You're doing open concept all wrong
Twitter users are expressing discomfort at the thought of using the facilities in front of guests or a partner
A real estate ad is garnering negative attention online for its unusual take on open-concept design.
The Philadelphia master suite comes with a walk-in closet, space for a bed and sitting area, and a bathroom. The catch: There are no walls separating the toilet and shower from the rest of the suite.
So, anyone sitting next to the fireplace or on the bed would be in full view of someone using the toilet.
That’s raising eyebrows on Twitter — 'This is the type of toilet I see in my nightmares’ — with users expressing discomfort at the thought of using the facilities in front of guests or a partner.
“It’s not for everyone,” Kamara Abdur-Rahim, the developer who posted the ad, told Postmedia.
“It’s only for that person who feels comfortable with it.”
She added that it’s not for “the person who isn’t open to getting dressed and doing other stuff in front of their partner.”
Abdur-Rahim says she likes to experiment with design and the open-concept bathroom gives the room “a bigger feel.”
It’s not the first time a bathroom-bedroom mashup has made headlines.
In 2013, in covering the trend in high-end hotel rooms, Slate declared “The Fall of the Bathroom Wall,” and mused about whether the borderless ensuite portended the end of privacy. And earlier this year, a bathroom without borders “horrified” the internet.
But Amanda Pendleton, lifestyle expert with Zillow, says she can’t see the trend catching on.
“While I could see this design in a modern loft-type space, it loses its appeal if you enjoy entertaining or value your privacy,” she says.
However, not everyone online hates the privacy-free bathroom.
And some commenters said they take issue more with the shower than the toilet, fearing that pooling water could damage the floors.
But Abdur-Rahim says she has plans to add frosted glass around the shower.
“I’m pretty proud of how it came out,” she says.