WESTMERE, CENTRAL AUCKLAND
Rustic Bathroom Renovation
in Westmere, Central Auckland
A warm wet-room bathroom in moody dark tile, moss-green Artisan feature wall and matte gold
Completed October 2020
RENOVATION
Project Managed By
Kevin Yang
Managing Director / Project Management
kevin@superiorrenovations.co.nz
0800 199 888
Quick answer: This rustic bathroom renovation in Westmere, Central Auckland turned a dated, boxed-in bathroom into an open wet-room — a moss-green Artisan feature wall, dark floor-to-ceiling tile, a custom floating vanity and matte gold tapware throughout.
A Rustic Bathroom Renovation in Westmere, Built Around the Wet Area
This was a full strip-out in Westmere, one of Central Auckland’s older inner-west suburbs where the housing stock leans towards character homes and tightly planned bathrooms. The owners didn’t want another clinical white box. They wanted a bathroom that felt warm — somewhere to wind down at the end of the day, not a room that looked like a hospital.
So we built the whole room around a generous wet area. Out went every old fixture and tile. In came a large walk-in shower zone divided from the rest of the room by custom-cut glass, a moss-green feature wall, and a floating vanity that runs almost the full length of one wall. Rustic in feel, modern in the bits that matter — heated towel rail, LED lighting, proper waterproofing underneath all of it.
Sound familiar? A lot of Westmere bathrooms are the original footprint with 30-year-old fittings. The room works, it’s just tired and closed-in. That was the brief here.
Project Snapshot
| Location | Westmere, Central Auckland |
| Completed | October 2020 |
| Scope | Full bathroom strip-out and rebuild, walk-in wet area, custom vanity, full project management |
| Style | Rustic — natural tones, matte gold, moody dark tile |
| Project type | Owner-occupier |
The Story Behind This Westmere Bathroom
Bathrooms used to be the most overlooked room in the house — a white suite, white tiles, get in and get out. That’s not how people use them now. The owners here wanted a space that did the opposite of clinical: warm, calm, somewhere to actually relax. That single idea drove every decision on the project.
Why a wet area
Wet areas have become one of the most-requested features in Auckland bathroom renovations, and it’s easy to see why. You get a bigger, more open shower without a tray lip to step over, the whole zone reads as one continuous space, and it suits an older home where you don’t want to chop the room into tight compartments. We divided the wet zone from the rest of the bathroom with custom-cut glass rather than a bulky enclosure, so the room still feels like one space.
Getting the waterproofing right first
None of the look matters if the room leaks. A wet area puts more of the floor under direct water more of the time, so the membrane has to be right before a single tile goes down. We fully waterproofed the wet area to the relevant New Zealand standard before tiling started — it’s the part of the job nobody sees and the part that has to last the longest. In a Central Auckland character home, where you’re often tiling over an older substrate, that step isn’t optional.
The Design Brief — Warm, Not Clinical
The client came to us with a clear artistic sense of what they were after, and our job was to make it hold together as a real, buildable room. Rustic design leans on natural elements and earthy, warm materials — which is exactly where a lot of Auckland bathrooms are heading, away from the all-white look of the 2000s.
The anchor was the feature wall. A run of moss-green Artisan gloss tile on one wall of the wet area gives the room its pop of colour and its whole personality. Against the large dark tiles used elsewhere, the green reads as calm and a little bit moody rather than loud. Matte gold fittings tie it together — gold is a rustic-design signature, and used sparingly it adds warmth without tipping into flashy.
“The green feature wall was the brave call on this one. People hesitate over a strong colour in a bathroom, but paired with the dark tile and the gold it settles the whole room down rather than shouting. That’s the difference between rustic and busy.”
— Kevin Yang, Managing Director, Superior Renovations
What Went Into the Room
Wet area
- Custom-cut glass dividing the wet area from the rest of the bathroom
- Large 600 x 600 grey tiles on the floor
- Artisan Moss Green Gloss 6.5 x 20 as the wet-area feature wall
- White subway tiles on the walls adjacent to the feature wall
- Full waterproofing of the wet area
Custom-built vanity
- Large floating vanity, custom built by us from high water-resistant Melteca MDF board
- Built for plenty of storage along one full wall
- 30mm custom stone engineered benchtop in a matte black finish
- Two large rectangular sinks from Reece
- Matte gold tapware and soap dispensers
Matte gold and dark tile
- Matte gold plumbing fixtures throughout for a sense of rustic luxury
- Large dark tiles to make the room feel bigger and add drama
- Heated towel rail and LED lighting for everyday modern comfort
The Custom Floating Vanity
The vanity is the workhorse of this bathroom. We custom built it from Melteca’s high water-resistant MDF board so it could run almost the full length of one wall — far more storage than an off-the-shelf unit, and sized exactly to the room rather than to a catalogue. Floating it off the floor keeps the room feeling open and makes cleaning underneath a non-issue.
On top sits a 30mm stone engineered benchtop in matte black, with two large rectangular basins from Reece. The matte black against the matte gold tapware is where the rustic-luxury feel really lands. Why custom over a pre-made vanity? In an older Westmere bathroom the walls are rarely dead square, and a stock unit leaves you with awkward gaps. Building it ourselves means it fits the wall it’s going on.
💡 Quick tip: A floating vanity needs solid in-wall framing to carry the weight of a stone top and basins — that bracing has to go in before the GIB and tiling, not after, so it’s a design decision you make early or not at all.
Renovating a Bathroom in a Central Auckland Character Home
Westmere sits in Auckland’s inner-west, near Grey Lynn and Ponsonby, and shares their housing pattern — plenty of older homes on tight sections with bathrooms that were never designed for the way we live now. The most common thing we deal with in this part of Auckland is a small, closed-in bathroom that needs to feel bigger without the footprint actually changing.
The wet-area layout does a lot of that work. Take out the bulky shower enclosure, divide the space with glass instead, run a single dark tile across the floor and you trick the eye into reading the whole room as larger. An older home also usually means an older substrate under the existing tiles, which is exactly why the waterproofing and prep stages matter more here than in a new build. Get the boring parts right and the room lasts; skip them and you’re back in five years.
What a Bathroom Renovation Like This Costs in Auckland
Every bathroom is priced to its own scope. A wet-area rebuild with a custom vanity and a full retile sits in a different bracket to a like-for-like refresh — the glass, the stonework, the custom cabinetry and the waterproofing all move the number. Rather than quote a figure that won’t match your home, use our bathroom renovation cost calculator to get a realistic Auckland estimate for your own project.
💡 Quick tip: The custom floating vanity and the custom-cut glass are where a project like this carries its premium — both are made to the room rather than bought off a shelf, and that’s craftsmanship cost, not material cost.
Thinking About a Rustic Bathroom Renovation in Westmere?
This Westmere project is one of more than 1,000 Auckland renovations we’ve completed, and one of many bathroom renovations across Auckland our team has designed and built from first concept to final finish. If you’ve got a tired, closed-in bathroom in a Central Auckland character home and you want it warm rather than clinical, that’s exactly the kind of brief we like.
Come and see materials and finishes in person at our Wairau Valley showroom — 16B Link Drive, open Monday to Saturday — or have one of our designers come to you.
➡ Book your free in-home consultation with Superior Renovations
➡ Estimate your own bathroom renovation cost
➡ Request a free feasibility report for your project
Rustic Bathroom Renovation in Westmere — FAQs
What does a rustic bathroom renovation in Westmere actually look like?
For this Westmere project, rustic meant warm and natural rather than country or distressed. The room runs on large dark floor-to-ceiling tile, a moss-green Artisan gloss feature wall in the wet area, white subway tiles alongside it, and matte gold tapware throughout. The idea was a calm, moody space that feels like somewhere to relax — the opposite of a clinical white bathroom.
What is a wet area and why was one used in this bathroom?
A wet area is an open, fully waterproofed shower zone without a separate enclosure or step-over tray. We divided it from the rest of this Westmere bathroom with custom-cut glass instead of a bulky screen, which keeps the room reading as one open space. Wet areas suit older Central Auckland homes where you want a bigger shower without carving the room into tight compartments.
What tiles were used in this Westmere bathroom renovation?
Three tiles do the work. Large 600 x 600 grey tiles run across the floor, Artisan Moss Green Gloss 6.5 x 20 forms the wet-area feature wall, and white subway tiles sit on the adjacent walls. The large dark tiles make the room feel bigger and add drama, while the green wall gives it its personality.
Was the vanity custom built?
Yes. We custom built the floating vanity from high water-resistant Melteca MDF so it could run almost the full length of one wall, giving far more storage than an off-the-shelf unit. It carries a 30mm matte black stone engineered benchtop and two large rectangular Reece basins. In an older home where walls are rarely square, building the vanity to the room avoids the awkward gaps a stock unit leaves.
Do I need council consent for a bathroom renovation like this in Auckland?
A like-for-like bathroom renovation that keeps the existing footprint and doesn't relocate plumbing usually doesn't need building consent, though waterproofing must still be done by a licensed trade and signed off. Moving plumbing, changing the room size, or structural work can trigger consent through Auckland Council. We confirm what's needed during the design stage and handle the consent process on projects that require it.
How is the waterproofing handled in a wet-area bathroom?
Waterproofing goes down before any tiling and is taken across the full wet area to the relevant New Zealand standard, with drying time built into the programme before tiles are laid. A wet area puts more of the floor under direct water more often, so the membrane has to be right first. In a Central Auckland character home you're often working over an older substrate, which makes the prep and membrane stages even more important.
How much does a rustic bathroom renovation in Westmere cost?
It depends on scope — a wet-area rebuild with a custom vanity, custom-cut glass and a full retile sits in a higher bracket than a like-for-like refresh, because the custom cabinetry, stonework and glasswork are craftsmanship cost rather than off-the-shelf. Rather than guess, use our bathroom renovation cost calculator for a realistic Auckland estimate against your own room, or book a free in-home consultation for an itemised quote.
Can you renovate a small or closed-in Central Auckland bathroom to feel bigger?
Yes, and it's one of the most common briefs in the inner-west. Without changing the footprint, an open wet area divided by glass, a single dark tile run across the floor, and a floating wall-hung vanity all trick the eye into reading the room as larger. That was a big part of the approach on this Westmere bathroom.
Further Resources
- More completed Auckland renovation projects
- Real client stories from across Auckland
- Bathroom Renovations Auckland — our full design-to-build service
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