Some projects are just projects. And then there are the ones that get under your skin a little.
This one falls firmly in the second category. Not because of the scope (although three wet areas is no small feat), and not because of the tile selection (although, wait until you see it). It’s because this particular renovation was in Emma’s family home. The house she grew up in. Thirty-seven years of memories living in those walls.
When her parents first got in touch, the plan was straightforward: refresh the bathrooms and laundry before putting the house on the market. A bit of a spruce up before the next chapter. Simple enough, right?
Well, here’s where it gets interesting. Somewhere between choosing the tiles and seeing the finished result, that plan quietly changed. They’re staying!! At least for a few more years. And honestly? That might be the greatest compliment a renovation has ever paid us.
The Brief: Modernise Without Losing the Soul
The brief was one we hear quite often, but it carried a little more weight this time around. Bring the bathrooms into the 2020s with a beautiful, considered style that honoured the character of the home, while making everything more practical, peaceful and relaxing. Oh, and it needed to appeal to potential buyers, too (before the staying-put plot twist, of course).
Being Emma’s parents, they got to benefit from our full interior design service, which meant we were involved from the very beginning. From initial concept and material selections right through to the final styling. When you’re working on a renovation of this scale across three separate spaces, having one cohesive design vision guiding every decision makes an enormous difference to the end result.
Where It All Started
Like a lot of homes built in this era, the bathrooms were perfectly functional but well and truly stuck in another decade. The layout was fine, but the 80’s peach toilet suite and slate tiles had dated, the storage wasn’t working as hard as it could, and the overall feel was tired rather than the retreat-like space we were briefed with.
The main bathroom was split into three spaces – separate toilet, separate shower/bath and a separate vanity area. So we removed the sliding doors and opened it up to be one big luxurious space.
The bones were good though. That’s something we always look for. You’d be surprised how many bathrooms just need the right design eye rather than a complete structural overhaul.
The Design Direction: Why Green (and Why It Works)
Let’s talk about that tile, because it’s genuinely the hero of this project. We went with a gorgeous green glazed subway tile from Tile Cloud, laid vertically, and paired it with a natural stone in warm, neutral tones.
Since the house is located in a beautiful bush setting it made sense to keep the green tones going and bring them into the house.
There’s something really special about green in a bathroom. It brings in that connection to the outdoors without being too literal about it. And when you pair it with natural stone, as we’ve done here, you get this beautiful tension between the glossy, handmade quality of the glazed tile and the organic, earthy texture of the stone. They balance each other out perfectly.
Designer Tip: Vertical tile laying might seem like a small detail, but it makes a meaningful difference. It draws the eye upward, making ceilings feel taller and spaces feel more generous. It’s one of those design moves that costs nothing extra but completely changes the feel of a room.
The Details That Make It
The tapware throughout is from Yabby in matte black, and it does exactly what good tapware should do. It anchors the design, provides beautiful contrast against the lighter stone, and quietly ties all three spaces together without shouting about it.
The vanity cabinetry is in a dark timber tone that grounds the space beautifully. It’s floating, which keeps the floor line clean and makes the room feel more spacious than it actually is. And that lit niche underneath? It’s one of those details that takes a bathroom from nice to genuinely lovely. It creates this warm, ambient glow, especially in the evening, that makes the whole space feel like a retreat.
The fluted glass was chosen because previously the plain glass would get shampoo and soap build up instantly. The fluted glass doesn’t show grime anywhere near as quickly!
The Freestanding Bath: A Non-Negotiable
A freestanding bath was always part of the brief. There’s something about a standalone tub that transforms a bathroom from functional to sanctuary, and in a home like this, with that gorgeous natural light streaming in through the blinds, it was the perfect call.
We kept the bath itself simple and sculptural in white to let the tile and stone do the talking. The wall-mounted tapware keeps the lines clean and the look uncluttered, and the natural stone tiling wrapping around the bath zone ties it seamlessly into the rest of the room.
Three Spaces, One Cohesive Story
One of the things we’re most proud of with this project is how all three wet areas feel connected. The main bathroom, the ensuite and the laundry all share a material palette and design language, but each has its own personality within that framework.
This is something we always advocate for when clients are renovating multiple rooms. It’s tempting to treat each space as a separate project, but when you plan them together (which is exactly what our full interior design service is built to do), the result feels intentional and considered throughout the entire home.
The laundry is a perfect example. It could have been an afterthought, but by carrying through elements of the colour palette and material choices, it feels like part of the same home rather than a forgotten utility space.
The Styling: Where a House Becomes a Home
We’ve said it before and we’ll keep saying it: styling is where a renovation goes from finished to feeling like home. A white orchid in a textured pot, a beautiful hand soap on a marble tray, coordinated towels in tones that complement the palette. None of these things cost a fortune, but they’re the difference between a bathroom that looks like a display suite and one that feels genuinely inviting.
Designer Tip: Invest in a beautiful soap dispenser and a small tray to corral your benchtop essentials. It takes thirty seconds to set up and it’ll make you feel like you’re in a boutique hotel every single morning. Trust us on this one.
The Process: What Full Interior Design Actually Looks Like
We had a few structural things to sort out mid project but we knew we might find some issues with the base boards under the old bathrooms so we had built in a bit of a time buffer to allow for this!
For this project, Emma’s parents chose our full interior design service. That means we handled concept development, material and finish selections, supplier coordination, and final styling. It’s the service that gives you the most seamless experience because you’ve got one person guiding the entire vision from start to finish.
If you’re curious about what working with an interior designer involves (and what it actually costs), we’ve covered that in detail in our guide to hiring an interior decorator in Sydney.
The Plot Twist: They’re Staying
Here’s the thing about a good renovation. It doesn’t just change a space. It can change how you feel about a space. And sometimes, it changes your plans entirely.
What started as a pre-sale refresh ended with Emma’s parents deciding to stay in their family home for a few more years. The bathrooms they’d lived with for decades suddenly felt new again. The morning routine felt different. The space felt like theirs in a way it hadn’t for a long time.
That’s the power a few weeks of renovation can bring. And honestly, that might be the best project review we’ve ever received.
Thinking About Your Own Bathroom Renovation?
Whether you’re refreshing before a sale, renovating to stay, or just ready for a bathroom that actually makes you excited to get ready in the morning, we’d love to chat. You can browse our full portfolio to see more of our work, or get in touch with us here to start the conversation.
