Taking shape

Style advice Three simple tricks to try in your own home

CLEVER HACKS Along with the tiles, the beautiful Tikamoon sink was another big splurge, so

Abigail wanted to make sure it stood out. Together with Mark, she converted a vintage G Plan dressing table, bought on Facebook Marketplace, into a vanity unit by repurposing wood from the mirror-stand to raise the height of the unit. To finish, they covered the top with a sheet of perspex to protect the wood and the sink, which is porous. A wall-mounted tap completes the customised look.

TRY DIY The tiles steal the show in Abigail’s bathroom. After finding the design on holiday in Morocco and ordering them upon their return, the couple spent hours arranging them on the bedroom floor before settling on the perfect layout. ‘Laying the tiles was a challenge,’ says Abigail, ‘as we tiled from floor to ceiling, and I was very specific as I wanted a 2cm grout line in between each row of the white subway tiles. Either save up for an amazing tiler to do the fiddly bits or go for it yourself and embrace the fact that it won’t look perfect.’

SHOP IN ADVANCE ‘As we had lots of time to prep for the makeover, we bought items as and when we could afford them and stored them until they were needed,’ says Abigail. ‘The bath and toilet were both bought in a January sale, and we kept them in the garage for around two years before the build even started.’ Take inspiration from Abigail and look out for bargains ahead of time. Set up alerts on eBay and Facebook Marketplace and save items on high-street apps, ready to buy when they go down in price.

‘I find most of my interiors inspiration from the catwalk, visiting exhibitions, museums and from travelling,’ says Abigail. ‘There are lots of great ideas on Pinterest and social media, but don’t miss the opportunity to find inspiration from physical sources, too’

Abigail’s bathroom is proof that luxury interior design needn’t be pared-back, if you don’t want it to be. It can be bold, bright and playful, too as these eye-catching statement tiles go to show

‘If it’s taught me anything, it’s that you can achieve your ideas on a tight budget’ MY EXPERIENCE

I had been saving my design ideas on Pinterest for at least five years before starting the bathroom makeover, so when the time came, I knew exactly what I wanted. We bought this house with the intention of extending, reconfiguring, and fully renovating it, but as we live in a conservation area and our home is flanked by two listed properties, it took a long time to get our plans approved. The building work was finally finished in 2020, and once it had been plastered, Mark and I took over the interior works ourselves.

We had visited popham design, a tile factory in Marrakesh, while on holiday in 2019, and we brought home lots of samples. After deciding on the designs and colours, we ordered the tiles and the scheme started to come together.

The bathroom was an empty shell when the builders had finished. Doing the tiling and grouting took an especially long time, and as this was our only bathroom, we washed in buckets for months. We also had Covid-19 and multiple lockdowns to contend with, so there was no nipping to friends’ homes or to the local swimming pool for a wash as everything was shut down. That said, we love the bathroom so much now it’s finished, it was worth the work we put in. The first shower I took after washing in buckets for so many months was absolute luxury!

My shopping list

● Brasilia floor and shower tiles, made to order, popham design ● Countrywide White wall tiles, £44.40 per sq m, Porcelain Superstore ● For a similar toilet, try the Grohe Euro toilet, £419.95, Victorian Plumbing ● For a similar bath, try the Mode free-standing bath, £458.10; Mode Tate Black wallmounted basin mixer tap, £88.99; for a similar shower, try the Mode Spencer round twin diverter valve shower set, £659, all Victoria Plum ● Unik terrazzo wash basin, £269, Tikamoon ● For similar wall lights, try the Vaughn lights, £55 each, MADE.com ● Laursen Black wall mirror, £114.99, Fine Nordic ● Lola Leopard bath towel, £28, Anthropologie ● For a similar soap dish, try the Black Marble soap dish, £24.99, both H&M Home ● Metal and glass wall cabinet, £119.95, Sklum ● For a similar woven basket, try the Moroccan wool pot, £58, Bohemia Design ● For a similar planter, try the Leopard succulent planter, £25, Not On The High Street ● For a similar hanging planter, try the Macramé and Gold hanging plant pot, £29.50, Oliver Bonas. Turn to p128 for stockist details