Derya Berber and her husband made the decision to convert a spare bedroom into a spacious and luxurious Edwardian bathroom for themselves and their two young children. They wanted to keep it traditional with some fun touches, like the standout mustard yellow freestanding bath and vibrant floral wallpaper.

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What was wrong with the original bathroom?

In short, it was just too small. After we moved in, we realised that the house needed to work harder to accommodate our family. We had a lightbulb moment and decided to convert an unused bedroom into a practical, but luxurious bathroom that we could relax and unwind in – something we certainly couldn’t with the one we already had! It all just made perfect sense.

Tell us about your ideas for an Edwardian bathroom

From the get-go I knew I wanted a space with a traditional feel to complement our Edwardian home with a freestanding bath in front of the fireplace. I was also determined to keep the original floorboards and was so relieved when we found out we could.  Décor-wise, I absolutely love flowers and wanted to introduce a fresh, botanical theme.

Bathroom wallpaper seemed the easiest way to do this and after hours of searching, I found the perfect one which then inspired the rest of the colour palette. To maintain the period feel, I sourced a vintage French marble washstand and display cabinet from Facebook Marketplace, which adds so much character to the space.

What was the biggest challenge you faced?

The Edwardian bathroom was created as part of our renovation of the whole house, so the work, carried out alongside everything else, resulting in a lot of dust and mess. However, the biggest issue was installing the plumbing in the new bathroom which was across the hallway from the old one.

This resulted in floorboards having to be taken up to extend the  pipework into the former bedroom. There were a few nail-biting moments, but it only took a couple of days. I think we got off lightly compared to some people I’ve spoken to.

How did you make your budget work for you?

We did some of the initial room preparation ourselves. We removed fitted cupboards and stripped the layers of old wallpaper ready for the walls to be plastered – with each one we peeled off, it felt like we were going back in time.

Our budget for this room excluding labour was £6,000 and despite our best efforts, we did go slightly over. However, we didn’t want to compromise on the bath and we invested in a well-made shower enclosure, so we have no regrets.

Are you pleased with the result?

Beyond thrilled. After four months of creating mood boards, flicking through Pinterest and magazines and ordering endless wallpaper samples, we finally have an Edwardian bathroom that we all look forward to spending time in. The colour palette and floral scheme makes you feel like you are outside surrounded by nature. All those months spent planning were worth it.

Would you do anything differently now?

I would have loved to have wallpapered the whole room, but at £195 per roll from House of Hackney it would have increased our spend considerably. Maybe one day…

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