The Pleasance Plus free-standing bath from British manufacturer Cabuchon Bathforms is the centrepiece of a luxury bathroom design project that has won three separate awards at one of America’s most prestigious interior design competitions.
The U.S. National Kitchen & Bath Association announced the winners of its 2011 NKBA Design Competition on April 26, during the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) in Las Vegas. The awards recognise the best designs across nine different categories and, this year, there were more than 500 entrants.
One of the shortlisted finalists was Holly Rickert of Ulrich, Inc. Her submission was a large bathroom produced for a private residence in New Jersey, which placed the Pleasance Plus – a modern take on the classic Georgian ‘slipper bath’ – at the heart of a scheme that makes striking use of wood, stone and other natural materials. Judges were greatly impressed by the design, which went on to scoop the titles of Best Bathroom, Best Large Bathroom and the HGTVPro People’s Pick – Bathroom. The ‘Best Of’ awards were judged by a panel of design professionals while the ‘People’s Pick’ went to the most popular design as adjudged by a national television audience.
“To receive three awards at the KBIS Show was a great result,” says Holly Rickert. “I’m very proud of the design, which places the Pleasance Plus in front of the window, among river rocks, with a beautiful view of the treetops. We chose to have Cabuchon build it with no overflow so the tub can overflow freely into the pan in which the rocks sit. We chose the Pleasance Plus because of its graceful sculpture and extra depth for soaking.”
The Pleasance Plus is a larger version of one of Cabuchon’s most popular free-standing baths and one of the most recent additions to the company’s range. Fitted with a low, in-built seat for added comfort, it features the same flat, tightly radiused rims that are a distinctive feature of the original Pleasance and, at 657mm (25 ¾”), it is significantly deeper than standard bath designs, enabling luxurious deep soaking.
The model chosen for the winning design is also fitted with a thermostatic temperature control, enabling the bather very accurately to maintain the temperature at a fixed setting or gradually to raise or lower it, precisely as required.
The Pleasance Plus is handmade and custom-built using FICORE®, a solid composite material created and trademarked by Cabuchon’s parent company Design & Form Ltd. It permits greater sharpness of design detail and offers a number of other advantages over more conventional alternatives. The bath’s characteristic squared rim edges could not be achieved using other commercially available materials.
FICORE® is stronger and more rigid than any non-metal or stone bath but, unlike both, it is neither heavy nor liable to chipping. It carries a 25 year guarantee and exhibits superior heat insulation and energy saving properties. Tests have shown that it keeps water hot more than six times longer than acrylic and more than twelve times longer than vitreous enamelled metal, so it keeps the user feeling comfortable and obviates the need for frequent refilling.
Like all Cabuchon bathtubs, the Pleasance Plus is made to order so it can be produced in any colour and a choice of finishes. The company will match any current – and many past – sanitaryware colours in its standard pricing and, as an additional service, it will match the base colour of any tile, paint, stone or textile. Any bathtub can also be two-coloured. Many other custom options are available and the external dimensions can often be modified to suit the space available.
As a free-standing bath, the Pleasance Plus is suitable for use with wall-mounted spouts and taps or free-standing risers, or with manifold fillers with remote taps.
“I’m delighted that Holly’s design did so well at one of the United States’ most prestigious awards events,” notes Cabuchon’s managing director, Tony Pontin. “Ulrich Inc is an enormously impressive design house and we’re very proud to have played a part in Holly’s success. It really is a beautiful scheme and it shows off the Pleasance Plus to great effect.”
The Cabuchon Bathforms range includes freestanding, inset/under-mounted, panelled and deep-soaking baths, all sold in standard sizes or as bespoke units. The range also includes hydrotherapy systems custom designed for each client. The company manufactures all its products in the UK.
