The definition of a challenge is when you know the bathroom is going to be mini, right from the very beginning. A small space never screams “luxury” but this is what we are aiming for, nonetheless. Rejecting certain ideas (jacuzzi anyone?) is the easy part and we quickly discovered that the “yes” list was only a fraction of the “nos.” So we started focusing on the only three basics we couldn’t live without: shower, basin and toilet.
Turning to Facebook for guidance, we were advised in no uncertain terms to plump for a pumpout toilet. Whilst this may not be exactly inspirational, it would not put anyone off. Furthermore we decided that plastic caravan style porta potties were plain nasty and we settled on a porcelain bowl. Decision made, we were glad to move on to the fun design bit.
Many high-end narrowboats have quite creative bathroom layouts, reminiscent of expensive caravans. Think space-saving showers lined with PVC panels and tiny basins built into corner shelving. Ingenious fit outs in their own way, but hardly inspiring to use.
With our self-imposed “boutique” brief, we need every single item in Lesley Ann to inspire joy and so we had to think hard about this one. Our “basin moment” came when we uncovered a stunning Edwardian music cabinet in a Weedon antique shop. We were seduced by the distinctive mirror upstand and inlaid feature panel. Aaran began to plot the necessary alterations while I started to reimagine the teeny room as something beautiful. With a simple white porcelain basin atop, this cabinet would be the starting point for our boutique bathroom.
Next came the shower enclosure. It has to be as large as possible and tiled with contemporary stone coloured tiles. The shower head itself must make enough rain to spark joy. It must be beautiful.
The finishing touches are still at the selection stage; we are thinking that the mirror will be antique and the towels a soft linen or cotton. We can’t quite decide on whether to go for encaustic Moroccan style tiles or whether they will overwhelm the small space. Will there be room for some storage? Wherever our imagination takes us, we hope our ideas will steer this narrowboat bathroom as far from “caravan” as possible. We hope you will love it just a little bit more as a result.
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Lesley Ann will be ready to book from spring 2018.
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