Clean, serene and simple Clean, serene and simple (April 23, 2004)

A master bathroom and closet completes the dream home

By Gretchen Roberts / photos by Patrice Green

Steve and Pam Dunn's Mountain View home was short one bathroom when they bought the place in 1996, but their real estate agent fed them a classic line: "Don't think about what the house is, but what it could be."

The Dunns had heard so many remodeling horror stories they were reluctant at first, but since the house otherwise suited their needs, they bought it with plans to add a master bath and closet.

The former main bathroom, now the guest bathroom, boasts pink tile and decor -- a color the Dunns are not particularly fond of. They wanted a larger bathroom designed in the same style as the master bedroom, with clean, neutral, contemporary lines.

The city of Mountain View would only allow the Dunns to add 135 square feet to their existing space, so Pam's long wish list of items to include in the new bathroom had to be pared down. The couple hired Harrell Remodeling in Mountain View to execute the project, and Lisa Sten, senior sales consultant and designer, drew up several plans.

"We were somewhat limited in size, and going through different designs, we realized something would have to go," Sten said. The Dunns definitely wanted a double sink, a door leading outside to the hot tub and a bidet, but they gave up the idea of a tub for lack of space and went with double showerheads instead.

Sten sat down with the Dunns and refined her design. The Dunns wanted to preserve the large window behind their bed, so the master bathroom and walk-in closet were constructed behind the guest bedroom at the back of the house.

Pam chose maple bathroom cabinets to match the bedroom furniture, contemporary brushed metal fixtures, a neutral tile floor, brown speckled granite counter called Juparana Millennium, and white decorative tile in the shower. She accessorized with a brushed-metal mirror hung between the toilet and bidet and a towel warmer next to the shower.

The overall impression is clean, serene and simple, with small details subtly reflecting each other in the bedroom and bathroom.

A Pella door with a between-the-glass blind leads out to the back patio and new hot tub. "We love being able to walk straight into the bathroom after soaking in the Jacuzzi," Steve Dunn said.

The Dunns were adamant about the bathroom looking just like the rest of the house, inside and out. The designer kept the addition at the same level as the house, used the same pitch and shape of the roofline and replicated the home's white stucco exterior. Bricks in the backyard and patio area extend to the new hot tub.

Inside, the bathroom appears to be a beautiful extension of the bedroom -- and the rest of the house. Sten replaced all the doors in the house, which were a dark wood, with new white doors to match the bathroom door. "I want you to walk in and think it's supposed to work together, that this bathroom is not just an add-on," said Pam Dunn.

The project recently won first place at a regional NARI (National Association of the Remodeling Industry) competition for a residential addition, $100,000-250,000.

The Dunns are finished remodeling for now, though not because their bathroom addition was a bad experience. "It's amazing to say we wouldn't do anything different next time. It was painless and fun," Pam said.

Short of the pink tile in the guest bathroom, which the Dunns will eventually replace as their last remodeling project, their home, missing a bathroom at first, is finally what they dreamed it could be.

Goal of project: Create a master bath and closet in same style as master bedroom

Unexpected problems: Needed to replace master-bedroom window so bathroom door swinging out wouldn't break the glass

Year house built: 1956

Size of home: 1,235 square feet

Time to complete: Seven months

Budget: $150,000

Resources:

Contractor/interior designer: Harrell Remodeling (Ron Holmes, contractor; Lisa Sten, interior design), 1954 Old Middlefield Way, Mountain View; 230-2900

Cabinets: Danmar Cabinet Co., 12 41st Ave., San Mateo; 571-1230

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