Dolphin takes care of absolutely everything
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Thursday 1st July, 2010
VENUS – THE BATHROOM OF LOVE FROM DOLPHIN
Styled by Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen
Homeowners are set to fall in love with their bathrooms this season thanks to the launch of the new Venus bathroom collection from specialists Dolphin.At the heart of range is a stunning freestanding paintable bath which comes in a six charming colours – burgundy (pictured above), matt silver (pictured on next page), taupe, , powder blue, duck egg green, and white – so the look can personalised to suit every taste and home.
Venus is the perfect place to relax and unwind at the end of a long day but also shows how with careful planning, a bathroom can be made multifunctional. Behind the wall, there is a spacious shower area, which features a new waterfall showerhead to add a further touch of luxury to this scheme whilst doubling as a very practical solution for busy mornings when a quick, invigorating shower is called for.
Also new from Dolphin is the glamorous range of Galaxy mosaic tiles – shown here is the shimmery black and silver, providing a striking backdrop to the freestanding bath. Available in a total of five colour options, this is just another way in which you can put your own personal stamp on the Venus bathroom.
The chic wenge washstand with elegant elliptical sit-on basin and cascade effect tap completes this trend-led yet highly versatile bathroom.
Dolphin’s new brand ambassador and interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen comments: “The central theme of the Venus is bathroom is about giving homeowners the ability to truly express themselves. The bath featured within the Venus design is a very, very nice piece of design. It’s elegant, makes reference to historical shapes but it also has a defined sense of modernity about it too. With the colour options you can personalise the look by selecting the bath colour and tile options too.
“Venus represents for me how people need to see baths in a whole new light. People simply love the idea of the bath and it is a key feature I think should remain in the majority of situations. However, I understand that bathrooms need to fulfil different roles and Venus shows how it is possible to combine both a practical stylish shower area with a fabulous freestanding bath, providing you think outside of the box.
“Styling wise, this scheme is about unadulterated glamour. The bath speaks volumes and the tiles add sparkle, so the rest of the room needs to balance this out with more understated colours and a few accessories, such as a baroque mirror and a textured rug, to cosy the whole look up.” -
Tuesday 22nd June, 2010
MOBEN, SHARPS AND DOLPHIN TAKE INSPIRATION FROM NEW AMBASSADOR, LAURENCE LLEWELYN-BOWEN
Moben Kitchens, Sharps Bedrooms and Dolphin Bathrooms have unveiled their new ambassador - renowned interior designer Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen.
Bringing his own unique style to all three brands, Laurence now provides inspiration and styling advice when it comes to new kitchen, bedroom and bathroom product introductions and is featuring throughout the marketing programme, unveiled to customers for the first time on Tuesday, 22nd June 2010.
All new photography of new ranges launched by Moben, Sharps and Dolphin will be styled by Laurence himself and a part of his role will be as a style consultant for all three brands, working with the new product development teams. Sitting alongside the existing brand experts, Laurence will be available for comment on the inspiration behind new products, style advice and trend predictions on the three brands behalf.
Laurence also has a dedicated ‘trends and inspiration’ page on all three websites – www.moben.co.uk, www.sharps.co.uk, www.dolphinbathrooms.co.uk – featuring his detailed insights into the design inspiration behind each new range introduced, styling tips and a look ahead to what trends will be leading kitchen, bedroom and bathroom design over the months ahead.
Furthermore, Laurence will also be embarking on a ten day showroom tour, visiting a total of 20 Moben, Sharps and Dolphin showrooms across the country this autumn. Consumers will be able to meet Laurence and hear all about the latest trends and product launches, with dates to be confirmed soon.
A close working relationship
Commenting on his new role with Moben, Sharps and Dolphin, Laurence said: “I have been working with Moben on the TV advertisement voiceovers for a while but it soon became clear there was a great deal of potential in becoming an ambassador for all three brands.
“My real remit with Moben, Sharps and Dolphin is to inject even more personality into these products and make sure that customers can truly ‘see’ the product within their own home. I can come up with the big, broad-brushstroke ideas that can take all three brands to an even more design-inspired position. I want to further inspire the design team, encourage them never to hold back on creativity and share my enthusiasm of this wonderful business.”
With regards to the existing product portfolio as well as the new ranges soon to be introduced, Laurence is excited about the potential all three brands have to offer the kitchen, bedroom and bathroom market.
“Moben, Sharps and Dolphin all have a reputation for quality, reliability and dependability, and I want to build on that. These days, it is no longer about playing the property market – it’s about making your home a home again. There is a now real hunger to have more personalised products. By working with these three great brands, I feel I can bring more personality to their beautifully engineered, thoughtful and well-designed furniture.”
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Tuesday 1st June, 2010
LOSE THE CLOAKROOM CLUTTER
As the space most often used to store all the unnecessary household clutter, the cloakroom is usually one of the most neglected areas of the house, despite the fact it offers great potential. For those looking to upgrade their downstairs space to a fully-fitted, downstairs washroom to be proud of, Dolphin has a number of stylish options to choose from.
Understairs cloakroom
Stunning in its simplicity, the understairs cloakroom shown above makes the most of a limited space. It features the gorgeous Esta wash station, complete with an integrated basin, which offers fantastic storage to hide away those everyday essentials.With its stylish solar mirror, this cleverly designed room manages to look classic yet contemporary. The mirror has a high-tech infra-red switch fitted, as well as a demister pad to prevent the mirror from steaming up. This understairs solution is also fitted with an attractive 300x800 heated towel rail, which adds a practical yet stylish touch.
Combined with the gorgeous Dados blanco tiles to give the illusion of space, this design will give neglected cloakrooms an instant wow factor.Cloakroom
For a slightly more contemporary look, the polished cloakroom pictured below features chic, casino wall-hung furniture – perfect for urban living.A glossy splash basin adds a sleek look to the room, while the soft-line back-to-wall WC, which is backed on to the Envy WC unit, completes the look. With two internal shelves, the mirrored Modena cabinet adds further storage space, which is ideal for maximizing space in this typically small room.
The effortlessly stylish Young stone scored tiles complete the look and add the illusion of extra space.
Geoff Wells, bathroom planning expert for Dolphin Bathrooms, comments:
“Both of these new designs from Dolphin make the most of what’s usually a neglected room. Each gorgeous cloakroom solution makes the most of a small space, and the stylish and contemporary details add a touch of glamour to any home. Having a second washroom is ideal for busy households and with Dolphin, it is possible to make the most of this extra space in the home.”
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Thursday 8th April, 2010
NATIONAL SURVEY: SPRING CLEAN BEFORE YOU PREEN
Brits are a nation of pamper addicts who hoard more toiletries than they use, according to a survey from national fitted bathroom experts Dolphin
Britain is officially a nation of pamper addicts with four out of five people admitting to having up to 20 toiletry items clogging up their bathroom cabinets whilst the rest have as many as 50 products, according to a survey of 3,000 participants conducted by specialists Dolphin Bathrooms.
With the UK’s bathrooms in dire need of a spring clean, almost 70% of those surveyed said they currently had up to 10 unused pamper products, with the remainder having up to 30 bottles, packs and tubes simply gathering dust.
Shampoo is the most wasted product, closely followed by shower gel (which came top with men as the most wasted item) and moisturiser, (which was the most neglected beauty product by women). Over a quarter of respondents said their bathroom also held host to out of date medicines but most shockingly, 54% said that they would still use them regardless, with men proving to be particularly lax on this issue.
The most common reasons provided for hoarding so many unused or out of date items in the bathroom was because people ‘forgot they were there’ and ‘always buy too much and never get round to using it’, whilst 58% said the majority of their unused toiletry items were from unwanted gift packs.
Special store promotions were also cited as a key reason why Brits buy more products than they need, with 61% saying they would still take up a multi-buy offer even if they knew they wouldn’t get around to using it all.
One fifth of those surveyed by Dolphin estimated that they had wasted just over £20 on unused pampering products whilst it seems the Welsh spend the most, at an average of £24.72, compared to the more conscientious West Midlander’s spending £19.85. This isn’t surprising as the Welsh also have the highest average number of unused toiletries within the UK and are more likely to take advantage of ‘buy one get one free’ offers despite the fact that many products simply get stored away never to be used.
The bathroom cabinet takes most of this strain for half of those surveyed, followed by the windowsill and around the edge of the bath. A quarter of respondents claimed that too much bathroom clutter was a cause of argument at home, with 57% of households choosing to have a clear out every so often to keep on top of everything.
Geoff Wells, planning expert at Dolphin Bathrooms, comments: “Whilst we may be a nation of pamper addicts, we accumulate too many beauty products that we never intend to use (according to 40% of participants) and this often means bathrooms can be cluttered. It comes as no surprise to us that over 60% of those we questioned wished they had more storage space in the bathroom, as it is often the smallest room in UK homes but despite this, we can’t seem to stop ourselves hoarding and so end up losing precious space.
“However, with careful planning, any bathroom can be designed to keep lotions and potions well organised and easy to find. Clever use of cabinets, sink space and shelving will make sure you optimise every inch of space whilst keeping your bathroom beautiful - plus you can avoid wasting money on new products you don’t actually need after all.”
View coverage of this survey from Express.co.uk: http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/167862/Rows-Why-they-gel-in-the-bathroom
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Monday 8th March, 2010
PRESS COVERAGE : HOUSE BEAUTIFUL, APRIL
Choosing wall-hung sanitaryware
Geoff Wells, bathroom planning expert at Dolphin, comments on the benefits of wall-hung sanitaryware and offers tips and advice on fitting wall-hung basins:
“Even though the bathroom is typically the smallest room in the house, homeowners can maximise space and add volume with wall-hung sanitaryware. Perfect for smaller bathrooms, wall-hung products can make a room feel bigger, whilst still creating a contemporary, streamlined look.
“They are also user friendly and hygienic which makes them ideal for wetrooms, as they are easy to clean and don’t allow dirt to collect around the base.”
Will the wall take the weight?
“The beauty of wall-hung basins is that they can be fitted pretty much anywhere in a bathroom and to any wall, as long as it is of sound construction. However, it’s worth keeping in mind that you should always be careful of placing a basin under a window, as you will need to ensure you’ve left enough leverage to support the window frame.”
How is the sanitaryware fixed to the wall?
“To attach a wall-hung basin to a solid wall – ie a wall made of breeze block, brick or stone – you will need to use sturdy fixing bolts such as a Fisher bolts, which are drilled directly into the wall to ensure no movement.
“If the wall is a stud wall – ie made of plasterboard – you will need to use a fixing frame which sits behind the plasterboard. Fixing frames are designed specifically to spread the weight of the wall-basin evenly.”
What’s the fitting process?
“Because Dolphin is the only national bathroom specialist to provide an all-inclusive service from initial design to installation, you don’t need to employ different people to do the independent jobs; everything is project managed by Dolphin’s highly qualified team. So once you’ve agreed your new bathroom design, you simply leave it to Dolphin to take care of the rest.
“As part of the fitting process we:
Remove your old bathroom and take it away for you
Take the bathroom back to it’s basic elements so that we can start again from scratch
Identify any plumbing already in place – ie what we need to keep and what needs to be removed
Renew any old pipework that needs to be kept
Identify the point and position where the new basin is going to go
Excavate the area to ensure it is clean and relay the new pipework to the new basin
Use fisher bolts to anchor the basin in place to make sure it is secure and unmovable
Or if fixing to a stud wall – fix the frame and build the stud wall around it
Connect the tails to the pipework to feed the basin mixer”
What about pipework?
“As part of Dolphin’s service, we never leave any visible pipework. Easily hidden, pipework can be concealed behind a stud wall, or if you have a solid wall it is possible to hide pipework by boxing it in and concealing it from view.”
What happens if there’s a leak behind the boxing in?
“As long as the job has been completed by a qualified installer, it is very unlikely you will have a problem. But if you do, the best action is to switch the water off and call in the experts. At Dolphin, once an installation is complete we always re-check the products and provide a comprehensive after-sales service. Plus there’s also a 12month warranty guarantee.”