Page 30 Daily Mail, Friday, September 6, 2019life
MORE BATHROO
The host of TV’s Grand Designs says it’s the latest property
THERE was a time when popping to the loo
meant a freezing trip to a garden outhouse.
Today, the ‘smallest room’ often outnumbers
bedrooms. Homes expert Kevin McCloud, from
Channel 4’s Grand Designs, says estate agents will
soon be selling houses by the number of
bathrooms. With everything else bragged about
on social media, why not add your plethora of
stylish baths and showers to the list? Here, three
homeowners tell JILL FOSTER and HELEN CARROLL
why their houses are awash with bathrooms ...A HAVEN FOR EACH
OF US – AND STILL
ONE TO SPARE!
SIX ISN’T ENOUGH! NOW
WE’RE BUILDING NO. 7
RACHEL ROBERTS, 41, works in
marketing and lives in a five-bedroom
farmhouse near Tamworth, Staffs, with
her two sons, aged 12 and nine. It will
soon have SEVEN bathrooms. She says:
YOU might wonder how we have seven
bathrooms. Well, there’s two master bath-
rooms, three en-suites, one for anyone
who uses the gym or hot tub and one we’re
having built in the garden store room.
When we bought this 200-year-old farm-
house for £600,000 three years ago, we
knew we had a big renovation on our hands.
We wanted enough space for our boys to
grow up, and for them to bring their own
families back one day. We also wanted
enough space for my parents to live with us
if needed when they’re older.
I admit it’s unusual to have a toilet in the
garden — our builder recommended add-
ing it, saying they are now popular in rural
gardens. And I can see why — it’ll be very
useful for barbecues or parties.
Inside, I love the main bathroom and got
some help from an interior designer. I
wanted a traditional feel with some con-
temporary twists. The designer works a lot
with Heritage Bathrooms and I absolutely
love the Hylton copper bath we’ve chosen.
The boys have an en-suite each but spend
most of the time in my bathroom. Nothing
to do with the bath, I’m afraid — you can
get strong wifi in there.BATHROOM 1
BATHROOM 1
2 3
4 5
BRONWEN FREEMAN, 49, an
interior designer, is married to Mark,
50, a property developer. They live in
a five-bedroom house in Taynton,
Glos, and have three children, Bryn,
19, Ava, 18, and Tessy, 13. She says:
While people traditionally covet lots of
bedrooms, when we renovated we con-
verted some of the eight bedrooms, and
now have four bathrooms and two WCs.
People don’t want to be walking across
the landing in the middle of the night to
go to the loo. One of the two master bed-
rooms was sacrificed for a big bathroom
and a walk-in wardrobe. i love this bath-
room. if you’re sitting in the bath, you
can see the view on to the meadows and
in the morning the sun pours in.
My eldest daughter, Ava, has her own
en suite up in what used to be the serv-
ants’ area. it’s very spacious, with a large
white porcelain sink and industrial style
mirrors and lighting. it connects to a
dressing area, perfect for when she and
her friends are getting ready to go out.
Downstairs, my son has his own cloak-
room, with toilet and sink, and fabulous
black house of hackney wallpaper.
This is right next to another contem-
porary-styled bathroom with bath,
shower, two sinks and another toilet.
Guests have their own area in the 15th-
century coach house. We’ve created an
enormous bathroom there, featuring the
original wooden beams.
Downstairs we have the main bath-
room — quite large with an old-style
toilet and sink and woodland forestry
birds wallpaper. it’s bonkers. each room
is fabulous in its own particular way.Pictures: ALISTAIR HEAP/PAUL TONGE/GLEN MINIKINBath with a view:
Bronwen FreemanTaking a shine
to copper:
Rachel
Roberts