Amazing Spaces: Splash Zone

For a bachelor, there isn't much need for a glamorous bathroom. It just has to be simple and functional. So when Brett Scully set out to renovate and add on to his lakefront Rocky River home after buying it in 2007, he wanted everything to reflect his laid-back, easy-going personality — even all of his six bathrooms.

"The outside of my house is very traditional, but I wanted the inside to be modern and minimalist," he says of the sleek, white décor, highlighted with pops of ocean blue and orange. "People are surprised when they walk in. You don't feel like you are in Ohio anymore."

A partner in The GasBox, a vintage motorcycle company, he had fun collaborating with interior designer Kara Barclay on the five other bathrooms throughout the house, including a floor-to-ceiling stainless steel half bath off the kitchen and a "prison bathroom" near the family room with a stainless steel toilet and sink that shows off the exposed brick of the original house.

But when it came to the master bathroom, he had one serious request.

"I wanted it to be like the New York Athletic Club steam room," he says. "For me, it's all about the steam. The tub there is like a small swimming pool."

A large porcelain tile shower with a built-in bench leads to a deep bath big enough for two — all with wide windows allowing for expansive views of Lake Erie.

"I turn the steam on in the morning and it gets so hot; and then you go into the tub and it's freezing," he says of the rejuvenating routine. "Most of the time it's at 62 degrees, so you hop in and you hop out."

But looking at his shower products, that's not always the case. A bottle of Mr. Bubbles has a prime location next to his shampoo and soap. "Sometimes I turn it hot and take bubble baths," he laughs.

While the shower is definitely the focal point of the bathroom, the rest of the space needed to continue the spa-like feel. So Barclay had a gray, Neo-Metro cast-resin countertop with a large basin sink installed. Keeping functionality in mind, she also gave Scully two adjustable magnifying mirrors for shaving.

But the one thing that took some convincing was adding a large Scott Pease photograph of a 1965 BSA motorcycle over the toilet and bidet.

"I've been really against hanging stuff on the walls," Scully says of the final result. "But it really makes the room and brings everything together."

Design on a Dime

While aesthetics were important to Scully, staying on budget trumped all. He originally wanted Italian marble throughout the whole house, says interior designer Kara Barclay. "I priced it out for him and he said it was too high," she says. "So I had to find a way to save money, but still find something that had the same feel." The answer was porcelain tile — a quarter of the cost. "To most people it looks like the real thing," she says. The same tile was even used in the steam shower for a mosaic look. Another added bonus? Porcelain is even better than marble because it doesn't stain.