The owners of a circa-1980s house in Northwest DC tapped a design team that included Barnes Vanze Architects and designer Barry Dixon to complete a total renovation of their abode. Embracing a traditional aesthetic, the designers updated the home to include a lavish, spa-like master bath.
The 11-foot-tall room presented challenges because there was relatively little wall space to work with—“ though this, of course, makes the room more beautiful since the windows are Southern exposure,” architect Anthony Barnes points out. He designed a space that encompassed a bay for the tub and separate rooms for the shower and water closet. “The tub faces out, addressing the room,” Barnes says. “It harkens back to a traditional, European look.”
Dixon and Barnes turned to Waterworks to source everything in the bathroom. “This was the starting point for the look of the space,” observes Dixon. “It’s timeless and classic.” Oversized Calacatta Gold marble subway tiles were used as wainscoting, topped with a chair rail of marble mosaic tile that also clads the shower interior. The floor is Calacatta Gold with onyx accents “for a little excitement,” says Barnes.
Dixon selected a retro-inspired sink rather than a vanity to keep the space open. “When there’s a beautiful floor, I try not to obstruct it,” he explains. Linen draperies from his collection for Vervain bring the tall windows down to a more human scale, and the chaise, beside the oval, spider-pattern window, is covered in terrycloth so the owners “can sit on it even if they’re wet,” he says.
Renovation Architecture: Anthony S. Barnes, FAIA, LEED AP, Barnes Vanze Architects, Inc., Washington, DC. Interior Design: Barry Dixon, Barry Dixon, Warrenton, Virginia. Builder: Horizon Builders, Crofton, Maryland. Photography: Anice Hoachlander.
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