In the last few weeks I’ve received several requests from readers regarding interior design dilemmas which I’m hoping to be able to help with very soon. In the meantime though I thought I’d ask if you guys can return the favour as I’m a bit stumped. I’m talking about our shower room today. I hope you’ll forgive me for starting yet another bathroom chat. This time though it’s not about loos and basins, no it’s about something all together more peculiar.
Does anyone else have a stair bulkhead in their house? If you’re not familiar with one then lucky you. I’m referring to the odd shaped box in the space above a staircase – where builders and architects have nicked some floor space from a room above to accommodate folks walking up and down the stairs.

When I was at school I spent most of my years in the box room of my parent’s semi complete with stair bulkhead. Over the years this bulkhead was adapted to house an elaborate shelving clothing system, general storage and my all-time favourite; facilitating a bed in the sky where my mattress was positioned so high in the room I’m surprised I didn’t get vertigo.

If you have one in a bedroom then I’ve put together a quick Pinterest board with some genius ideas for disguising the strange structure. From built in shelving to deluxe wardrobes and cabin beds, you might even wish you had a stair bulkhead if you don’t. Well maybe not.

Now back to my shower room. We haven’t even finished the bathroom but at some point in the next six months I’m pretty sure we’ll move over to this room to replace the sink and basin and update the tiles. I’ll then be faced with the bulkhead and I’ve hit a brick wall trying to incorporate it into something that looks purposeful.


There’s a before pic here if you’re interested in the rest of the room. Given the position of the window (which is not possible to relocate without some serious faff and change to the house facade) I’m not really able to disguise the bulk within a full height cupboard. Current options floating around my head are are as follows;

1) Integrate shelving into the slope. I’m not really sure what the shelving would be used for, perhaps plants or maybe some fancy toiletries that I don’t yet own.

2) Build up the front to create a cupboard of some description which comes to the height of the windowsill. I had toyed with creating some form of laundry hamper creation with holes in the top but I think it will make the room feel closed in and to be honest I was clutching at straws here.

3) Accept that when the house was renovated they did the best job they could on the stair bulkhead. Perhaps tile the white shelf with whatever tiles we use for the shower and throw on a plant.

I’m all out of ideas and would love some suggestions. Am I missing something super obvious? How have you tackled a stair bulkhead in a bathroom or a bedroom? What quirky foibles have you got in any rooms in you house?