Astratto wallpaper, by Romo, was the ideal choice for the home’s first-floor powder room, in light of all the navy and chartreuse accents that pepper the house.
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“First and foremost, the powder room had to be an experience,” says designer April Jensen. “We wanted a wow factor, and the paper definitely made its presence known.”
Jensen, who doesn’t shy away from mixing metals, combined an antique gold mirror sourced from 1stdibs with stainless steel sconces by Visual Comfort and a vanity by Restoration Hardware.
The biggest challenge? Making certain that each new element increased the room’s overall impact. “Each piece matters, because you have few elements in a small space,” she says.
Amy Studebaker’s client wanted a “hint of glamour” in her powder room while maintaining a classic feel to match the rest of her house.
She fell in love with the hammered copper sink from Waterworks’ Normandy collection, and it inspired the design of the rest of the room.
“We loved the way light reflects off the hammered sink,” Studebaker says. “It moved us to use the mirrored tiles on the wall.”
With the sink and the Devotion Water Mirror tile in place, Studebaker elected to keep the room “mostly achromatic to emphasize the reflections of the tile and the sink.” Nickel sconces from the Suzanne Kasler Camille collection for Visual Comfort, the Universal nickel washstand from Waterworks, and the Kensington mirror from Pottery Barn finish the room.
“We wanted this space to stand out,” Studebaker says, “and creating a dramatic focal point with the mirrored tile and fabulous wallpaper did the job well—without taking up space.”
Interior designer Amie Corley appreciates the power of a powder room to speak for itself—and deliver a “completely different” experience than you’d find in the rest of the house.
“I love to make powder rooms a microcosm of design, a space where you can take more design risks,” she says.
Corley worked her magic in a traditional Ladue home by mixing a selection of stylish yet whimsical elements, such as Mr. Blow wallpaper by Abnormals Anonymous, brass-and-marble sconces by Kelly Wearstler, a wall-mounted faucet by Waterworks, and a Calacatta marble sink and floor tile.
The look imparts a youthful energy but never loses sight of the home’s architectural polish and sophistication.
“I love the juxtaposition of the wild wallpaper with the modern sconces,” says Corley. “The tension between these elements is such a surprise. I love how it all came together.”
The client requested a patterned tile, and Marcia Moore knew just where to look. After she showed her client a photo of a black-and-white encaustic cement tile by Mosaic House, they knew they’d found their focal point.
To heighten the tile’s drama, Moore elected to set the room’s white-painted cabinetry, made by Smithport, on feet, allowing the tile to run to the wall and give the illusion of space.
“This powder room is near the front door, so it needed to make a statement,” she says.
Finding the right sconces required a longer search. The Calla sconce, from Hubbardton Forge, answered the call, with its swooped base that mirrors the design of the tile.
With so much attention paid to the tile, the remaining elements required a simple touch. White Flour, by Sherwin-Williams, is painted onto the walls. Moore finished the room with an Absolute White marble countertop from SFI Stone, a faucet by Rohl, and a sink by DXV from Immerse.
