Beyond Baths

“With the hectic lifestyles people are living, they are finding it nice to have a retreat in their home,” says Mike Brotman, project coordinator for Kyle Hunt & Partners in Deephaven. “We’ve gone from a space that was designed to be purely functional to a space that is functional, yet so much more. Today, high-end baths are basically in-house spas without employees.”

Big Lake. “You used to hear, ‘It’s just abathroom.’ Now people say, ‘I want to feel good when I walk into the bathroom.’” And feel good they can with the installation of a wide variety of amenities and custom features designed solely to pamper the senses.

Grand Scale
“What really sets high-end baths apart are their size and the amenities,” says Gary Kraemer, president of John Kraemer & Sons in Edina. Kraemer’s firm has been installing luxury bathrooms for twenty-eight years, and he says it is not unheard of for someone to spend upwards of $100,000 on a bathroom remodel. “Certainly the grand scale is important,” Kraemer notes. The largest bathroom he built was 350 square feet.

“Today’s high-end baths are more spacious, more roomy,” says Lamont Steinwand, president of Aarbor Homes in Lakeville. “In the old days, builders crammed everything into a small space. Today, we are creating baths with more space—baths that are more free flowing, more comfortable.” Steinwand is currently building two lavish baths, both closing in on 300 square feet.

“Generally, size is proportionate with the whole house,” says Tim O’Connor, project manager with Steiner & Koppelman in Deephaven. “As the house gets bigger, more space is added to all of the rooms.” The last thing homeowners want is to feel cramped in a small space. “Usually two people are running around in the owner’s suite bath and they don’t want to be running into each other,” O’Connor adds. “There’s also an expectation when you have a high-end home, certain things need to be included.”

Pure Comfort
There’s no doubt homeowners today are spending more money on their bathrooms than they did a decade ago. Brotman says the amount of money going into newly constructed bathrooms has increased dramatically in the past five years. With so much money being earmarked for a room that was once considered purely functional, homeowners want the space to be cushy and comfortable, and that means ambiance is a must.

Natural light is an important part of the overall feel of the room. “Most high-end bathrooms have windows with a view of something nice—a lake, golf course, pond, woodland, or landscaped yard,” Kraemer notes. “People set their homes up to have beautiful views from the owner’s suite, including the bath.”

The room’s added lighting is also a critical factor in creating a relaxing, elegant space, which is typically achieved with decorative chandeliers and sconce lighting. “In lighting, you can go from basic to pretty extraordinary, from simple dimmer and recessed cans to fully integrated lighting controls that allow you to set up different scenes,” Brotman says. For example, if one spouse likes to take a shower in dimly lit conditions, the shower lights can be programmed to dim when, for example, the “Jason’s Shower” button is pushed. Likewise, if Elizabeth gets up before Jason, the “Elizabeth Wake Up” button is pushed and on come the lights in the shower, above her vanity, in the water closet, and in her part of the walk-in closet without interfering with Jason’s last few minutes of precious shut-eye.

As owner’s suite bathrooms become larger, functional lighting becomes ever more important, particularly in the makeup and vanity areas. “Overhead recessed lighting creates shadows,” says Jack Smuckler, president of Smuckler Custom Builders in Edina. “Overhead lighting doesn’t enhance a person’s appearance. The lighting is better if it comes from the side.” Both under-cabinet and rope lighting hidden by cove molding or other ceiling detail are effective as mood enhancers, but also function as night-lights.

With homeowners going all out in the bath, there is also an element of pride involved in lighting. People are used to seeing the various elements of a bath highlighted in the showroom. “They want that showroom look,” Noding says. The mood-setting lighting of today’s spa-like bathrooms lends itself beautifully to soft and comforting earth tones. Kraemer says in terms of the color palette, clients want “warm and soothing, nothing bright or stark.”

With homeowners spending more time relaxing in today’s new bathrooms, the room’s surroundings are increasingly made to echo other rooms in the home. “People are bringing up the caliber of the bathroom to match the rest of the house,” O’Connor says, and that means detail. Steinwand adds that by choosing to go with an elegant bath retreat, homeowners are rewarding themselves for their hard work and success and are thus “bringing in features that you typically see in the other parts of the home. These bathrooms are no longer simple rooms. They have a lot of detailing, raised platforms for the tub area, drop-down soffits, trim, and cove molding.” Homeowners are also starting to hire interior designers for the bath to look at the layout and flow of the room as well as the finishing details. “That shows the priority the bathroom has taken on,” Steinwand adds.

Showers & Tubs
One of the reasons the bath has become so much larger is the popularity of the walk-in, doorless shower, says Larry Skogquist, president of N.I.H. Homes in Elk River. These showers typically start at about 5 x 5 feet and increase in size from there. While this doorless amenity has nearly relegated the soap-scum-crusted shower door to the Dark Ages, it also requires more space to allow for its turn-the-corner entryway, also called a “snake” or “snail” entry, to allow for privacy. Once inside these private retreats, which are typically made of glass block, tile, tumbled marble, or stone slab, homeowners can enjoy a variety of amenities in complete privacy.

“Showers are the big thing,” Smuckler says. Today’s walk-ins typically feature multiple body sprays, a rain–like showerhead in the ceiling, a showerhead on the wall, and a hand-held shower. On top of that, some homeowners install up to eight body sprays. The largest walk-in shower Smuckler ever built was 8 x 10 feet and was the only shared space between his-and-her bathrooms.

Saunas, which historically have been placed in lower levels, are now finding a place in the owner’s suite bath. Even more popular than saunas, though, are steam showers that can be installed in combination with a large shower as long as the shower has a sealed door. Just like lighting, steam showers can be digitally controlled for different temperatures and spray volumes, according to the preferences of family members.

While not quite as popular as today’s new showers, tubs are still receiving plenty of attention from homeowners. “Tubs are no longer just a place to bathe the kids,” Brotman says. Tubs today come in a variety of styles, from whirlpool tubs mounted under a granite, marble, or tile deck to designer, clawfoot soaking tubs. Chromatherapy tubs are also hot items, Brotman says. These tubs emit therapeutic light and color frequencies that stimulate and relax. Colors cycle on and off in a relaxing pattern and speed to create the ultimate bathing experience.

“Windows typically relate to the tub area,” O’Connor says. “People retreat to their tub, soak, and enjoy the beautiful views and natural light.” Some homeowners are choosing to put in oval shaped soaking tubs mounted in tub decks instead of whirlpools. Bubblers are also beginning to replace whirlpool tubs, Noding says, because bubblers require less maintenance.

No spa experience would be complete without a relaxation area, and Kraemer says his firm has installed sitting areas in high-end baths that have a small table and a couple of chairs where someone can cool down after a steam or soak, or just relax before reentering the world. Custom-sized benches are also common, both in the shower and in the bath’s common area. Sitting areas also allow one partner to sit in comfort and talk while the other soaks in the tub.

Today’s custom showers and value-added tubs require homeowners and builders to work together in a way they haven’t before. Brotman says he sits down with his clients to find out some rather intimate details before proceeding with a tub or shower set-up so everything fits the homeowners perfectly. “I find out the details,” he says. “Do they shower together? How tall are they? How far apart do they want the showerheads? Do they want them side by side or across from each other? In terms of tubs, I don’t want to put in a six-foot tub for a five-foot woman because it is not relaxing to fight to try to keep your head above water.” Brotman actually accompanies his clients to the showroom and makes them sit in a variety of tubs to find the ideal fit.

Water Features
Comfort and a spa-like atmosphere can be accomplished as much through the internal plumbing and electrical features as through the color palette and finishing work. For example, in-floor heating systems, whether powered by hot water or electricity, have become standard in high-end baths. “We typically also try to heat the tub deck area, too,” Kraemer says. That way, if people are soaking in a hot tub, they can get out, sit on the tub deck to cool off, without sitting on an icy cold surface. As part of the in-floor heating system, both hot water and electricity can be used to circulate through towel bars, giving bath towels that hot-out-of-the-dryer feel.

Another feature some homeowners are choosing to bring into the bathroom, according to Steinwand, is filtered water in the vanity area. But, he says, purified water really has not made its way into the shower or tub area yet. In some baths, O’Connor’s firm is installing recirculating waterlines that provide instant hot water when faucets or the shower are turned on.

Vanity Privacy
Vanities are now being built to suit, and everyone wants his or her own. “Vanities are customized for height,” Brotman says. “Today, there is no standard. Vanities are designed for the people using them. Someone who is six-feet-two-inches tall may want a thirty-six-inch vanity.” Differing vanity heights, however, do not need to interrupt the flow of the room. “Two people can have separate vanities of differing heights that can be integrated beautifully,” Brotman notes. In bathrooms that are large enough, makeup areas or dressing tables are installed at yet another height and often are placed in a separate area of the room that allows for both privacy and comfort.

“We hardly ever put two sinks side by side anymore,” Smuckler says. “People want separate vanities, either across from each other or in an ‘L’ shape. They may share the overall bathroom, but people still want their own private space. She doesn’t want to be by his toothbrush, and he doesn’t want to be by her makeup.” 

Even though high-end baths have expanded in size, storage comes at a premium. “Everything is tight,” Noding says. People want a lot of extra cabinetry and they’ve brought linen storage into the bath. Typically in high-end construction, Kraemer says, vanities are made to look like stand-alone cabinetry and are often made of cherry or alder. Sometimes even a distressed look is used.

An eclectic look is also popular. “It used to be that the woodwork was either stained or enameled,” Skogquist says. Today, he says, people are doing both and staining the cabinets and enameling the  doors, which adds to the stand-alone look. Granite or other high-end stones have also become nearly standard in these luxurious baths. And the trustworthy medicine cabinet has come out from behind the mirror and is being custom built into the cabinetry.

Fun Extras
Televisions have become the latest behind-the-vanity-mirror marvels. With the push of a button, the TV screen appears, Skogquist says, but when the television is off, it remains hidden by the mirror. His firm has installed behind-the-mirror bathroom televisions as well as elaborate framing around vanity mirrors for a clean, finished look. Both televisions and sound systems, typically with the main components in the owner’s suite bedroom and extra controls in the bath, are becoming nearly standard in high-end baths.

Skogquist has installed butler’s pantries just outside the bath, typically in a transitional space, with base and upper cabinets, sinks, a small refrigerator, a coffee pot, and sometimes a microwave. “If the homeowners want to make coffee and stay in the bedroom or enjoy a glass of wine while soaking in the tub, they can,” he says. Built-in espresso machines and coffee makers are also being added, either inside or just outside the bath in a transitional space.

Water Closets
Of course, no bathroom would be complete without a toilet, and today’s commodes are both private and fun. “We’re finding people want his and her toilets,” Smuckler says, often with each behind its own closed door or separating wall, creating a private water closet feel. Whether it’s a separate or a shared commode, an enclosed or more out-in-the-open installation, nearly all homeowners are opting for taller “comfort height” toilets, Noding says. Fancy toilets with square bases and square holding tanks are also catching people’s attention. “Homeowners don’t want the standard toilet and faucet anymore,” he adds. “They want something different. They want something fun.”

Fun, inviting, and pampering best describe today’s spa-like bathrooms. “There is no end to what we can do in a high-end bathroom,” Brotman says. “The only boundary is the imagination of the client. When all is said and done, I want the homeowner to be in the room and think there is nothing they would have done differently.” Today’s new baths are truly a fantasy come true.