Bathroom Design Essentials

Bathroom Design Essentials

A well designed bathroom is something that everyone will benefit from. Playing with color and tile pattern is the most fun part of bathroom design.  Bold candy colored bathrooms work for some people, while others like to keep it monochromatic. If you are one of those stressed individuals in today’s fast paced world, a relaxing bathroom is something you need in your home.  Candles, scented oil, and bubble baths are some of the pretty things you can add to achieve a spa- like atmosphere but knowing the important components of bathroom design would be the most basic.

Materials

Make sure your bathroom is a safe area by selecting flooring materials that are not slippery.  Stick to unpolished or rustic tiles.  Smooth tiles are safe to use for the wall, but pick something safer for the floor.  Floor stickers to prevent unwanted incidents can be purchased and applied in strips on bath tubs and other smoother surfaces.  Tiles are the best option as these are non- porous materials.  Marble and granite as well as other natural stone require special and costly treatment for it to be non absorbent.   Counter tops can be made of natural stone, tempered glass, tile, or finished cement.  See to it that the material you pick is treated to be water proof.

This bathroom made use of slate looking tiles.  It is a good idea to have a niche on the wall where you can put bottles of shampoo and soap. Tempered glass is used as a shower partition in place of traditional shower curtains.

Accessories

The most essential bathroom accessories are the towel bars, toilet paper holders, robe hooks etc.  I like to make use of those that come in stainless steel or chrome plated finish.  Bathroom rugs, shower curtains, and towels can be carefully selected to dictate your bathroom’s color scheme. 

 Bathroom Fixtures

 Carefully select bathroom fixtures to compliment your theme.  Modern fixtures should go with modern design, clean, simple tiles, and easy cuts.  Traditional fixtures go with traditional bathrooms, floral tiles, formal marble, and elaborate details.  

This is an example of modern bathroom fixtures.  Very clean, and minimalist

PHOTO FROM BRISTOL BRIGHT FIXTURES. Very traditional bathroom fixtures

Design

The fun thing about bathrooms is that there is really no rule as to how they should be designed.  Portions of the bathroom that does not get wet can be painted.  Tiling the whole wall is not necessary.  I like to put at least a layer of tile around the wall.  This protects the wall from getting wet when you clean the bathroom floor.  The shower are should have tiles that extend to at least 7 feet of the wall.  

The water closet area generally does not get wet.  Only one layer of tile is needed around the wall to save on expenses.

This bathroom is an example of a fully tiled shower area.

Research and imagination is all you need to plan your perfect bathroom.  The only rule for bathroom design is SAFETY.  Pick the right materials to avoid accidents, install grab handles, and make use of floor mats that are skid proof.  Proper lighting and abundant storage space can be a benefit, but with regards to patterns and color it is definitely up to you!  

Here are other bathroom designs to get your quirky and creative juices churning

PHOTO BY: Axeldeviaje 

photo by MONDOBRASS

 Until the next blog...:)