A Pandemic Remodel: A Family's Only Bathroom Gets an Update During Lockdown

Ferren Gipson's white-tiled bathroom remodel, London.

Last month, Remodelista spotlighted Ferren Gipson’s Ikea hack kitchen that she designed herself. The existing kitchen had been encumbered by a washer/dryer and giant boiler that needed to be moved elsewhere—which is what led Ferren to overhaul the family bathroom first. An American art historian in London, Ferren finds visual inspiration all over—for the bath, she looked to Victorian public restrooms for ideas and started sketching plans.

Ferren worked with local contractors Palali Construction on the bath and kitchen, and managed to get both done in the midst of the pandemic—while she, her husband, and their five-year-old son were all holed up at home. And that wasn’t the only challenge: this is the sole bathroom in their row house in Peckham. During the five weeks of construction, at the end of most days, the crew were able to set up the toilet and tub so they could be used after-hours—and as-needed during working hours.

Suffice to say, it wasn’t easy. The existing bathroom “wasn’t terrible,” Ferren tells us, “it just didn’t work well: there was a tub at one end and a shower stall at the other that didn’t make sense.” The finished space manages to incorporate the washer/dryer and a new boiler, all almost unnoticeably. Join us for a look.

Photography by Ferren Gipson (@ferrengipson).