Sophisticated Bathroom Expert Commands the Room at Houston’s Elegant Additions
The First Lady Of Waterworks Wows a Design Crowd
BY Caitlin Hsu // 01.27.23
Kara Childress, Elegant Additions owner Julie Koch, "The Ultimate Bath" author Barbara Sallick, Gina Elkins at Barbara Sallick book signing at Elegant Additions (Photo by Miroma Photography)
The dream of an ultimate bath brought a flock of design lovers to Houston’s Elegant Additions in The Heights for cocktails, an illustrated talk and a book signing from Barbara Sallick, designer extraordinaire.
Sallick knows just how to curate the perfect experience in a powder room. She and her husband Robert Sallick co-founded Waterworks, the brand known for its elegant bath and kitchen designs, in 1978. Elegant Additions is Waterworks’ exclusive Houston showroom, and this event is just the start of its more public push. Plans call for Elegant Additions to host many more events after quietly opening during the heart of COVID.
Elegant Additions owner Julie Koch kicked off the evening by introducing Sallick, the first lady of Waterworks, detailing her own story of following the designer’s career for 30 years. From her days selling toys for kids to eventually becoming a design luminary.
Sallick’s presentation, titled “Design Thinking,“ detailed the process of her writing The Ultimate Bath book. During the early days of the pandemic, she put out a call to designers for photos of projects involving Waterworks, and received an unprecedented 700 submissions. The extravagant images in the book are the results of months of sorting through those photos.
All of the details and passion that Sallick pours into a bathroom are detailed in this book, her fifth on the subject of kitchen and bath design.
In the cozy Elegant Additions showroom, tastefully decorated, partygoers enjoyed sipping on Tre Fiori Prosecco while listening to Sallick talk about her designs for all types of bath escapes. From extravagant powder rooms to minimalist spas. A soft spoken woman with a great sense of humor, Sallick did not use a microphone. But she still commanded the room.
Elizabeth Anthony
The talk was sprinkled with tales of working with the different designers who were featured in her book, including Miles Redd, Drake/Anderson, Ken Fulk, Suzanne Kasler and Ike Kligerman Barkley.
PC Seen: Elegant Additions’ Jennifer Gaumond, Lauren Kuchelmeister, Julie Koch’s husband Richard Humphreys, Adams Architects’ Gail and Joe Adams, Laura U Interiors’ Gina Elkins, Kara Childress Interiors’ Kara Childress, Sebastian Construction’s Ben Foster, Curtis and Windham Architects’ Russell Windham, Marie Flanigan Interiors’ Marie Flanigan, Gabriel Home Builders’ Jeannine Nuzzi, Hill Swift Architects’ Hill Swift, Bill Stubb Interiors’ Bill Stubbs, Holly Bell of Holly Bell Design, Rona Milbauer of Elron Construction and Sari Imber Interiors’ Sari Imber.
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