Does the sink have a lip like pictured? That makes it easier. Your GC should be able to cut that. See how these guys do their floating shelves: https://hardwood-lumber.com/floating-shelves/

(I've used this company for countertops so I happen to have the link available. There are many others out there!)

diff ways to do it.

float a wood shelf above is prob the easiest. (or even a piece of marble)

build a double floating wood shelf w/storage beneath:

maybe install a drawer

and a lower shelf w/the same wood.

could you put the sink off center and do a cubby like this off to the other side?

or, just offset the sink to one side and have the other half used for countertop space.

Adding some pics of the actual sink right into the thread so folks can see the aesthetic and the actual profile and lip. @Fori that link is great, thanks for sharing! Hoping I can find an equivalent within Canada to minimize shipping costs. Do you think if I ordered something like this (say two shelves with mounting hardware, 14" deep by however wide, perhaps even pre-finished) my contractor could cut an angled edge to line up with the sink profile with relative ease? I'm planning to put some other floating shelves in the room as well so it would be cool to be able to order a matching set from one source.

My contractor mentioned an epoxy finish might be most durable and suggested that might be a good thing to DIY to save $$. Not sure I trust myself with that, but I was a bit taken aback by how expensive it was to add an epoxy finish on the site you shared so I guess he had a point!

@Beth H. :thanks for sharing these. I had a pinterest board full of similar options before we settled on this look with the centred cast iron sink and a shelf built around it. We did think seriously about putting a shelf above the sink, but I just didn't love the look.

Ask your GC. If he doesn't have a contour profile gauge, he should get one. But you don't even need a perfect cut since you'd be overmounting the sink. The wood ends under the lip and nobody sees it.

I think you could just use clear caulk against the sink. And DIY finishing a nice flat piece of wood isn't tricky at all. You could even go with oiled teak if your guests aren't terrible and you don't plan on doing tie dye in the sink.

Check in with Houzz's Woodworking forum. Not a busy forum but they're pretty good.

Canada style: https://www.leevalley.com/en-ca/shop/hardware/storage-and-organization/shelf-supports/51933-blind-shelf-supports

That sink is a piece of tinfoil junk, that will rust out in short order. Not something to build a room around and ghen have to replace.

It really doesn’t seem in character with your proposed drawings …but i can see how it would appeal…and at that price i wouldn’t think that quality was an issue…however it is out of character with the very modern room you are proposing…..and if you want it to be useful for laundry it doesnt really seem “convenient” as it is in a different room ….especially one that is meant to be used as a bath by your guests…

Without a fuller floor plan it is hard to be sure…but the laundry room would benefit from a door that is available for entry or exit while the bathroom is in use…especially if it is as tiny as it looks…

Maybe I’m missing something, but to build that adorable sink into a shelving unit feels like it takes away from the “trough” look. Why not just add a cute cabinet on one side? And then a couple of floating shelves higher?

why are these junk?

you could find a vintage wall mount sink and have it painted.

So, you don't like these shelf ideas?

what about this metal basket?

recessed medicine cabinet?

I still like this idea

How about a mirror with shelf? Or, if that’s a deep plumbing wall, inset wall ledges to the right? It looks like you plan a sliding shower door — so a shelf would have to stop several inches short of the shower wall to leave clearance for the door & handle.

@User why do you say it's "tinfoil junk"? It's enameled cast iron and looks great as far as we can tell. Have you had a negative experience with this company?

@btydrvn sorry I can see why this is confusing! The laundry machines are in a separate space right next door to the bathroom but there really wasn't room for a laundry/utility sink in there. We don't routinely do hand laundry in a laundry sink, but I wanted to have a big deep project/utility/laundry sink somewhere in the house for kid/craft/paint/garden/occasional laundry purposes, so we thought it would be cool to have the basement bathroom sink do double duty. I'm imagining using this for things like rinsing off muddy boots, cleaning a hamster cage, dumping a mop bucket, washing paint brushes, stain-treating a tablecloth and very occasional hand laundry. We started with the idea of putting a utility-type sink in this room for these functional reasons, and then started really having fun with the aesthetic once we mocked it up.

We are doing a sort of modern-vintagey aesthetic, working with a designer with whom we have a great relationship, and with whom we've designed some really pretty and quirky spaces elsewhere in our home. We are confident that we like this look and know what we're doing here, but we get that it's neither traditional nor super contemporary and looks like a weird choice to many!

@RedRyder I hear what you're saying about interfering with the trough aesthetic! of the options we've had drawn up so far we have liked this one best but I'm listening, and @Beth H. :I'm looking through these and do really appreciate you taking the time to share them. We had some drawings with shelves on the sides and/or inset shelves that just didn't seem quite right and this countertop approach seemed most ergonomic for guests but I do recognize it's not perfect.

Well, I like it.

But...

This is going to be a working sink? So you ARE going to be rinsing tiedye in it? Maybe wood isn't really the best choice. An interesting laminate maybe?

@Fori not on the regular, but you're right, that could happen! Plus we just have one toddler right now but he and any siblings will eventually be teenagers with who knows what habits and hobbies, and I remember what happened to my parents' basement bathroom the time i tried to dye my hair blue... I was thinking an epoxy finish or some kind of really tough varnish would give us some protection, but does that seem dicey?

i love that sink and would totally bulld a room around it if i could! But i agree it loses its specialness tucked into a counter. i would float it by itself and have a shelf mirror above like some if the photos above show -

@la_la Girl Ok, I'm thinking about it! I'm worried about the shelf mirror being precarious and annoying... our most frequent overnight guests are likely to be older people (inlaws), at least one of whom has a tremor and one of those giant every-day-of-the-month pill dispenser things.

I'm now talking about this with a local finish carpenter in our neighbourhood who specializes in custom wood floating shelving and countertops so at least if we do go ahead with us I have a possible source for the appropriate skill set. Thinking my general contractor was going to do this well was seeming increasingly foolish.

It's not really dicey if you put a thick coat on. And even if you don't...wood! You can sand and refinish.

Oh...do remember that it won't look quite as sleek as your drawing. You'll have visible plumbing! So this is NOT a place for plastic drain lines. Make sure you don't hate chrome.

Yes, I'm aware of that! Will insist on chrome plumbing fittings and all the other metal finishes in this room will be chrome (except maybe the mirror frame, TBD on that one).

I agree that I would scribe a thick shelf / counter on each side and end it maybe an inch or so inboard. (meaning that it does not look like it's dropped into a signle slab - but 2 distinct pieces.

I also agree that if it's in a bathroom you totally need a landing zone beside a sink otherwise you will curse your design decision daily when you can't set down your toothbrush.

@just_janni right? This bathroom will be used by overnight guests and I don't want to be the host who gave their guests an impossibly inconvenient bathroom because it would look cool :D

Just trying to understand what you mean by "inboard" -- do you mean an inch or two closer to the wall than the front edge of the sink, or do you mean an inch or so away from the side of the sink on each side?

I've now got an entirely reasonable quote from this great local woodworker who has a strong design sense so I think I'll make the final decision together with him. He's going to make me some matching floating shelves for over the toilet too. @Fori your link to that floating shelf company website set me off down this path (I was reminded of someone posting on my neighbourhood group about their custom floating shelf work) so that's much appreciated! And with this guy he can come on site to take measurements/template the sink profile, plus "shipping" will be driving the stuff over from his house 5 minutes away.

Well, you were pretty much describing a floating shelf, right?

Definitely good to get a local guy to ensure that the shelves are sturdy. They might get leaned on.

You could almost make a "live edge" work there. I don't usually care for it but when it's the only organic thing in a sleek room, it can be kind of cool.

I hope this local person can make the room practical for guests and messy hobbies.

@Fori I was wondering if a live edge would work here or if it would look odd with the sink chopping it up in two pieces. This guy has done quite a bit of live edge work (routinely does this for bathroom vanity counters under vessel sinks) so the option is definitely there.

@RedRyder I know, we're really forcing one space to serve multiple functions. But that's part of living in a modest-sized downtown semi-detached house in a super $$ city. This basement reno is taking us from just under 1200 square feet of usable living space to almost 1800, and believe it or not this new 8x7 bathroom will be the largest in the house! We're hoping the new space will encourage out-of-town family to plan frequent and extended visits with us, but that isn't likely to be more than a few weeks of the year, and the rest of the time this is going to be vital living space for our growing family. So we're doing everything we can to design a space that is multifunctional and can transition between purposes as needed (eg putting in a murphy bed in a space that will double as a playroom), and that will keep working well as our kids grow up and everyone's needs change.

That bathroom is FABULOUS! It looks unique and practical - two very hard features to get right. I’m sure you’re thrilled. The blue tile done vertically gives it a modern feel. Congratulations!

@RedRyder Thank you! We are indeed delighted with it. The tile is the Cloe that is so popular in white/grey in backsplashes (marketed under a different name here in canada). It looks so pretty and really makes me happy. We were walking a weird line here balancing "the basement bathroom next to the laundry area" and "the guest bathroom my mother in law will use for a couple weeks at a time when visiting" and I think we landed in a pretty good place!

Yup. You sure did!

Great job. Very pretty. I like the floor tile with the wall tile