Transformation of a microbath in an old style: you have never seen such a “before and after”!

Our love for high ceilings and old brick led us to the decision to buy a Stalinist house—we weren’t considering new houses. When purchasing, we understood that we would have to demolish absolutely everything and rebuild.

We got walls with old shingles that crumbled with a light blow with a fist. The only load-bearing pillars were those that ran along the central wall of the apartment, from the living room and bathroom. There was also a problem with the brick wall that leads to the neighboring apartment: there was an even drop of about one brick over three meters, because of this it was decided to cover this wall with plasterboard.

The floors were old parquet boards, rotten in places, and the difference was about six centimeters. We completely stripped the floor down to the wood joists, cleaned out all the debris and re-coated it.

The bathroom is only 1 m², but we expanded it with a corridor that led to the kitchen and simply “ate up” the space. All the plumbing also had to be replaced, right down to the risers of all the neighbors (albeit with difficulty, but they supported us in this).

The tiles for the “wet” area are from the Kerama Marazzi “Gragnano” collection in classic white, the remaining walls were painted in a contrasting blue color. The floor has tiles with an unusual pattern that fits perfectly with the overall “mood” of the room and wooden elements.

We hid all the plumbing and water heater in the wall behind a camouflage door in the same color as the wall. The bathtub was installed 160 cm long and covered with a homemade wooden box.

We ordered a tabletop with drawers from private craftsmen, which combined the sink area and hid the washing machine. For storage, we installed two drawers; instead of the lower third drawer, we installed a wicker basket, which we use for dirty things.

Above the tabletop there is a round mirror framed with a wooden frame in the color of the structure. Next to it we attached two minimalistic black shelves for decorative elements. The bathroom lighting consists of a central chandelier, also composed of black elements, and a small lamp above the mirror.

Photo before renovation