{House & Home Magazine}—ITALIAN BEAUTY: It can be seen in the golden mirror frames, the marble countertops and even the intricate doorknobs; ciao bella! It's the evidence of Italian style. From natural textures too intricate mosaics, realtor and builder team Ruthie and Rusty Golden have created signature homes and bathrooms that incorporate materials and workmanship inspired by their worldly travels. Their love of Italy, with its unique blend of romance and beauty, leaves its touch in each bathroom. Tranquil spa qualities coupled with Italian flair yield hints of subtle luxury in a clean, practical space, such as in Grecian chandeliers glimmering over a ceramic floor tile.
The 2008 Baton Rouge Showcase Home, located on Via Horti Court and built by Rusty Golden's company Le Jardin Development, features several bathroom that reflect the quality craftmanship and artistic design that are trademarks of the Goldens. One of the bathrooms combines natural textures, such as teak wood flooring and brushed sand tile, with colorful hand-painted details and clear blue glass. A handmade vanity, with leather and turquoise accents, provides a one of a kind focal point in the room. A feminine chandelier and creative mirror placement add a sophisticated touch. The remaining bathrooms in the home pay tribute to the spa theme yet leave room for individual expression.
The other three bathrooms in the home all have similar foundations, such as cabinetry and marble countertops. However, while one bathroom may feature Grecian hues of green and gold, another showcases fossil stone tile and matchstick marble patterns. Differences aside, all of the bathrooms provide a contemporary yet tranquil escape.
COLORS OF NATURE: At one time, Italians used living rooms and kitchens as places to display wealth and beauty in the home. But, as the Goldens have demonstrated, modern Italian style brings luxury into the bathroom, often in forms of spa amenities. Upon first glace, this bathroom resembles a spa in its teak wood shower floor and blue glass vessel sink, but the details were carefully thought out and incorporated for specific reasons.
"The teak wood floor is actually safer than tile," Ruthie says. "It gives more grip to stand on and it gives the bathroom an organic look."
The clear blue glass of the sink, layered between Italian hand-painted tiles, creates a combination that appears as a "faux water color," explains Ruthie. The handmae vanity brings all of the room's colors together—the golden brown finish detailed with the turquoise blue and silver doorknobs. Under the vanity is a floor made of pillow-edged Macedonian limestone, which blends with the neutral wall color.
"The sand colored walls and tiles became a blank canvas for the colored tiles," Ruthie says. "I didn't want anything to compete with them; it created a focal point."
TILE STYLE: The Goldens designed the upstairs to resemble a hotel, in form and function. All of the guest bedrooms are set up as suites, each with its own bathroom. The different bathrooms reflect hotel styles and spa retreats the Goldens have seen when traveling.
"Each bethroom upstairs features different products that had just come out," Ruthie says. "After traveling and staying in different spas and hotels, we wanted the rooms to be relaxing."
The cabinets in all of the bathrooms are painted slab maple with a custom beaded edge, giving them a sleek look. They are detailed with soft-close Blum hinges on the inside of the doors instead of the outside. The Goldens desgined the cabinets, but they were made and installed by Castille Wood Products Inc. in Baton Rouge.
All of the countertops are made from statuary marble slab, featuring square porcelain sinks. Each bathroom also has a full soak tub with shower fixtures. The shower in one bathroom is decorated with porcelain subway tile, excluding one stripe of seafoam green glass tile. The oval mirror above the sink reflects Italian style in its antique gold paint overlaying intricate designs.
Another bathroom also features porcelain tile; however, a stripe in the shower was created from matchstick-cut marble, laid in a pattern. "The colors in the marble, some browns and some greens, made the room come together," Ruthie says. The floor is fossil stone tile—a texture that has indented shapes.
The fourth bathroom's shower is tiled with extra large porcelain subway tiles that resemble a basket-weave when laid together. The pattern is accented with smaller, clear glass tiles laid in two-to-three-inch wide strips at the top and bottom of the shower.
"We used different products that were tranquil and soothing to the eye," Ruthie says. "When our guests stay upstairs, we wanted it to feel like an escape, not like they were just staying at Ruthie's."
WESTERN FRONT/RUSTIC RESORT: Although this master bedroom as inspired by a resort and spa in Aspen, Colorado, its decor is far from the stereotypical log cabin and antler theme of the Rockies region. Instead, home builder Quinn Martin of QMI Custom Homes in Baton Rouge designed a bathroom that pulls its hues from the colors of nature and refined tranquility of a resort.
The layout of the bathroom makes the Jacuzzi tub a lavish focal point, complete with a leaf-like chandelier above it. The dual-entry shower adds another spa element to this relaxing room. The soft lighting combined with beige flooring and walls makes this room easy on the eyes. Unique room dimensions add depth, such as the section of the ceiling that is raised above the tub and the column-like doorways.
The marble Milano flooring also frames both doors to the shower room. The acrylic Jacuzzi tub is complete with jets. It is set into a mitered pedestal with a three-inch rainforest green granite tub deck. The same granite is also present on the countertops.
The shower, nearly a separate room, is another spa feature Martin included in this luxury bath. Measuring 60 square feet, the shower floor is tiled with 2-inch tumbled travertine squares in praline. The marble walls match the flooring outside the shower, but are detailed with a dark stripe made from Listello tile, which is manufactured in Spain from crushed pieces of green glass. Delta Victorian fixtures in Venetian bronze complete the shower and the spa feel of the entire bathroom.
CHECK MATE: With its chess-piece vanity and dark hues, this might be the kind of bathroom one would envision in a log cabin or a mountain lodge. Martin created this bathroom, located off the study, to reflect rich tones and textures. His creativity is found in the smallest details—the bell shape of the light fixture and the colored ties in hand-laid patterns.
The eye-catching vanity resembles the rook chess piece, or the old fashioned castle. The contrasting simplicity of the wooden frame mirror, made by M&M Glass Company in Baton Rouge, adds to the depth of the bathroom. The flooring and shower walls are made up of Rustic Gold Marble tile.
All of the colors in the room are brought together in another small detail—the strip of tiles in the shower wall. The ceramic tiles, in various colors, represent the many hues and textures in the bathroom. The custom pattern was created by mixing colors of dark cherry, golden maple, white sand and smooth cream.
Although this bathroom is part of Matin's personal hme, its decor could grace a rustic cabin or New England lodge.
SOFTER SIDE: The simple, soft hues make this bathroom unique. From the fresh lettuce-colored walls and simple faucet fixtures to the Brazilian marble and uniquely shaped floor tiles, this bathroom has a subtle beauty.
This smooth off-white vanity was built by Acadian Custom Cabinets in Gonzales out of paint grade maple with mitered doors. The countertop is Bahia Beige marble from Brazil. While the shower and currounding area is tiled with vintage-style ceramic subway tiles, the loors is a white octagonal ceramic tile.
WARMING TREND: The lush bathroom is proof that good things can come in small packages. The warm, sandy colors in the tile complement the dark maple vanity, which heightens the resort abiance of the room.
The unique oval vanity is by Jacob Alexander, and the metallic-framed mirror from M&M Glass Company pulls colors from the tile to complete the room. Accenting the vanity and mirror is the bell-shaped light trio with leaf detail, made by Notoco Industries LLC in Baton Rouge. The floor and shower tile is ICTC Durange ceramic tile.
GRECIAN DELIGHT: From the silver treated walls to the bronze shower fictures, this bathroom draws inspriation from ancient Grecian baths to create a luxurious escape for the homeowners. Designer Albert Nolan of Nolan-Kimble Interiors Inc. in Baton Rouge sought to create a relaxing space using warm colors and separate his and her areas.
The shower has two entries—one from her bathroom and one from his. Each shower entry is framed with marble, which is also used on the shower walls. The shower fixtures, including showerheads and multiple body sprays, are finished with brushed bronze, adding to the spa-like atmosphere. The shower floor tiles were set in a Greek mosaic pattern.
CELEBRATING HISTORY—Instead of modernizing her historic home, designer Beth Allee embraced its unique vintage flair—all the way down to the master bathroom. After keeping many of the bathroom's original elements, Allee found perfect additions to add to the feminity of the space.
"My entire house has a similar look, and I wanted to keep in line with that," Allee says. "That's why I added the monogrammed shower curtain and the fabric under the sink."
The sink, tub and their fixtures are original to the home, as is the tile on the floor and walls. Above the white wall tile, Allee glazed and antiqued the walls to give them texture. She placed a series of antiwue prints there to add height to the room.
"I've used those photos in the foyer of another house I lived in," Allee says. "I had limited space because of the tile, but the series worked."
GO GRAND/NATURE'S BEST:This bathroom is at once elegant and grand, with its impressive double doors, regal chandelier and detailed soaking tub. However, animal prints, bright fabrics and mosaic tiles enliven the space with color and pattern.
Lafayette home builders Michelle and Boyd Raborn wanted to give the bathroom a grand entrance and opted for double doors. The doors are made of an old pine door that was split in half. The original glass was traded for more obscure glass, done by Premier Glass, Inc. in Lafayette. The trim around the doorway makes the entrance look bigger.
Michelle says the concept for the bathroom's design was elegance warmed with colors and materials inspired by nature. The organic elements can be found in the colors of the tile and countertop, along with the mosaic pattern in the tub. The bathroom flooring is Noce Classic travertine tile with a chisel edge, while the countertops are St. Croix marble, which features a chocolate marble with a gold and cream veinging.
COMPLEMENTARY CONTRAST: Contrasting colors give this vintage bathroom a modern, feminine look. The coral walls compliment the marble countertops. The chandelier—overflowing with crystals—is from Teche Electric Supply, Inc. in Lafayette, and balances the gold glass mosaic sink. The mirror, from Fleur de Lis LLC in Lafayette, brings all the colors and textures together.
SEEING DOUBLE: Guests will be wowed as they enter these double doors to their bathroom, a signature feature designed by Michelle Raborn. She recycled an old door, turning it into a double entrance and replacing the glass. The porcelain doorknobs accent the entrance, as does the custom molding around the door. Beyond the double doors is a luxurious guest bathroom, featuring a custom shower, polished porcelain flooring and a crystal chandelier.