A dark, damp and neglected bathroom hidden away inside a 400-year-old timber-framed Suffolk long house has been completely transformed into a light-filled modern vintage sanctuary, with the Swadling Brassware Invincible Collection and a stunning Matki EauZone shower door.
Homeowners Olivia and Jack Munro, who live in a four-bedroom detached farmhouse cottage in Suffolk with their two children and two dogs, took on the ambitious project themselves after discovering extensive water damage hidden behind the existing bathroom.
“When we found the house on Rightmove, the bathroom wasn’t even shown in the listing photos,” explains Olivia. “We soon realised why. The shower had a huge crack in the corner and years of continued use had caused major damage to the original timbers of the house.”
What initially appeared to be a cosmetic bathroom renovation soon became a much larger restoration project involving rebuilding an entire lower wall and reroofing part of the property due to rotten structural beams. Undeterred, the couple stripped the room back completely before carefully rebuilding the space around the character of the historic home.
The biggest transformation came from vaulting the ceiling and introducing a skylight, instantly opening up the once-cramped room and flooding it with natural light. The layout was also redesigned to make the most of the space, with a generous shower area spanning one wall, a centrally positioned toilet, and a freestanding Victorian washstand creating a more balanced flow throughout the room.
Describing her style as “modern vintage”, Olivia wanted the finished bathroom to feel timeless rather than trend-led. Antique influences sit effortlessly alongside more contemporary touches, creating what she calls a “quiet wow factor”.
That balance is perfectly reflected in the pairing of the Matki EauZone shower enclosure with the gorgeous Swadling Brassware Invincible shower and basin hardware in a living brass finish. Together, they bring warmth, texture and understated luxury to the space.
“I love how living brass doesn’t look too polished,” says Olivia. “It has that feeling of old and new sitting alongside one another, and I love that it will develop its own patina over time.”
The brass detailing is also picked up in the Matki Continental Shower tray, complementing the soft tones and traditional feel of the handmade wall tiles, which Olivia discovered by chance after weeks of searching for the perfect finish.
Although the project came with plenty of challenges — “so many, but that’s old houses for you!” — Olivia says careful planning and sticking to a list of non-negotiables helped keep the renovation on track.
Perhaps most impressive of all, nearly all the work was completed by Olivia and Jack themselves.
The result is a beautifully considered bathroom that not only restores the character of their period home but also transforms one of its most neglected spaces into a space full of warmth, light, and personality.
