Tiny En Suite

For this interior renovation to a house in Toronto's Seaton Village, the client wanted to build an en suite washroom to complement the master bedroom.  A shower, sink and toilet were required, while maintaining the 3 bedrooms and the existing washroom on the 2nd floor.  Some home owners might be tempted to remove one of the bedrooms, but value was seen in keeping the 3.  The design solution was to reduce the size of the existing washroom, sacrifice the bank of closets between the middle bedroom and existing washroom, and create a new narrow en suite washroom a mere few feet wide.  The middle bedroom, while slightly smaller, remains useable.

 

The contractor at one point asked me: "Is this the smallest washroom you've ever designed?".  Well, yes.  Here it was important to select and position the right fixtures, hardware, inset shelving and heated towel rack.  The sliding door - repurposed from one of the demolished closets - was also critical to avoid awkward circulation.

Although one of the homeowners is fairly tall, they report that the space suits them well.  The shower door swings in both directions, which eases movement.  Once inside the shower stall, there is plenty of elbow room.

The one drawback to the tiny en suite is that a small sink is not the best for splashing about.  Care is needed when washing ones face, and good aim is required when brushing teeth.  On greater balance though, that is a small concession for a compact and useful room inserted within the 2nd floor plan.