WL Bathroom Tip: Use Tile to Make a Minimalist Space Bold

Designer Kevin Mitchell of Mitchell Design House was tasked with creating a minimalist primary ensuite for an architecture-obsessed client—though the Calgary-based designer is no minimalist himself. “It was an exercise in restraint for me,” says Mitchell. “Typically I’d have art in the bathroom, and I’d liven it up with colour, but he liked that monochromatic, very tranquil feel.”

For the custom millwork from Northmount Industries, designer Kevin Mitchell opted for tamo (a Japanese ash) and gave it a light stain. “With it being so heavily patterned on the walls,” says Mitchell, “we felt a tighter grain on the wood competed less with the tile.”

Mitchell still made the space feel lively and engaging, with large-format, 4-by-8-foot porcelain tile from Julian Tile on the walls, designed to look and feel like marble. By minimizing the grout lines, the marble pattern comes front and centre, via a quieter tile pattern on the floors and a more dynamic one on the walls. And that sculptural tub from Kohler provides just the right amount of softness in the space. “I just loved how organic the shape of that tub was,” says Mitchell. “You want a bit of curve in there to make it a little bit more inviting.”

For more bathroom inspo, click here.