Rugged, Rustic Boys' Bathroom by Fiorito Interior Design

When a large family renovated a home nestled in the foothills of the Santa Cruz mountains, all bathrooms received dazzling upgrades, but in a family of three boys and only one girl, the boys must have their own space. And this rustic styled bathroom feels like it is part of a fun bunkhouse in the West.

We used a beautiful bleached oak for a vanity that sits on top of a multi colored pebbled floor. The swirling iridescent granite counter top looks like a mineral vein one might see in the mountains of Wyoming. We used a rusted-look porcelain tile in the shower for added earthy texture. Black plumbing fixtures and a urinal—a request from all the boys in the family!—make this the ultimate rough and tumble rugged bathroom.

All photos by Bernardo Grijalva except 3, 6, and 7 by Fiorito Interior Design.

Happy designing!

Schluter: The Product You Never Knew You Needed

When I am hired to design a bathroom for a complete remodel, clients are always surprised at how many decisions there are to make. Of course that is why a client hires me, to take care of or guide them through the myriad choices and elements to consider. And one of the unexpected aspects of a bathroom remodel for clients is how tile edges are going to be finished. If a tiler puts a tile on the wall without thinking about how it is going to be edged, the raw, unglazed edge of the tile will be seen. And no one wants that. It is visually unappealing but it also exposes the corners to chipping and breaking.

In "the old days," a tile edge at the shower or bath tub was finished with what is known as a bullnose tile. Instead of being a flat tile, a bullnose tile has a slight rounded edge which returns to the wall.

A bullnose tile still has its uses and can look charming in certain bathroom settings, but clients now want bathrooms that are more contemporary, more sleek, and in these cases, there is a great way to edge tile that fits that bill.

There are a few companies that make metal edge strips but the premiere manufacturer (and they pretty much own the market) is Schluter-Systems. They are now the industry leader, so much so that when people speak about these metal edges for tile, they refer to them as Schluter, much the way people ask for a Kleenex when needing a tissue.

Founded in 1966 by Master Tile Setter Werner Schlüter, the metal edge idea was born in 1975. At first it was a simple "L" shaped piece of metal...one edge tucks behind the tile during installation and the other visible side hide the unglazed edge of the tile.

As you can see by the images below, there are many uses for a Schluter edge...they come in different finishes to coordinate with a color scheme or shower and sink hardware. They can be used to edge a niche, a wall, a shower entrance, anywhere an unglazed edge of tile will be seen.

There is a Schluter edge with a finer profile, appropriately called Finec, for those who don't want to see as much of the metal finish.

A square edge called Quadec provides better coverage around the edges of niches.

For a softer look, the Rondec is gently curved.

For a different type of design, there is the Schluter Diadec which is angled at 45 degrees, and the Indec which is indented allowing for a unique look.

The Schluter Designline offers the chance to insert a decorative band of metal or color in any design scheme.

And for even more design, the Quadec-FS is an in-wall double-rail strip profile featuring a recessed section to which field or accent tile is bonded.

Of course not just for bathrooms, a metal edge Schluter strip can be used anywhere one can install tile. They are extremely useful in kitchens to edges a backsplash and I have even used them on fireplace breasts to edge tile.

Finally, Schluter is not just for walls. The Schiene profile for floors is ideal for creating elegant transitions between same-height floor coverings.

If you have a bathroom you've been yearning to remodel, contact me and we can put Schluter to work for you!

Happy designing!