Written by Steph Sandhoff
Welcome back to the OAK + RIDGE Block Blog, to Week 1, to main bathrooms and to the official start of The Block 2022. We have our couples locked in, their houses selected and I’m ready to kindly rip their terrible design choices to shreds – all in the name of education of course.
As is tradition, a room win comes with a $10,000 prize, however this year it also comes with an additional gift of a ‘mature tree’, which will come in handy in landscaping week. On top of this, the Week 1 winners will also win a $250,000 upgrade on their kitchen appliances from Winning appliances, which the contestants have all agreed will likely win them not only kitchen week but also the entire series of The Block. Maybe we should just stop here and switch over to The Masked Singer?
HOUSE ONE // Tom and Sarah-Jane
In House 1 we have Tom and Sarah-Jane, our winners of the ‘House-Decider Challenge’. My immediate impression of the room was that I was underwhelmed. I know, it seems a little harsh. I’ve now taken my time to have a really good look and do think it’s a great room – I’ve just seen it before, numerous times, and I think it comes down to two elements. The encaustic-look floor tiles and the navy and brass colour combination. There is nothing wrong with either the tiles or the colour combo, so if you love them, you do you. However, if you want my advice, both elements have been absolutely done to death. Over and over and over. There is more to traditional design, more to a country aesthetic then encaustic floor tiles and navy kitchens and bathrooms. Please give me something new.
Photo Attribution: Nine
Whether it’s Tom or Sarah-Jane making the individual choices, I’m not 100% sure yet but whoever it is I think they’ve lucked out this season because country seems to be their natural style. You can tell this style isn’t a reach for them, there’s no stepping out of their comfort zone or having to research the era or style of the house. This is who they are, this how they would design their own home given the freedom and money to do so.
Photo Attribution: Nine
There are many things to love about this room. The style of tapware is the perfect contemporary/country mix, the basins are a nod to country and the vanity is a stunning reference to the wainscoting I assume they will use throughout the rest of their home. Now the judges didn’t appreciate the lack of storage the vanity had to offer, especially when paired with the decorative mirrors and I do have to agree. I personally think that wall feels very heavy with all the brass accents and I definitely would have swapped those mirrors out (as stunning as they are) for some built-in cabinets. This would have meant the artwork on the opposite wall wasn’t needed to balance the space and the beautiful wainscoting could have been appreciated more.
Photo Attribution: Nine
Additionally, considering they only used tiles on the floor and in the shower, I also would have continued the tiles all the way to the ceiling. They didn’t save much money with the small gap they left and easily could have continued both the tiles and the wainscoting all the way up, an easy way to get a jump on the competition. They were also in trouble for such a short shower screen but we all know that wasn’t part of the plan and they are going to fix it, so moving on. I loved the idea of restoring the pendant light but would have kept it and the mirrors they used for another room - potentially a bedroom or even a walk-in robe.
Photo Attribution: Nine
HOUSE TWO // Rachel and Ryan
Onto House 2 and I’m stealing straight from the judges here with “what an intro”. I mean what did we expect, they own a design and renovation company. When did we start accepting professionals on the show? What constitutes a professional? Sorry, I got sidetracked....moving on. On entering the room (via camera obviously) I felt calm and grateful; that someone had thankfully not gone the obvious patterned floor tiles and claw foot bath. Definitely the most modern of all the main bathrooms, House Two had the judges at odds. While Neale and Shaynna didn’t think it spoke to country or did much justice to the heritage of the home, Darren thought it was appropriate to it's country setting.
Photo Attribution: Nine
My thoughts? This is probably the first time I have ever agreed with Darren; but not completely. I love their conceptual and contemporary Australian take on country because this is very similar to the way I would undertake a country renovation for myself. I would think about texture, tone, and subtle nods to country elements rather than replicating complete country style. For example their vanity, it’s the perfect hybrid. A modern, contemporary style that has a raw and custom look; with the timber showcasing the natural grain and hence referencing the outdoors and local countryside. They created a similar effect with the choice of feature tiles on the back wall; a handmade look vertical white tile provides another element of texture, while the brushed chrome finish of the tapware creates that feeling of quality and understated luxury.
Photo Attribution: Nine
Now although Shaynna complimented the couple on their planning and seemed to love the symmetry of the room she wasn’t a fan of the double shower being included in a main bathroom, preferring it instead in a master en-suite. What do we think? Her argument being adults wouldn’t shower together in a main bathroom. I think it’s 2022 and the idea of what a family consists of these days is not always going to be ‘Mum, Dad and 2.4 kids’. If you have multiple young kids doing shower/bath time together, or guests that are staying who are a couple, your child is having a pool party and you have multiple kid’s wanting to warm up all at once, your son and his partner or your elderly parents come to live with you… My point is, I see no problem with versatility, especially in this day and age when the cookie cutter lifestyle is no longer fitting the majority of people.
Photo Attribution: Nine
It’s not a perfect room and I do think it’s missing a little bit of personality that comes from things like heritage detailing. If I were them I would definitely add in the traditional cornicing and perhaps even look at whether the cottage had other traditional elements. The styling as well I thought was a little lacking and perhaps would have given the room a little more warmth. In particular the stool looked plastic and the colour of the towels were giving ‘Christmas’. I also would have removed some of the wall sconces above the vanity. They either needed one between the mirrors or one either side of the mirrors. The three was overkill and looked like three eyes. Overall I think these guys have serious talent and are a major threat in the weeks to come.
Photo Attribution: Nine
HOUSE THREE // Ankur and Sharon
Ok, so last week when I said I think this couple “have it in them, especially with more time and money” – I think I was wrong. WAY wrong. I thought the house might guide their style. You know, they could do some research… work with the heritage, let it help them. My idea was help, not hinder. They didn’t get off to great start. They have the biggest and in my opinion (Shaynna’s too, it sounds likes) the best house. So why do they have the smallest master bathroom? They also have no skylights, in arguably the most important kind of room to have a skylight because for privacy reasons bathrooms don’t have many or large windows, but also because they just told us it’s already a small room.
Photo Attribution: Nine
Their next issue, one not even noticed by the judges but I can’t stop looking at it. Why did they stop their tiles at the top of their window? They already went way over budget by tiling every single wall with the most horrific combination of tiles I’ve seen in recent years, and then creating a nib wall where they never needed one and tiling that too! Why didn’t they just finish that last strip of wall, I’m so confused. Who is telling these couples they are saving money by not tiling that 500mm strip of wall. If they estimate their wastage correctly, the extra tiles they need are probably sitting left over in boxes out the back anyway.
Photo Attribution: Nine
My next issue; yes the large format wall and floor tiles are too dark (as the entire country has established by now) but those feature tiles were dated last year when Mitch and Mark used them. If you’re trying to pick a feature tile and you’re not confident what to call the shape when you're in the shop don’t buy them. I promise you, they are going to date. It should be as easy as a toddler’s puzzle, if you can name the shape you can buy the tiles.
Photo Attribution: Nine
I don’t even know quite what to say about the remaining elements of the room except to say that I think Sharon is overwhelmed and hence overthinking it. The fact that Darren liked it is why he and I will never agree. The layout is wrong but could be fixed by removing the nib wall and placing the toilet between the vanity and shower screen. The tapware and claw foot tub are tacky, the vanity is mid-century and the lighting is art deco. The judges also pointed out that the heritage details of the cornices and doorframes were also the wrong style. I know it’s only Week 1 but I’m going to speak for myself, and Shaynna when I say they need to find a local period renovation to show them through as an example of what they could achieve.
Photo Attribution: Nine
HOUSE FOUR // Dylan and Jenny
Onto House 4 and I’m going to be honest, I was expecting more. These guys utilised some space from an existing hallway and created an entryway into their main bathroom but I have to wonder could it have been better utilised. Would I like an entry way into a bedroom? Sure. An entry way into a powder room? Again, could be useful but the entry way didn’t seem big enough to actually be useful and the bathroom was large enough to suit any needs. So I would think that any additional space would be more useful as potential storage, perhaps a linen cupboard.
Photo Attribution: Nine
Now, again this bathroom has high ceilings and multiple skylights but the couple have chosen not to tile to the ceiling. The difference here is that they have used a capping tile. I am so proud. You may be wondering what a capping tile is but it is as simple as it sounds. It is a skinny tile that simply ‘caps’ off where your tiling finishes and where your painted wall starts. It gives a much more completed look to your design than merely stopping at an agreed upon level.
Photo Attribution: Nine
I obviously loved the inclusion of the traditional cornices and doorframe but found their choices of basin, vanity, sconces, tapware and even the ‘coral style’ bath stool are lacking any reference to country. Instead if you turn your back to the claw foot tub (which again I think is quite tacky), the room could easily feel coastal not country. A fine line, as I have previously said but something the couple will need to figure out quickly as they work their way through the Block. The positioning of their wall sconces are also bizarrely high and are neither aesthetically nor practically positioned.
Photo Attribution: Nine
My last issue with the room, apart from the encaustic look tiles, which you now know I am not a huge fan of, is the shower. Yes, I am aware they would have preferred an open shower but I needed to point out the multiple reasons it is important. First of all the obvious, it doesn’t look as good. That cubicle in the corner looks like something out of Doctor Who. Secondly, it puts the entire bathroom out of balance visually. When you’re designing a bathroom, you don’t endeavour to have that much spare space in the centre of the room. The proportions in this bathroom are wrong and hence not only does it look awkward but you essentially have wasted prime real estate in that it won't be used and hence would have been better placed elsewhere.
Photo Attribution: Nine
HOUSE FIVE // Omar and Oz
Having been accused of being aesthetically generic, Omar and Oz have followed Neale Whitaker on Instagram, taken inspiration from his latest country renovation and turned the competition on it’s head. All three judges seemed to agree that although the bathroom shouldn’t work, it did and that it seemed to be the perfect mix of contemporary country. I agree that the bathroom as a whole feels complete and seems to work but I don’t think it’s perfect and I don’t love it.
Photo Attribution: Nine
More encaustic look tiles, eh. However, the best ones so far because their depth of colour grounds the surrounding white elements. I actually quite like the combination of the herringbone laid tiles and VJ paneling but I think it works best on the right hand side of the bathroom, where the tile only comes half way up the wall. I understand the boys needed a waterproof material in the shower but this where their layout could have been better planned, earlier in the week.
Photo Attribution: Nine
I love the way their bath sits symmetrically under the window, with the wall sconces either side but the way the tiles go up the wall on the left side only, into the enclosed shower, looks too busy and unbalanced. The shower itself also seems to visually block the thoroughfare. If they had used waterproof paneling in order to continue the half wall of tiles the entire way around the room I think it would have made a huge difference. They also could have used a single shower screen or even created a wet room style layout to make better use of the space.
Photo Attribution: Nine
I don’t love their choice of vanity this week but their ability to mix timbers has to be commended and I do think they had the best overall styling. Their knack for creating warmth and adding personality whilst not cluttering a space is impressive. I hope they continue to use their styling to add texture, life and tone. My only suggestion to them would be to swap the tapware finish from an aged brass to something a little less yellow but good work guys and congrats on the win!
Photo Attribution: Nine
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See you next week for Week 2 Guest bedrooms!