Choose tile placement carefully. I've been showing you lots of bathrooms that stay away from mosaic tile, but If you love the texture and the look, then place it where it will need the least amount of cleaning. This bathroom vanity uses solid marble slabs all around the business area of the bathroom, with the herringbone mosaic placed higher so it's out of the splash zone.
Get everything off the floor. You already know I don't like cleaning grout or glass, so imagine my thoughts on cleaning toilets. The number-one disgusting chore in a bathroom is getting on your hands and knees to clean around a toilet crammed into a narrow space with that horrible, convoluted shape on the side. Wall-mounted toilets are easier to reach all the way around. They also make cleaning the floor easier. Notice that in this bathroom they even wall-mounted the toilet brush. Nice idea! Mounting your vanity on the wall will also make the floor easier to clean.
Go frameless. The aluminum frames around glass shower doors are a magnet for gunk. Going frameless on your glass gives you a simple sheet to squeegee clean. There are a number of options for coatings on glass that also help it to repel water and soap scum. Check with your glass shower door manufacturer for factory coating options. Many people recommend manually applied water repellants like Rain-X.
Select a linear drain. See that narrow channel at the base of the wall? That's a linear drain. Installing one means that your shower floor will have a flat slope in one direction, so you can run your large-format floor tile right on into the shower instead of using little mosaic tiles to accommodate multiple directions of slope. It will set you back around $1,000, but ask yourself how much you hate cleaning grout.
A luxurious sunken bath Many of my friends with children say they love a spa treatment, but find that juggling home life with work and outside commitments gives them little time to devote to relaxation. What a reward it must be then for mothers to incorporate a sunken bath into the planning stage of a new bathroom so they can enjoy a spa every day of the week. This one is raised up just above the level of the outdoor pool so that when the large floor-to-ceiling window is swung open, the two pools appear to merge. Heaven!
I like the storage to the side.
Good lighting for makeup. Note there is enough room for a makeup station and two sinks. I was originally thinking of having the makeup station in the middle of the sinks but now I am unsure.
The seat by the large window is also nice.
I like the makeup station and the free standing bath.
Use paint /upholstery to mimic a particular wood tone. If you have one piece of furniutre that is a different wood tone, you can use paint, window treatments or upholstery to mimic the wood tone and spread the colour around the room. The blinds and cabinet work together.
THE RULE OF THREEIn general, it’s safest to stick to a maximum of just three timber tones in a space. This allows each to be distinct. By using a pale tone for the floor, a dark tone for major furnishings, such as cabinets, and a mid-tone for accents, you can keep the space structured.
Juxtapose different timbers. Don’t be afraid to mix different types of wood and different finishes in the same space. This bathroom has a combination of smooth, polished wood, cut planks and gorgeously knotty uncut pieces for a celebration of tones and texture.
Pair different types of timber together Another way to try the colour blocking trend if you’re not a big fan of colour and want to decorate your kitchen in a natural palette is to construct your cabinetry using different coloured timbers. To ensure your timber-on-timber look doesn’t appear too busy, orient the panels so that the grains run in the same direction. If your kitchen is compact in size, consider using horizontal woodgrain panels (like the ones used in this space), as they create the illusion of spaciousness.
Laminate If you’re watching your budget but still want a quality finish, laminate is a good place to start. Laminates have come a long way since ’70s Mission Brown, and there is a wider selection of colours, textures, wood grains and benchtops available than ever. This range means that there are endless opportunities to express individual taste without sinking the entire design budget. Gone are the days of edges peeling back from kitchen doors or chunks being taken out if you accidentally hit a laminated edge with a pot! I only use ABS edging when specifying kitchen finishes as it’s a high-pressure laminate banding that is abrasion-resistant and seals the edges of kitchen doors. At only a few hundred dollars extra, this edging is also a relatively inexpensive way to insure the longevity of a laminate kitchen. This kitchen is a great example of the versatility of laminate, with the bright, fun orange overhead cupboards set off by the contrasting laminate of the lower cabinetry that provides the look and feel of a modern wood veneer.
hange the scenery Wallpaper may not be the most practical choice for a bathroom, but in a powder room it’s a different story! This space refuses to take itself to seriously, and instead oozes personality thanks to this subway mural.
John Maniscalco Architecture SaveEmail 9. A view Sadly, this won’t work for all of us (at least not those of us with close neighbours), but if you are lucky enough to have a home with some privacy, I say make use of it! A wall-to-wall window like this one will give you the feeling of soaking right out in nature – and making the bottom of the window level with the top of the tub will keep you from feeling overexposed. You can also always add window shades for privacy and light filtering.
Well suited for both rustic and modern interiors, a live-edge wood slab makes a great bathroom feature.
If you are redoing the whole bathroom, you may as well give some thought to your storage options – things have evolved since the days when your only choices were a pedestal sink or double vanity. Sneak in pullout shelves, wall cubbies, recessed niches and more to get exactly the right storage for your stuff.
Wood in bathrooms has been trending for several years now and shows no signs of slowing – and why not? With marine-grade supplies and specialty finishes, it’s possible to enjoy the warm look and feel of wood in the bathroom. Say goodbye to cold tile!
Lining your mirror with energy-efficient LED lights will instantly make your bathroom pamper zone a whole lot more functional and user friendly, especially if the space was poorly lit to begin with. Take this bright, airy bathroom, for example. Here, LED lights run along all four sides of the large wall-mounted mirror, and deliver accent and mood-enhancing lighting to the space. The lights also ensure that the mirror is well lit, providing users with a clear, shadow-free view, so they can shave, floss, brush, pluck and put on make-up with ease. Another benefit of LED strip lights is that they can also double as night lights. For best results, install a dimmer switch so you can adjust the intensity of the light accordingly.
Does your bathroom suffer from poor ventilation? Short of ripping out a hole in your wall and fitting a window in its place, the next best thing is to install an exhaust fan in the ceiling. This simple update will help rid your bathroom of fog-inducing steam (the mortal enemy of bathroom mirrors); humid, mildew-producing air; and musty odours, creating a bathroom that’s healthier, safer and easier to clean. Plus, with improved airflow, foggy mirrors will be a thing of the past, which means you won’t have to wipe down or struggle to see yourself in the reflective surface, making your morning and nightly grooming routine more streamlined and a whole lot quicker, too.
This is a balancing act of a different kind – textures of all kinds combine to create this knockout bathroom, but the key to its success is its smart use of colour. The textures may change, but grey and brown are the only colours that come into play.
Edging a wall with stacked stone tiles gives the effect of a rugged stone wall, but soothes the senses with smooth surfaces while you shower.
This looks cool and is one way of adding texture to a bathroom but would be a pain to clean.
I love the little chair allowing you to do makeup.
I particularly like the bright yellow drawer interiors. This is a great way to continue a colour scheme if you have left over paint.
The basin is the star attraction in this powder room, but the mirror, tapware, lighting and shimmery wallpaper all work together to create an upscale – and beautiful – result.
Keep spare toilet rolls at easy arm’s length from the toilet.
Evenly spread lighting is a must – shadows reduce visibility and can change perspective. Symmetrical side lighting on vanity mirrors is very easy on the eyes. Barnes advises that bleary-eyed night-time loo trips are much safer with motion sensitive kick space and floor lighting, or lighting that comes on automatically after sunset. LED lighting cost is very cost-effective and can be left on for long periods without blowing the electricity budget.
Although ‘rainforest’ shower heads are greatly in vogue, a separate shower head with capability to adjust height and flow direction is a must. Barnes installs a lot of hand showers in addition to primary shower heads. “A big bonus is that they make cleaning the shower area much easier.”
An open under-vanity area that accommodates a pretty chair for hair-drying and make-up means no uncomfortable craning towards the mirror.
Bench to sit.
One area where size does matter is the entry to a bathroom, which should enable wheelchair and walker access.
I can really see the usefulness of a bench in the bathroom, particularly for older people.
I hate the idea of a glass wall separating the bedroom and bathroom.
If you are going for an openplay bedroom-ensuite bathroom, make sure you have adequate airflow and ventilation to prevent mould and mildew becoming an issue.
Looks well but together. I love the pendants.
Once again, if tiles are your thing, dark, large-format ones with dark grout are the way to go for a speedier clean.
Q