You Built It: Simple Chic

On a recent addition and remodel with Brian Morgan Architects, we landed on a cost-effective shower solution. The clients were having a difficult time settling on the title selection. Their taste tended towards a modern, industrial style: Many selections in the addition and main house included metal and concrete, and on the exterior of the addition, sections of siding were made of galvanized corrugated metal.

Since the tile selection was proving difficult, I suggested instead using the same corrugated metal siding we were using on the exterior. To my surprise, both the architect and the owner went for it. Of course, then I had to figure out how to implement this idea, since none of the trims would lie flat against the corrugated surface.

The solution was to build a central column for the plumbing. The metal was installed on a rainscreen assembly, just as we on the exterior, only here it was over a Ditra waterproofing membrane. And we used an inverted metal L-strip for joining the corners of the metal panels, another detail that echoed the exterior.

Jake Bruton owns Aarow Building based in Columbia, Mo.