Words: Matt Baker // Photography: Adam Carter // Styling: Sarah Walters

When Sarah Walters redesigned the bathroom in her North Cornwall farmhouse, she had one guiding principle: personality. “I wanted to walk into each room and feel something different from the last; a must-have for me was character,” she says.

The existing space was generous but lacked any real purpose. “It used to be one big space – there was no shower, just a corner bath, single basin, and toilet,” she explains.

Her vision brought structure, interest and bold design decisions, starting from the ground up. “The floor tiles were the starting point; we went back and forth, we hadn’t seen them used before, and I found it difficult to know exactly what would go with them, especially as this bathroom is quite big – but we went for it. And because the tiles are the main feature, we chose a soft white for the walls.”

With the patterned floor as a statement feature, Sarah kept the walls soft white to allow contrast without visual noise. A striped shower enclosure, traditional Burlington brassware and an antique-style vanity – “old and a little rough around the edges” – complete the eclectic mix.

“There might be too many styles in one,” she admits. “The floor tiles have a Moroccan feel, the brassware is very traditional, but they all complement each other so well; not one part of the bathroom looks out of place.”

A full-spectrum infrared sauna, a long-held dream, adds a luxurious twist. “Now it’s like our own little spa,” she says. “I’m just so pleased it worked out.”

The finer details…

• Designer Sarah Walters
• Overall Project Cost £15,000 (excl. plumbing and tiling)
• Bath Aurelius, BC Designs
• Basins Arezzo, Victorian Plumbing
• Brassware Burlington
• Tiling Floor tiles by Ca’Pietra (Porcelain Cross Cotto and Star White), wall tiles by The Baked Tile Company (Rapture Gloss White and Stone)
• Sauna Homeowners custom build

This case study project originally appeared in the August 2025 issue of Kitchens Bedrooms & Bathrooms Magazine, kbbreview’s sister publication.