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Enlarging with White

This small upstairs bathroom is not en suite to the master bedroom but close enough to be easily reached. It tucks in under the sloping roof to make use of an otherwise awkward area.

Simplicity is the key to its design and decor. The room is small, and the idea was to make

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it seem larger. This has been achieved with an all-white colour scheme, large floor tiles and a shower over the bath. The small size has also been increased by the uncluttered effect of continuing the same size tiles up the wall and on to the wash bench. Two layers of tiles around its edge, instead of one, give the bench a substantial, solid appearance.

There is also a surprising amount of storage space; under the basin and in an airing cupboard at one end of the room.

A long horizontal window and a small skylight allow plenty of natural light into the room and help give it a glossy finish.

"The moonlight and the overhead trees viewed through the skylight at night have quite an amazing effect," says the owner/designer, "and we have managed to create the atmosphere that I think is essential for a bathroom — serenity. I feel bathrooms should be tranquil places where you can go and shut the door and commune with yourself. I would even go so far as to say that this is my favourite room. There is nothing more luxurious — more indulgent — than having your own bathroom after years of sharing one with squeezed toothpaste, muddy football shorts and dirty rings around the bath."

The focal points of the room — the dried flowers in the cop-Per urn and raffia fans on the wall — were chosen because they conjure up the feeling of wooden scrubbing brushes and natural sponges which, with the white walls, are reminiscent of old whitewashed bathrooms.

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