apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time


A Bathroom Renovation in Black and White

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Anna Dorfman-Stark, a book cover designer, her husband Evan, and two dogs, Bruno and Fritz, moved from Brooklyn into a 1880s Victorian rowhouse in the Newburgh, NY. The entire home was a fixer-upper, and since buying their house in March 2006 they've been swimming in repairs and renovations and dirt and plaster and paint and bricks. We did a House Tour in February, but since then, Anna's still been hard at work finishing the upstairs bathroom. It is just now complete and here's a peek.

 
 

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bathroom before


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The lovely wallpaper is Bindweed, from Ferm Living. Anna used window film rather than curtains or blinds for privacy.
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We love the tub tray that Anna found at Ikea, and check out that floor!


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Even the door needed work, after much sanding, patching, caulking, priming, painting, and striping of hardware, Anna has a old, solid wood door that would put any hollow-core door to shame.


As is obvious from Anna's renovation, she's full of great ideas about home design, and we love that she takes the time to share her work in her amazing blog, Door Sixteen, which is filled with design inspiration. And seriously, this home is so beautiful, it's making us want to leave Brooklyn for Newburgh!

Anna's AT House Tour: Anna's Old-and-New Newburgh Victorian and more photos are on her blog, Door Sixteen.

Tags

bathroom, DIY, neutral, renovation, Anna Dorfman

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Comments (15)

What a lovely, clean, serene space. I love how your renovation makes it look like it's original to the house, just cleaned up a bit. It's a fabulous restoration!

The reno photo actually startled me a bit. Ew! It just shows how much work you've put into this room. Good work!

posted by sissy on December 18th 2008 at 3:31pm
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Great renovation.
I love the corner sink, it's a great solution for a small space like that, it really is.

I would suggest adding more black details, through accesories. Great overall.

posted by eddie p on December 18th 2008 at 3:35pm
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Gorgeous! And on the neutral palette, you really see any colour accents, like the lovely purple flowers.

posted by tam-tbag on December 18th 2008 at 3:39pm
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Needs more black!

posted by Griffin on December 18th 2008 at 3:47pm
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Very pretty - I also love the corner sink. I have one, but it's so tiny, I can't really even wash my hands in it.

I think the requests for more black are because only a tiny bit of the wallpaper is shown in the pictures.

posted by robyn on December 18th 2008 at 4:14pm
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Anna this is beautiful! You have given this old house new life. I'm thinking of renovating the one and only tiny bathroom in my housebarge and I love your floor tile. Could you share the source?

posted by Nancy_Claire on December 18th 2008 at 4:23pm
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Thanks, everyone!

Robyn: You are correct -- the ceiling is quite high (10'), so there's a whole lot of wallpaper in this bathroom that doesn't show in the photos above. I will be adding more black (or at least dark) to the opposing wall, though, most likely in the form of framed drawings. It will happen in time, when the right things come to me.

Nancy Claire: The tile is from Fuda Tile in Ramsey, NJ. They are 1" polished white Carrara marble hexagons.

posted by Anna at D16 on December 18th 2008 at 4:35pm
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Very nicely done. If only everyone's DIY was like this.

I especially like the use of the schluter and the wallpaper. Everything works together, the whites and the tile.

My only objections are the ceiling light and the hook in the wainscoting and maybe a slightly darker grey/white for the wall paint.

9 out of 10.

posted by guerilla on December 18th 2008 at 5:02pm
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Incredibly lovely. I disagree with the commenters suggesting more black. I think it is perfect as is. I could spend hours in that tub.

posted by graefix on December 18th 2008 at 6:11pm
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Where did you get that radiator???! :D

posted by Vanessa in New York on December 18th 2008 at 6:23pm
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Really very nice. Thanks for sharing. How do you like the toto eco toilet so far? (I need a new one)

posted by Easyenough on December 18th 2008 at 6:48pm
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Wow that bathroom is almost exactly the size of the one I have in my apartment (at least it looks like it). I would love love love to rip out the horrid shower and put in a tub and corner sink. Unfortunately I rent and there is no way I'd get my landlord to foot the bill and considering I plan to move soonish I wouldn't do it myself. Fabulous redo though.

posted by girlonthem00n on December 18th 2008 at 8:05pm
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No need to add more black. The wallpaper has just the right amount for the entire bathroom. Adding more would conflict with the airiness of the space.

As the saying goes, "don't mess with perfection."

posted by Seaside on December 18th 2008 at 8:09pm
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Vanessa: The radiator came with the house! It was in the bathroom, and is probably from the '20s or '30s. It was very rusty and covered with peeling paint -- we had it sandblasted and powdercoated (we did the same with the tub and sink, which also came with the house).

Easyenough: We love the Toto! It's a round-front Eco-Drake. We don't have the space for an elongated toilet, so we were a bit limited, but this seemed like the most efficient toilet with the simplest design (and at a reasonable price), so we went with it. So far, so good! I love the dual-flush/single-handle. We're in the middle of renovating our second bathroom now, and we're putting a Toto Eco-Supreme in there.

posted by Anna at D16 on December 18th 2008 at 10:33pm
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one of my favorite bathrooms!

posted by Pemina101 on December 20th 2008 at 12:07pm
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