Do Not Disturb
8 years ago by
One day, I’ll have a bright, sunny house and a big bathroom with a huge window. I’ll have a vanity in it with all my makeup perfectly organized, a big bathtub, a shower, an armchair, and I’ll be able to listen to music and read there for hours while I do my nails and no one will be able to say anything about it because there will be a sign on the door in capital letters: DO NOT DISTURB.
Because right now, it’s ridiculous.
Why why why are bathrooms treated like they’re optional “if we have room in that back corner over there” rooms? It makes me think about kitchens. I’ve always loved kitchens, and I think it’s great that little by little, they’ve become the central part of the home. Today everyone knows the kitchen is where we spend our time – but that hasn’t always been the case. In older apartments, kitchens were tiny, dark places you accessed from a hidden door.
And now that’s what’s happened to bathrooms. In New York, I’m lucky to be able to rent a really big apartment – a loft in the East Village where we can even skate* in the living room…
But even so, the bathroom is small and there’s no window. It looks nice, sure – it’s newly renovated and has a big shower, but even so it still bugs me.
First of all, there’s nothing comfortable about it and as soon as I walk in, the first thing I want to do is leave.
Shaving my legs is a Pilates exercise all by itself (I have to balance on one leg, with the other at a right angle against the wall, and I always miss the spot behind my knees and the sides of my ankles, CLASSY)(and I love being able to shave in the bathtub with a sexy leg in the air like Marilyn Monroe).
Drying my hair makes me want to take another shower because the temperature in the bathroom gets so hot, and when I do my makeup, the lighting is actually TOO flattering*** which makes it very difficult because I think I look so amazing that if I didn’t know it was fake, I’d go out every day without a drop of makeup on (I’ve done it more than once and every time it was a total fail).
Oh and that’s not all, I could keep going for hours. There’s no place where you can see yourself from every angle, which means any secret hair removal operations (there are some hairs we don’t even admit having to our dog) have to be done outside the bathroom, in plain sight of the people living in the apartment (so for ultra-secret operations, I have to wait for my dear fiancé to leave the house)(which also means that one out of three times, the critical moment when I’m armed with my tweezers has passed) and as for my feet, well, I have to leave that up to professionals because…
Because I like to do those kinds of things in private.
But since I can’t, I’ve adapted as best I can, and little by little, I’ve allocated certain places in the apartment for my beauty routines. And it annoys me.
The sofa in my bedroom (yes, I have a sofa in my bedroom. I’m telling you, my apartment is huge…except for the bathroom) is for manicures whenever I decide to do my own nails, and it’s also for pore-admiring sessions in my magnifying mirror, which I use to get rid of any undesirable hairs on my face (sorry if I just made you think of Donald Trump talking about my face like that, and vive Hillary Clinton!!!)
The kitchen table with the big mirror (one day I bought a mirror for the living room and the delivery guy put it in the kitchen, and it hasn’t moved since – what? maybe I like watching myself while I eat) is where I dry my hair.
I do my makeup in the living room or in the kitchen. I have a vanity case (gorgeous, of course, totally gorgeous. It’s from Smythson and I feel like Audrey Hepburn when I pick it up by its little handle)(except that the inside has more of a Courtney Love ambiance (yeah, her again). I don’t know how I do it, but there’s always a makeup pencil (black, of course) that opens somehow and ruins the inside of all my toiletry bags) that follows me from my living room to the kitchen depending on the light that day.
And that leaves my kitchen sink, which is where I take my ba…
No, just kidding, of course. They make enormous showers now (what is the point of an enormous shower? Are you supposed to go for a jog in the shower?). So of course I have an enormous shower where a reasonably sized bathtub could have been, but no, it’s 2016, so huge shower.
[Brief environmental aside: unlike Arielle Dombasle, I don’t take a bath every day. I take a quick shower every day and a big, long bath once a week (well, I used to, back when I had a bathtub…tears) where I do everything – masks, scrubs, deep conditioning hair treatments, etc., etc. I told you all about that here in case you’re interested. So I promise, I’m not going overboard with my water use. Promise!]
Anyway, you can’t imagine how much I miss taking a bath.
You can’t even know how much I miss having a nice bathroom. In my old apartment, I had a beautiful little all white bathroom, with a little bathtub and a big window so I could hear the birds singing, and just ask anyone who came to visit, I was overjoyed and constantly singing its praises at the top of my lungs.
And…I was perfectly shaven.
Because for me, getting clean and making myself look beautiful is a moment of pleasure.
It’s like the kitchen, sort of, but a kitchen for yourself. It’s where you have a moment with yourself, where you love yourself, look at yourself. You can close the door on the rest of the world. It’s a moment of intimacy with yourself, a moment of solitude when there are so few, especially when you live with a partner, or with your family, or with roommates—those moments are actually pretty rare.
So there you go, I’m fighting to restore the bathroom to its former glory, and against football field-sized showers. What do you think? What is your bathroom like?
_______
* Which is the minimum required, with all the skating I do.
** Yes, that’s a thing – light that’s too flattering. It’s like a circus mirror, but one that makes you look better. I can get up in the morning, totally dehydrated from drinking the night before, no makeup on (obviously) and still look like Bella Hadid in the lens of Boo George for British Vogue. Then I go in my living room, feeling confident, and shriek in horror when I discover the brunette version of Courtney Love looking back at me like a cat in headlights (me, but without the flattering lighting, in case you didn’t follow).
Translated by Andrea Perdue
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I agree with everything, The bathroom is the only room in my house where I can legally get some privacy from my family = boyfriend and two kids. My boyfriend thinks he might as well come by and brush his teeth while I’m having a shower, and he doesn’t get why I get so hysterical about it sometimes. Sometimes I think that if I could have 20 minutes alone each morning in the bathroom (and a window put in … hair removal by tweezers IS nearly impossible in rooms without windows), I would be a much kinder and cooler person for the whole rest of the day :-) A bathroom of one’s own!
i agree with the privacy thing. one must have enough space and time and head space to deal with grooming and to think of one’s own things! :)
http://littleaesthete.com/
Usually all this mistakes in the architecture of an apartment is because the architect is a man !!!!you can see a big different when it’s a woman!!! we will be more details like light and space place to put the makeup….
when you rent an apartment make sure the designer is a lady…you will have a better light for makeup and a better bathroom!!!
xoxo
Yael Guetta
http://www.ftwwl.com
j’avoue avoir de la chance avec une salle de bain assez grande pour une grande baignoire, deux velux (chant des oiseaux) et une grande vasque double pour qu’on puisse mon chéri et moi ne pas se gêner.
en revanche pas de place pour une coiffeuse (soupir) ni de méridienne (re-soupir) pour lire ou flaner confortablement pendant mon masque/mani/pedi/etc… mais bon, on ne peut pas tout avoir.
En même temps, je préfère avoir une grande chambre, un salon immense et une grande cuisine plutôt qu’une salle de bain de 20 m².
allez, l’appart parfait n’existe pas, ou alors pas dans mon budget!!!
Bises
Just wait until (if! making no assumptions) you have kids….. the bathroom takes on a whole new meaning. It’s everything you just said times 10! It’s a place that you need on a separate floor away from all others in the house, with a lock (of course), shower & bath and mini fridge (jk) – Thanks for the great post, Garance ;)
And a small/big sofa for manicures, pedicures and other spa procedures! :P
Aside from the bathtub part (I only shower) I completely relate to ALL of this. And don’t get me started on the too-flattering lighting. Of course I love it when lighting is flattering and we designed our bathroom for it (which I now kind of regret), but I want that to happen in all parts of my life, not just in my own bathroom! Most days I’m not really sure how I look when I leave the house, and just have to tell myself all the other mirrors are super unflattering (which I know they’re not…).
xo,
Josephina
http://www.josephinacollection.com/
Arf ! Ce que je te comprends moi je vis la même chose avec ma cuisine et ma salle de bain ! Toutes les deux toutes petites ! J’ai hâte de déménager !
Amelie – Charles Ray and Coco
https://charlesrayandcoco.com/
Héhé…je ne comnente plus beaucoup mais je n’ai pas pu m’en empêcher, ce post est très drôle et très juste :)) … J’ai la chance de vivre dans un grand deux piéces avec cuisine américaine, à Paris. Pour une fois je n’ai pas l’impression de vivre dans une cage à lapin. Mais le hic, là encore c’est la salle de bain …je crois que ce souci est très parisien (je n’inclus pas les constructions plus récentes…). Ma douche fait la moitié de la pièce et l’autre moitié est occupée par les WC et le lavabo, rien que de l’écrire j’ai envie de pleurer de rire tellement c’est ridicule, sèrieux… pour aller de la douche au lavabo deux pas suffisent, je n’éxagére pas! Bref, finalement j’y passe très peu de temps, mes activités sont assez sommaires (le temps d’une douche ou d’un tour aux wc) :))…En revanche, gros avantage , pour le ménage du dimanche c’est top! Deux, trois coups d’éponges et c’est fait!
My mom SWEARS that the only reason her marriage to my father worked for the long-haul is that they have separate bathrooms!! To this day, as we are all marrying off, that is her #1 counsel for a long and happy marriage. :)
Je suis bien d’accord !!! Vive le bain !!!
Penses-tu un jour pouvoir nous faire visiter ton appart en photos ???
xxx
I’m about to embark on a bathroom reno in less than two weeks. In the words of Nate Berkus, “Wardrobes should be large and bathrooms small.” I tend to agree.
As you stated, in 2016, a large shower is a must. But I plan to create a “big enough” shower with just enough room for a wooden bench and vintage brass hardware, a skylight to bring in the best make-up prep light possible: daylight, and a substantial vanity with ottoman seating in a space measuring 12ft x 6ft, in a brooklyn brownstone. Think Jenna Lyons brownstone bathroom meets best of Pinterest. This will most definitely be my DO NOT DISTURB retreat.
http://brooklynchateau.blogspot.com/
Ca me rappelle les douches que je prenais au Mondulkiri, au Cambodge. Dans les petits villages Bunong, les maisons n’ont pas de douches, pas de salle de bains. Par contre, au milieu du village, il y a un puits, et ça là qu’on se lave. Heureusement, une amie m’avait prévenue, j’avais donc pris avec moi une sorte de longue robe sans manche avec un élastique en haut. Parce que du coup, on se lave en plein milieu du village, devant tout le monde. Alors on enfile cette robe, on s’asperge d’eau, puis on frotte sa robe de savon. La robe fait l’effet d’un gant avec lequel on se frictionne. Puis on se rince. J’étais bien gênée de sentir les regards rivés sur moi. Mais abstraction faite de cela, je retiens une agréable sensation de me laver en plein air, que ce soit le matin, où les fleurs de caféier embaumaient l’air, ou la nuit sous le ciel étoilé. L’intimité pour la toilette est quelque chose de récent… et de très occidental. Vous ne croyez pas ?
That goes without saying that you don’t have children. Take it into consideration before having kids, because once you do, you’ll never be in your bathroom alone again. They manage to get in even if it is locked…
Ah la la je te comprends tellement ! On a déménagé il y a 6 mois, dans un appart beaucoup plus grand que l’ancien et Ô malheur, plus de baignoire dans la salle de bain (l’ancienne locataire a DEMANDÉ au proprio de la retirer pour mettre une douche !!)(mais QUI fait ça ?!)
Depuis je ne suis que tristesse, j’oublie une fois sur 3 de me faire un masque pour le visage, le rasage des jambes est devenu une gymnastique impossible et surtout, surtout, le bain après une journée froide, pluvieuse (on a que ça en ce moment à Paris…) et fatigante a disparu. Beuh. À bas les douches et vive les baignoires !
J’habite dans un petit appartement, la salle de bains est toute petite (les toilettes sont dedans alors que j’adorerais avoir des toilettes séparées). Avec la douche, le lavabo, la machine à laver et le bac à linge sale, il ne reste plus beaucoup de place! Juste assez pour que je puisse me brosser les dents et sortir de la douche :)!
Par contre, j’ai de la chance d’avoir une petite fenêtre pour la ventilation naturelle mais elle reste petite alors il n’y a pas beaucoup de lumière dedans. Mais je n’ai pas à me plaindre…:
Je rêverais d’avoir une grande salle de bains avec une jolie baignoire sur pied, de l’espace, des meubles bois clair naturel etc. Mais c’est dans mes rêves!!!
Après, il faut toujours espérer!
Bises, bel après-midi,
Julie, Petite and so What?
À moi aussi ça me manque de clapoter dans une baignoire et y passer trop de temps à lire un livre (et mouiller les pages accidentellement, se rendre le bout des doigts flapis à force de traîner dedans etc.) ! Chez mes parents nous avions 2 salles de bain avec 2 baignoires…2 !!!
Chez moi, j’ai une mini salle de bain et évidemment une douche. Moderne mais toute petite…et sombre…bonheur!
Je propose de lancer le CLSDB (=comité de libération des salles de bain) !
Bisous Garance,
Mido. @ http://www.bowsome.com/
UGH YES! I live on the Lower East Side and our bathroom was a complete afterthought. We have a small window but it opens to a weird, closed-off chute that doesn’t actually lead to fresh air. So it’s such a tease! “Here is a window but there is no sunlight, you’re looking at the side of the building next door, and the air is stale and flat and smells like old cigarettes.” I LOVE bathrooms and I always fantasize about a big, white, airy bathroom with a claw foot tub and a sunny window. I have become so impatient with showering and grooming and I think it’s due to my crappy little space. Like you, when I’m in there I just want to leave. Oh and I DO have a tub, but it’s so small that I can’t actually lie down and stretch my legs out when I take a bath! So once again, like with the weird window, they have teased me into giving me a bath, but one that I can’t really use. I’ve taken a few and I just awkwardly sit there since my body is too long… anyway, I agree with you and think bathrooms should be taken more seriously!
Oh the dreaded ‘air shaft’– it took me months of living in my apartment to realize that the smell of smoke was coming through the bathroom window. (Yes, I should feel lucky that I have a window in my bathroom in New York, but since it does not let in light nor fresh air, it seems rather pointless. And I’m also ‘lucky’ enough to have a bathtub, but when that is chipped and cracked so it is impossible to clean– it’s not made of a proper porcelain, but some 60s era plastic perhaps?– and so I’ve never enjoyed a bath in my apartment.
The best bathroom I ever had was weirdly enough in a ridiculously cheap, otherwise crummy studio in Vienna. It had the most amazing soaking tub. Clean, deep, and long. I spent most of my time drinking wine and watching movies from that bathroom, as the rest of the apartment was a sad hovel.
dans ma vieille maison, ma salle de bain est une ancienne chambre reconvertie, avec fenêtre sur le jardin, donc lumière naturelle, plein Est, très agréable le matin, ce soleil qui baigne la pièce, une cheminée, baignoire immense, pas de douche…elle est un peu désuète, mériterait largement d’être refaite. Je pouvais y baigner mes trois filles quand elles étaient encore petites et me faire les ongles ou me sécher les cheveux en même temps…mais je n’ai pas de vanity à 1600$ :) chacune son luxe !
totally agree, I am all for big bathroom and big kitchen as they are essential for the quality of life !!! they should make a rule for all bathrooms and kitchens to meet certain size (big of course) !!!
Such a great post! I feel like every bathroom needs a window that opens. I still don’t have one though… It gets so hot when I do my hair that I nearly faint!
Love,
http://www.thestyleventure.com
why are bathroom and kitchen always “stepchildren” in an apartment? Because of the male architect (as “from the world
with love” said). I have also a huge apartment and the bathroom (with 2 sinks!) is not small at all but without
any daylight. Hence I have to take my magni-mirrorr to the terrace to do my make up. Same with the kitchen…most of
them, like mine, is totally not considered by the architects. Shame
magnifique illustration, c’est très réussi, j’adore! merci et bonne journée
C’est quand j’ai re-découvert la joie des hamams et des massages thaïlandais que j’ai réellement compris la beauté et l’utilité d’avoir une belle salle de bain , depuis mon Pinterest regorge de photo salle de bain … C’est fout comme ça fait du bien de prendre soin de son corps , de prendre le temps de le frotter . J’ai vu une femme faire ses ablutions au hammam de la mosquée de Paris , elle n’arrêtait pas de gommer son corps … Et la j’ai compris l’importance de la chaleur, l’humidité et du marbre ! Ah L’art du bain ! Oui tout un ART ! Celui de se sentir bien ! Donc OUI, place à une belle salle de bain dans nos maisons !
J’aime les grandes douches et… Elles sont faites pour faire l’amour :)
Super post!
On rêve toutes de celle salle de bain immense pour se faire belles, et prendre soin de nous:)
Avant ca il faudrait d’abord que je m’installe définitivement dans une ville, arrêter de changer d’appart tous les 6 mois (welcome to student life!). Ma priorité number 1 c’est de trouver un job l’année prochaine dans une de mes 3 villes fetiches (London, New York ou Paris), trouver l’appart qui pourrait peut être m’héberger a long terme et le mettre a mon gout (quel kiff!! j’ai hate).
Tellement envie de voir des photos de ton appartement gigantesque a NY et sa decoration, il doit être merveilleux meme avec une petite salle de bain j’en doute pas une seconde!
Voir le bon cote des choses: tu as un immense salon! C’est pas donne a tout le monde et surtout pas a NY ;)
Solution to your problem: Suburbs or win the lottery.
I guess I shouldn’t complain but I’d love to have a huge bathroom. And a huge wardrobe. And a huge house… ????
https://sofaundermapletree.wordpress.com
Hihihi totaly agree ???????????? je suis architecte si jamais ??
Would love to see pictures of your bathroom and apartment!! xx
I tried shaving my legs while in a bath once. I used oil instead of shaving gel too. Ended up scrubing the tiny bits of hair off my body and didn’t fully succeed. Not fabulous…
ma sdb est petite mais très sympa niveau déco (épurée) et confort. je rêve aussi d’une baignoire pour barboter à souhait, avec fenêtre sur jardin of course. mais à Paris, c’est compliqué. Oui Garance, à quand des photos de ton home sweet home? ;)
J’ai toujours eu des petites salles de bains que ce soit a Paris ou aux U.S. ce qui m’a habituee a faire mes ablutions, me groomer et me maquiller dans un mouchoir de poche !
Yes I have the same lighting! I always look great in the bathroom but then in the car mirror, it’s another story. So I bought a big round mirror which has one side magnified which I keep by my desk. There the light coming from the window tells me the truth! Haha. I have a newly renovated bathroom but I live in a condo, so no window, that’s what I miss. Natural light and a view and plants…
Wonderful post!
xo
Colleen
http://www.blushandbeyond.com/beauty/st-tropez-shower-self-tanner-review/
I have a shower that’s too SMALL. Our bathrooms are like something that belong on airplanes. I couldn’t have used our shower when I was pregnant. If I drop the soap, I have to carefully descend completely vertically to get it–no room to bend over from the waist. We are renovating some apartments for AirBnB rentals and they have large (not huge but generous) showers and I want to move in there.
The light is awful. Artificial light doesn’t cut it. Natural light is the only thing that works. Just wait until you need bifocals, you’ll (not) see.
I had an apartment in Brooklyn that had amazing ventilation–the mirror never fogged up even though there was no window. It also had no A/C and in summer I had to stand in front of a fan to put on makeup, and I got dressed at the last minute because I would sweat so much. So much for showering.
I think you need to address the embarrassing hair situation and what to do about it. The elephant in the room.
My dream is to have a huge bathroom directly linked to a huge kitchen. I use lots of natural ingredients in the bathroom. I always prepare them first in the kitchen. I want a bathkitch.
Damn I’m spoiled!!! But it took al long time, blood, sweat and tears. I designed our own modernistic house and got THE Bathroom…with infra red sauna…with patio after THE big windows…and jacuzzi to come. And there is more I won’t tell about. So sorry this isn’t in reach for everyone. But keep on dreaming!!! It’s possible those dreams don’t come treu and it’s possible they do! For me they did after 30 years and it is more than wonderful. But I did enjoy my historical home with the little Bathroom (and window, sorry) too. Good luck for everyone.
I have always maintained that kitchens and bathrooms are the most important rooms in any home. Oh, and a good walk-in closet. Sadly, those are just in my dreams as I have been a renter in metropolitan cities for the past near-decade.
P.S. “The brunette version of Courtney Love” = laugh/cry emoji!!!
je ne peux rester muette quand tu embrasses cette cause si chère à mon coeur … Voilà ma salle de bain: https://chicandgeek.com/2014/06/30/salle-de-bains-gris-princesses/
Il manque le DO NOT DISTURB mais sinon tout y est !
C’est marrant j’ai toujours rêvé d’une salle de bain immense où je mettrais ma baignoire à pieds au milieu de la pièce (je pense que c’est difficilement faisable niveau arrivée d’eau mais bon…) face à une grande baie vitrée, devant la nature ! Oui j’ai vu ça un jour dans un magasine déco et c’est toujours resté dans ma tête ;-) sinon je suis aussi la fille qui a un crayon ou une poudre qui s’ouvre dans sa trousse de maquillage haha !
I have a London bathroom meaning small, with two separate taps for hot and cold water (Brits…) and no window. So when I went to Paris in March I booked a suite with a lovely luxurious bathroom and spent every evening there :)))
Ana
http://www.champagnegirlsabouttown.co.uk
The separate taps are THE WORST! How am I supposed to wash my hands?! Or my face for that matter!
I have a very tiny bathroom so I have my dressing table near a window in my bedroom.
BUT the trick is to belong to a very nice women’s only club/gym. There I take advantage of the non chlorinated pool & exercise equipment and classes ….. and once a week I have ‘spa time’ in the ultra red sauna with a hair masque then exfoliate and shave in the steam room.
Dry my hair sipping herbal tea or cucumber water and I feel like am a new woman.
I’m an architect–there are good space design out there with generous bathrooms. They’re hard to come by and takes time to find the perfect design but don’t settle for bad layouts that keep those bad developers/architects in the market. If you have friends who do architecture they can immediately tell pros and cons of a space by just reading the plan of the unit.
Also, last comment (I’m a big nerd when it comes to architecture… good thing I ended doing this as a profession) is the usual the problem with lofts (even if they’re super cool) if they’re in a warehouse conversion is that the building originally was not designed to be housing so once it’s partitioned that way you can get awkward spaces like a small and dark toilet.
I am married with children of multiple ages and I think a his and hers closet AND bathroom would help keep the romance alive. A big bathroom with a chaise and a bath sounds lovely for mine. :)
It’s about our secrets too, bathroom are places of secrecy – or mystery rather. So many thoughts are born there, either in the night, when washing the day off, or in the morning, when everything seems possible. There is a secret world hidden in our bathrooms – no matter how small or large.
Do you ever think it could be beneficial for a couple living together to each have a bathroom? I’ve always wondered if/where in a couple I your private space when you live together.
We recently holidayed at a lovely house in Provence that had a huge walk-in shower. My husband thought we might actually use it for, er, romantic adventures. He was sadly disappointed. My shower, my bath AND my toilet are for my use only. I do not share this room with anyone else when I am in it. Besides, romantic adventures in the shower are only sexy in french films in my humble opinion.
Je partage ton combat ! La salle de bains est une pièce à part entière, où l’on doit être bien et pouvoir prendre le temps… vive la salle de bains !
I can definitely follow you here!
In my old tiny apartment, I had a big bathroom, which I ended up renovating and loving. In our new apartment, the bathroom is rectangular and there is almost no space for anything /although we do no shower above our toilet, as is common in copenhagen, my city).
Although, we did get some money for renovating it, so I really look forward to making it the best bathroom possible – which means moving around all installations etc.
Oh, and luckily enough, now I actually do have a window, with birds chirping outside – its fantastic to have a long shower on a weekend morning with the birds :)
Don’t be surprised if Loulou wants to come into the bathroom too …I have 2 cats and a small dog that like to wander in or sit at the door waiting More pics of The gorgeous Loulou please
Ben elle est minuscule (3,5 m2)… mais elle a une fenêtre (qui n’ouvrait pas, mais on l’a changée), donc j’ai au moins la lumière naturelle et les oiseaux qui chantent. Pour le reste, on repassera… Je ne rêve pas qu’elle soit grande, ni d’une baignoire, mais un poil plus grande quand même et surtout, juste à moi (bonjour mari et fils qui débarquent à tout moment… “mais pourquoi t’as fermé à clé?”)!
My mirror in the car shows every stray hair….how to pluck discreetly in a carpark is my problem
Wishing you all the best girl ! <3
Jillian – http://www.cupofcharisma.com
I too have a bathroom with flattering light! I leave the house with my held held high thinking I look great then usually get a shock when I go to the bathroom at work and discover I don’t!
Moi aussi j’adore les belles et spacieuses salles de bain, la mienne est toute petite, je me cogne à la porte quand je me maquille (oh joie), il n’y a pas de fenêtre et j’ai une baignoire mais je ne prends que très rarement des bains parce que finalement, je prends peu de plaisir à rester longtemps dans ma salle de bain. C’est un lieu de passage, c’est tout.
J’aime les salles de bains lumineuses, avec une fenêtre ou une fenêtre sur le toit ou une lucarne, enfin de la lumière quoi! et qu’il y ait de l’espace entre la douche, le lavabo, la place pour quelques meubles…
Une amie avait une salle de bain originale séparée en deux parties douche/lavabo/wc et une partie dressing avec un endroit pour s’asseoir, je trouvais ça hyper cool, j’adore quand on fait d’une pièce classique un lieu original, différent.
http://www.my-mixed-up-world.fr
Euh, Garance, faut il VRAIMENT t’expliquer à quoi sert une grande douche ? ;-)
On my first trip to Italy it so happened that all our hotel rooms had only showers–yes, they were huge. But I missed soaking in a big hot bath at the end of the day so when we went to Siena my dear husband booked us into a very expensive hotel (Clooney stayed there!) so I could bathe. What bliss! I couldn’t live without a bath. I have a big old-fashioned one that is really deep. At our old cottage there is another very old deep bathtub which I can lie in and gaze out the open window at trees. Just me and the spiders!
I could never stand a jacuzzi. Too noisy and too much to keep clean.
As for kitchens (and I cook most nights) I prefer a small galley kitchen where everything is in reach, and hat is separate from the rest of the house. I like to cook alone undisturbed as it can get a bit hectic getting it all together at the finish. I can’t stand open concept living. I can’t cook when anyone is chatting to me and who wants to look at even just a few dirty dishes?
Ah oui voilà j’ai le même problème de ne pas avoir de fenêtre dans la salle de bains et le maquillage est forcément tronqué! Elle est pourtant grande et avec une baignoire en plus! Mais moi au contraire, je n’aime pas les baignoires je préfère les douches bien grandes à l’italienne! Je déteste prendre des bains je m’y ennuie rapidement.
I totally agree!! For me bathrooms are my pickiest point when looking for an apartment/AirB’n’B, because yes it’s a place I want to get clean and pretty, reflect (literally and figuratively) on myself and I have the best ideas while sitting in the loo…
Living in Shanghai, once I lived in an apartment so ‘ghetto’, above the shower part in the bathroom was a semi-open ceiling (?) with a family of cats living above that used to peer down at my naked, soapy, vulnerable self. I didn’t live there long!
Also 100% on separate bathrooms for live in couples!!! I’ve always, always been adamant about this…the most important privacy!
Great article as always!
xMJ
You are SO preaching to the choir. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to realize that a beautiful, spacious, well-appointed bathroom is a rare thing indeed. I’d forsake closet space over a sacred bathing and primping space to call my own any day of the week. Where else can I metamorphosis into the goddess I truly am? ;-)
Ben moi j’ai jamais compris l’engouement pour les bains. Quand ça m’arrive (genre une fois tous les 2 ans), chez mes parents, je fais une crise de tachycardie rien qu’en pensant au gaspillage (j’ai un problème avec l’eau, je supporte pas qu’on la laisse couler c’est incontrôlable purée). Mais surtout j’ai toujours pas compris à quand c’est plaisant le bain ? L’eau refroidit en 27 secondes, la mousse c’est comme le dahut, un mythe. En plus je suis grande alors je sais jamais quoi faire de mes jambes et je fini toujours par avoir les pieds ou les genoux qui sortent et j’ai froid. Et puis quand j’ai fini de lutter contre les éléments, je me demande toujours si je dois me rincer en mode douche. Non mais c’est une vraie question ça. Bon bref, du coup à chaque fois ça vire au casse-tête chinois cette affaire donc j’ai laissé tomber.
Par contre, j’adore les belles salles d’eau (du coup), je trouve que c’est un espace à part entière qui mérite sa déco. Moi mes masques et tout le tralala je les fait à moitié dans la sde, à moitié vautrée dans mon canapé (vu que j’ai pas de baignoire et que tant mieux). Du coup la solution j’imagine c’est de mettre un sofa dans ma sd, voilà. Mais du coup une autre question se pose : POURQUOI les douches (même à l’italienne machin chose) sont TOUJOURS moches et pas pratiques ? Vas y je vais militer pour de la cabine de douche de compèt.
Hahaha!
J’ai déménagé il y a deux mois en ville après 10ans à la montagne et j’y ai gagné une baignoire… dans laquelle je ne fais que de me doucher car je n’arrive pas à dire non à des super job qui me prennent tout mon temps. Du coup les moment de relaxation je les fais au spa que j’ai décoré à 5min de chez moi. Mais ce qu’il y a à savoir sur ma salle de bain, c’est que je suis le seul de toute la maison à avoir une baignoire, les autres on droit eux, à un sabot (entre la douche et la baignoire assise) et aussi pour la ventiler, j’ai une jolie fenêtre qui donne dans la cuisine hihihi. Pour te rassurer j’ai les toilettes séparée et cacher tout au fond d’un couloir qui a sa propre porte (un peu comme sur le palier mais dans l’appartement).
Ah un bon bain pour se relaxer après le taf avec un petit verre de vin et bougie. …mais Garance tu écoutes les grosses têtes? Ah ah notre chère Arielle y a dévoilé récemment ses trois bains quotidiens là franchement elle nous déculpabilise sérieusement
EXACTEMENT!
Bathroom size. You’re from Europe and now live in New York City. Places not know for being spacious. Live in a new housing development in Atlanta, Nebraska, so many places in America with large homes, land and a fraction of housing costs of New York. I’m guessing that even in Manhattan you can find a couple of large bathrooms – maybe more than one. You have to give up something so you can buy 600 dollar sweaters to wear when you hike in Los Angeles.
Mais c’est affreux Garance! Comment fais tu pour survivre ????
Recently I moved to a countryhouse, i was led by the 3 condition: first I needed a bathtub? after 5 years of an apartment with just a tiny shower I was jealous of bathtubs I found in hotels!! other 2 conditions were fireplace and a small garden. The house I live now has 2 bathrooms, one with a bathtub and another one with a shower, even if we did not look for this solution me and my boyfriend really appreciate it now
Amen!!!
Oh God! You are so funny! I’m reading your book, Style Love life and I’m so curious to know all about you. Your way to write is fantastic and I’m completely agree with you, from the bath to the rest! Laugh! But I’m here, first of all, for your fashion illustration. I wish a day to have your talent to draw so simply everything I see.
Now I have to go… to read the end of your book!
kisses!
Luana
http://www.luanabcandraw.blogspot.it
Me ha interesado mucho la noticia, verdaderamente muy buena, gracias por la información, bastante informativa.
Sigo averiguando por la web a aprender mas cosillas informativas, chas
gracias de nuevo.