A Designer Reimagined This Dated Primary Suite Into a Warm, Hotel-Worthy Escape

Some bedrooms aren’t awful, but they could look and feel much better, given the chance. That was the case in this Massachusetts home, which had a sizable 600 square feet for the primary suite — bedroom, bathroom, closet, and sitting area — and good bones, as traditional homes from the 1920s often do. But you wouldn’t know it based on the blah color scheme and wonky flow of the space, which made it anything but calming and relaxing.

“The existing primary bedroom was awkwardly laid out and lacked both functionality and warmth,” says Robin Gannon, owner of Robin Gannon interiors and the designer behind this stunning transformation. “The bed was positioned on a very short wall, allowing for only small nightstands, and it was not the first wall visible upon entering the room.”

The primary bath wasn’t much better. “The bathroom was small and inefficient, and at the end of the hallway there was an odd, elevated room with windows on three sides that had no clear purpose,” says Gannon.

The homeowners, longtime clients of Gannon, brought her in to completely overhaul the space, turning it into a serene retreat with plenty of personality and a floor plan that made way more sense. For Gannon, the goal was always to create “a refined, warm primary suite blending traditional architecture with contemporary functionality.” 

Gannon’s first step was gutting the suite (though the historic exterior of the home and its existing windows and millwork were left untouched). Then she got to work reimagining both the layouts and finishes of the spaces — and their relation to one another.

“The bathroom was reconfigured so that the bathtub became the central focal point, reflecting the homeowner’s nightly ritual of taking a bath,” says Gannon, who brought in a MTI tub and gorgeous white New Ravenna tile offset with vintage lighting. “A rare double-barrel vaulted ceiling, original to the home, was highlighted rather than concealed. Painted in a high-gloss off-white and paired with glass overhead, it was given its own presence while still working within the bedroom’s more monochromatic palette.”

To improve flow and create visual repetition, Gannon added two arch-top doorways to the bedroom’s doors. “The fireplace was relocated to allow the bed wall to sit directly opposite the doorway, creating a clear and welcoming focal point upon entry,” says Gannon. S

he selected a QuadCo. Bespoke grand four-poster bed to offset the bedroom’s soaring ceilings and “bring the scale of the space back to something more intimate and human,” in her words. And she utilized the entire floor plan of the room thoughtfully with an extra sitting area featuring a sofa and chairs from Hickory Chair.

Like any total overhaul, the project wasn’t without its challenges. First, the redo was done by working with — not against — the existing roofline, which involved unusual level changes and created some shorter walls. Ultimately, Gannon was able to make everything feel seamless with strategic architectural detailing and custom built-ins. 

“By embracing these constraints rather than fighting them, the design turned limitations into defining features of the space,” she says. A lot of that work happened in the hallway, which became less of a path-through space and a functional closet for the husband. The elevated room at the end of the hallway was transformed into the wife’s dressing room. 

Construction always takes time, but for this primary retreat, all of the waiting was well worth it. “The homeowners love the functionality and architectural richness of their new primary suite, especially how it echoes details they loved from earlier renovations while giving them the comfort and practicality they were missing,” says Gannon. 

And Gannon herself couldn’t be happier with the results, too. Through clever built-ins, strategic finishes, and smarter furniture selection (and placement), the team would find even more “space” where it wasn’t, making the spaces seem even larger and airier.