loved working with my clients and I loved creating content but I was stretched thin and left with little hope as to how we would complete our home.

It was the height of the pandemic, Sam was teaching 3rd grade distance learning while working on the house by himself with one or two subcontractors when they had time. I was sustaining our family financially with my private practice and Influencing income. A year before I had signed with an influencing agency and was making good money. At this time however I was driving myself crazy trying to keep up with Influencing while helping others not go crazy ha!

During a particularly hard season of leaving for work before the kids got up and seeing sometimes 10 clients; I received a call from the CEO of the influencing agency. I answered the call with a pit in my stomach that traveled up to my throat as the conversation unfolded. I was making less money than I had the year before and they were less than thrilled with my performance. In my drained emotional state I tried to explain how challenging it had been for me to stay “trending” online while working full-time as a therapist and mother…not to mention the challenge of navigating the murky waters that was and still is the online space during a social justice movement and a raging pandemic. I was burnt-out. The tears welled up as I sat on my green therapy couch and I felt the weight of the world crash down on me. “I’m sorry I lamented; I just don’t know how to do it all.” Their response was saccharine and cut throat, “I just seems like you don’t “want it anymore”. They were right; I didn’t want it anymore….. I didn’t want the pressure to keep up, look pretty and make everyone happy. I wanted to be real and messy and brave. Apparently being the latter isn’t favored by the algorithm. What I held onto was my audience. The people that remained following me through my ups and downs, my faith transition, my unlearning and learning and my messiness. That’s what I had left even if I didn’t have any sponsorships and that would prove to be enough. That’s the reason why I started sharing our life online in the first place; human connection.

What does this have to do with home building and bathrooms you might be wondering? A lot because a company named Kohler became our home design fairy Godmother of sorts along with some other amazing brands we will feature in this series.

We reached out to Kohler to see if they would partner with us to feature their products in our new home and they blessed our socks off! We met with them on zoom and they helped us design our bathrooms with their products and elevated not only the stress of designing the spaces but gave us hope that we would be able to afford finishing our home. Sam and I cried happy tears after every call… we knew with a little tenacity, tons of hard work and these key brand partnerships we would finish our home.

So now that you have the back story I’m going to let Sam (my husband and builder) take over and explain more of how we designed and built out our bathrooms with Kohler!

SAM:

In designing our home, I remember asking Chrissy what she wanted for our future house. She just looked at me and said, 4 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms. I said “done”. As a 2nd generation tradesman, I have spent most of my life either on jobsites, building houses, and repairing structures of all shapes and sizes.

One thing I have learned though maintaining and repairing homes, is that the products and brands that you install are paramount to the feel and use of the home. When we partnered with Kohler , it was a dream for me both as a builder and user of the Kohler products. The Kohler brand has been a mainstay in my career for several reasons.

Kohler is known for their quality and range of product, customer service and support, and design. When we met with Kohler’s in house design team, the bathrooms had already been framed out and we were able to start roughing in with their foundational products. Kohler’s ability to meet us at that phase in building was incredible and as we expressed our goals and the feel for our house, they matched our feel with products that elevated the bathroom to new heights.

Chrissy and I had the idea of making each bathroom their own unique space for our family to wash off the stresses of each day and emerge refreshed. We really wanted the boys bathroom to reflect a cool, open spacious place that reflected a timeless coastal vibe. For Ruby’s bathroom, Chrissy really wanted to capture the timeless elegance of a Parisian bathroom for our daughter. When it came to both our Primary bathroom and powder bathroom, we had a vision of bringing calm into the space and wanted to create a spa-like feel. We created a retreat from our everyday grind to our own sanctuary. The design team from Kohler took our dreams and matched each space with products that exceeded and lifted our original designs to spaces that are truly magic. From the sinks to the mirrors, the hardware and accessories that match and complement each other is a dream as a customer and a builder. Just look at the finished product. We’re stoked!

The Boys Bathroom

Waylon and Zeke share a bathroom as brothers should. When I drew up the plans for that bathroom, I really wanted to make sure the bathroom was big enough to handle the growing boys. We wanted surfaces and finishes that would look effortlessly cool even when there was high traffic use with the boys and their friends. We decided to give the boys the classic black and white look with the black and black grout and classic matte black hex tile from Bedrosian Tile & Stone. We gave the designers our inspiration looks, and they completely blew us away with their picks. The Kohler design team paired the walk in shower with the Purist collection in the matte black finish for all the finishes and accessories. (Links for most products can be found below).

Where there’s a camera Ruby can be found.

We streamlined the look and used this epic and very efficient Brockway Wall Mounted Wash Sink with the Triton Faucet.

There’s usually toothpaste around the drain but this sink is easy to clean and so fun for kids and adults to use. This classic wall mount sink solves some of the issues that you face with shared bathrooms. There’s plenty of room for two people to use at the same time while also looking classically cool.

The soap holder is a favorite vintage looking feature!

I (Sam) have collected surf art for many years and this particular poster features the nicknames of some of my favorite surf icons. They only made 100 of these posters so I was excited to snag one while at a surf convention. Check out the artist Jeff Canham for more surf designs.

One thing that really has changed our bathroom use is utilizing the Kohler Pure Wash Manuel Bidet Toilet Seat which our boys have surprising used well. So far there have been no water wars with their toilet and it saves toilet paper!

We paired this seat with the modern and timeless Kohler Cimarron Toilet.

Chrissy found this “The Ocean is Calling” small wall banner from a local women owned shop @shopheartinhome on Instagram and Etsy. Nicole also makes cute “Pray For Surf” posters like the one in the boy’s bedroom.

We used the Purist collection in matte black for the boy’s shower.

We used this Le Cafe 1″ x 1″ Hexagon Matte Porcelain Mosaic Tile in Black.

And this Cloe 5″ x 5″ Ceramic Tile in White from Bedrosian as well.

Shop The Boys’ Bathroom

Ruby’s Bathroom

Ruby is our only Girl, and Chrissy really wanted a Parisian look and feel for her bathroom and we found that vibe with the Kohler “Artifacts” series. The Artifacts series includes everything including the sink, shower, lighting and hardware in the brushed bronze finish which made all of the tile and and paint color work in harmony. The Paisley Wading Pool Bathroom Sink fits perfectly in the Damask Cabinent vanity in Claret Suede. We used the Solid/Expressions solid surface countertop and backsplash to frame out the sink and faucet in that really cool Parisian bath. As a builder, I really enjoy working with prefabricated cabinets and countertops like the Kohler products because they look incredible and streamline the process of installing and finishing bathrooms like Ruby’s.

The Artifacts Wide Spread Faucet paired perfectly with the Paisley Wading Pool sink.

Chrissy found these Raffia Wall hangings on Etsy that fit perfect for the French Bohemian look we were going for in Ruby’s Bathroom.

Chrissy put fake plants from West Elm and Urban Outfitters in the window of the boy’s and Ruby’s showers to add an earthy touch that won’t die. 😉

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You can see a little bit of the Paisley design in the sink here but photos just don’t do it justice… it’s stunning.

We tied the Parisian look together with this Makoto 2″ Round Matte Porcelain Mosaic Tile in Momoiro Blush from Bedrosian.

Shop Ruby’s Bathroom:

The Primary Bathroom

As Chrissy and I designed our primary room and en suite bathroom, we really wanted a sanctuary that we could retreat from our everyday life. This was a huge up level for us as we’ve shared a bathroom with our 3 kids for the last 10 years. We had a vision for a soft modern look with a spa like feel. We used a Zillege tile from tilebar.com for the shower and vanity wall to ground the Purist collection of both shower, faucet, and bathroom accessories all in the Vibrant Brushed Moderne Brass finish.

Our vanity was custom made by Chris Aga Woodworks a local craftsman and friend.

To illuminate the finishes and our daily use, the Verdera lighted mirrors are flanked with the Components One Light LED sconces that throw off a glow like no other….Chrissy also tells me the Verdera lighted mirrors are a game changer for applying makeup and finding rouge facial hairs.

The Purist Widespread Faucet gracefully complement the Derring Carillon Wading Pool Sinks in our custom built dual sink vanity cabinet.

The Terracotta cement tile was a main focal point and must have for Chrissy in our primary bathroom. We found a cost effective terracotta tile from Studio Cement Tile that was the exact color we both loved.

Chrissy originally thought she wanted to do a living plant wall above the tub but our designer Dallas from Organic Era Design Living talked her into doing something “cleaner”… thank God.

The Purist collection anchors the hardware so well and our bathroom is completed with Chrissy’s dream freestanding tub from Kohler.

Also our Kohler EIR Bidet needs an introduction as it has significantly increased our quality of life haha. We named it R2D2 because it senses when you’re near and the lid opens up for you.

We used the same penny tile from Ruby’s Bathroom in our shower pan as well.

Shop Our Primary Bathroom:

The Powder Room

We wanted to continue the spa warm vibes with our powder room so we carried a lot of the same looks as the primary bathroom to this small space. We used the wade pool sink and Purist Hardware and accessories with the framed Capsule Decorative Mirror with the Components LED Sconces.

Chrissy designed our bathroom vanity here and our friend Chris Aga built it out with Rattan finishes that make this space feel more relaxed and coastal. The tile is also a concrete tile from Studio Cement Tile called Arielle black.

The Kohler design team was incredible to work with and their products brought our bathrooms to a level we always dreamt of. We can’t thank our partners enough for helping us bring our POWERS PLACE dreams become a reality.

I made this hand-plane years ago for body surfing but Chrissy loved it so much she made it a decoration in our home. Some how it found its way to the Powder Bathroom and it all works together for that surfer vibe.