A modern bathroom renovation with oriental influences

A spacious bathroom with floor-level shower and bathtub, a bedroom flooded with light and a practical working space: the Belfqihs have achieved their own very personal dream residence through a large-scale conversion of their home. After their children had left home, Kordula and Mohammed Belfqih decided to renovate the upper storey of their home in Krefeld, restructuring it completely at the same time. It all started with the desire for a modern and comfortable bathroom. One perfectly tuned to the needs of the new two-person household: the married couple imagined light, spacious rooms on their newly designed floor. Planner Bettina Bickert from Plankreis, Krefeld (www.plankreis.com) was given the exciting task of creating a new living atmosphere. Here, modern elements, alongside oriental influences, were to contribute to the planning: for the Belfqihs unite a Westphalian way of life with Moroccan traditions.

For the best possible result, rooms were merged and the floor restructured: the two children’s rooms are now a single sleeping area with a walk-in cupboard. The former parental bedroom and the bathroom were turned into a single room. Today, a new, spacious bathroom is to be found here. There is a work area in the corridor between the rooms.

The last time the family bathroom was renovated was around 20 years ago. The furnishings of the ’90s had to give way to a contemporary interior design. Along with the plastered, sand-coloured walls, Bettina Bickert opted for a ceramic basin and white, high-gloss bathroom furniture from KEUCO’s EDITION 400, providing extensive storage space, with matching chrome-plated fittings and accessories. With a notably elegant slenderness and all-round aluminium frame, the EDITION 400 light mirror can be seen over the washbasin.

The large LED light mirror creates the illusion of extra space and has special functions that the couple are particularly keen on: its unobtrusive, intelligent sensor controls allow the light to be dimmed and the colour set on a sliding scale: from bright white daylight for ideal daily beauty care to warm-white light for perfect evening make-up or an atmospheric bath. The integrated mirror heater is particularly practical after showering to prevent the fogging of the mirror.

The large, floor-level shower is separated by a glass shower wall and gives the room extra depth. Here, Bettina Bickert planned in IXMO fittings, which are both minimalistic and uncompromisingly designed. “IXMO fits perfectly with the Belfqihs’ bathroom design because it implements lightness exceptionally rigorously. Not only in its design but also because you are able to reduce the number of modules to a minimum,” the planner says. The clever bundling of functions allows the number of fittings on the wall to be reduced. Whether round or square: the rosettes have a consistent side length or diameter of 90 mm and their outreach is always 80 mm. IXMO fittings are designed as multi-talented minimalists. Here, for a head shower and hand shower, only two IXMO fitting modules are needed.

The EDITION 400 aluminium shower shelf surprises with its initially invisible “docking station” for the glass wiper. Harmoniously integrated in the design, it prevents shower products from falling down. A practical everyday hero from KEUCO.

The Belfqihs are very happy with the results: “We now really enjoy spending time in our bathroom. And another not unimportant thing: the surfaces are very easy to look after. The new light and spacious living atmosphere gives us better quality of life,” says Kordula Belfqih.