How to create a zen bathroom

Soothing colors, radiant floor heating and luxury amenities for bathing collectively create a spa-like atmosphere. “I wanted to design a bathroom conducive to relaxing, a space of Zen,” interior designer Cynthia Shreve explains. Homeowner Carol Radic describes the room’s use of natural materials as “breathtaking.” River rock and bamboo harmoniously mix around a spacious air-jetted tub (far left) and in the glass-enclosed shower (left). Lava-colored Ceasarstone countertops and tub deck also enhance this natural motif.

Peace and serenity abound in the renovated master bath of Carol Radic in Bedford. Radic recalls her old bathroom as a cold and dated space, a room in need of a special touch. She wanted a comfortable place where she could treat herself to a relaxing bath. So, she called on Cynthia Shreve, then of Goedecke Flooring and Design Center
in Bedford, to transform this room into something exceptional—a spa-like environment with a Zen feel. 

Shreve, who now operates independently as Cynthia Shreve Interiors in Derry, kept the design simple, relaxed and open. A major priority was to bring warmth to the room—both physically and visually. “The original bathroom was the coldest room in the house, and it had a dark green marble floor,” Shreve says. “I updated its fixtures, and introduced soft, soothing colors and many natural elements.” To provide heat, radiant floor heating and toe-kick heaters underneath new light-colored wood vanities were installed. The angled vanities create unique visual lines through the space and evoke the natural world with Caesarstone countertops, which are lava-like in color.

Drawing attention to nature and using natural materials are the bathroom’s focal points. A large window beyond a spacious air-jetted tub and a skylight above brighten the room and bring in views of the nearby forest. River rock is used on the glass shower’s floor, and also curves around the bathtub and mingles with bamboo paneling. Shreve did not want a full wall of glass between the two bathing areas, so she broke up the space with a panel of stone and bamboo with glass on either side. “I love the use of these materials and the way they all come together,” Radic says. “It really is like art. I always look in there, and my heart lifts.”

Shreve carried this peaceful atmosphere and aesthetic into the master bedroom, where warm colors, Asian-inspired contemporary artwork and textured drapery echo the serene ambience of the bathroom. “Both rooms offer a place of refuge,” Radic says. “Cynthia not only transformed these rooms but changed my attitude toward design. I am very pleased with the results!”

What makes this bathroom beautiful

• Design, tile and construction by Goedecke Flooring and Design Center in Bedford
  472-5221
  www.goedeckedecorating.com
• Cabinetry by Innovative Woodworking in Manchester
   785-7120
• Plumbing fixtures from Redlon and Johnson in Manchester
  669-8100
  www.redlon-johnson.com
• Caesarstone Countertops and tub deck from Rumford Stone in Pembroke
  224-9876
  www.rumfordstone.com
• Floral arrangements by Royal Bouquet in Bedford
  657-7220
  www.royalbouquet.net