Bathroom Design Ideas

Contemporary bathroom wall accessories are rapidly becoming as trendy as ‘must have’ kitchenware.

It is of crucial importance to always have a coherent view of what the bathroom will look like as a whole. Buying one expensive item and finding it clashes with another is to be avoided, whenever possible.

For example, towel racks, once a merely functional part of the bathroom, now come in a multitude of styles far removed from a simple heated metal bar. Indeed, at the top end of the market, towel racks may even incorporate mirrors and shelves. Select one that best blends in with your other fixtures.

Similarly, the old bathroom mirror, tacked up on the wall above the sink, is a thing of the past. Experiment with full-length mirrors or one made up of several smaller ones. Surround it with lights or choose a groovy frame.

Heaters are another case in point. Instead of hiding it away in a corner or burying it next to a vanity unit, why not mount it on the wall? As most now feature built-in timers, imagine how luxurious it will make the bathroom on a cold winter’s morning.

Lighting is another accessory fast becoming stylish. Forget the traditional centrally mounted ceiling lamp. Festoon the bath with hanging lights or install an elegant metal rod with multi-directional lamps.

Finally, if your bathroom is one of the smaller rooms of the house, how about mounting an extra cabinet on the wall? It will greatly increase space for bathrobes and towels and keep the rest of the area free to relax in.

Refurbishing a bathroom can be an expensive affair. A new bath or shower unit can set a house owner back a considerable amount of money, but even if you cannot afford a total overhaul of your existing bathroom, replacing an old and lifeless vanity unit can do wonders to even the most jaded of bathrooms and not cost the earth.

There are as many different vanity units on the market as there are bathroom sinks. It is therefore of crucial importance that you have a clear idea of which of the many types will best fit into your existing bathroom.

Although this is true of many of the other accessories in your bathroom, the vanity unit deserves especial care, because of the composite nature of the fixture. In general the unit consists of taps, a washbasin and mirror. These all need to fit into the overall layout of your bathroom.

Also, choose a size that will be suitable. Although storage space is, of course, the main reason why vanity units are chosen in the first place, there is no point in buying one that is too large. This will only defeat the entire object of the exercise, an uncluttered bathroom.

For those who need a great deal of storage space and have the room to do so, a traditional cabinet style should prove sufficient. Conversely, someone with more limited requirements may find the pedestal style more than adequate for their needs.

Schneider cabinets come in ten lines, each unique and stylish, each durable and fashionable. Unrivalled in design and quality, Schneider bathroom cabinets use only the finest materials to make some of the world’s finest woodwork.

The Graceline employs a florescent backlit, brushed aluminium housing and mirrored, hinged front doors. This creates a clean, square look. The Hipline follows this same essential design; but instead of a backlight, these bathroom cabinets have a cylindrical, top-mounted halogen lamp.

The Hipline and Quadraline also include shelving units with three glass shelves and a tall aluminium spine.

Those who don’t want their bathroom cabinet to have its own light source might find the Schneider Lowline series matches their needs. These one and two-hinged door models utilize clean lines and come in both vertical and horizontal orientations. Schneider also makes a line of illuminated and unlit bathroom mirrors which, like the Lowline, come in horizontally and vertically-oriented rectangles and squares.

The Peakline has a lit or unlit mirrored front and single sliding aluminium doors while the Prideline, Quadraline, Ronline, Splashline and Wanga lines all employ the basic Schneider look established by the Graceline and Lowline models but add elegantly creative lighting solutions. The Peakline offers both wide fluorescent and compact halogen options, the Prideline wide overhanging options, and the Quadraline single hinge, overhanging bulb options.

Finally, the Schneider Ronline offers a diverse sampling of lighting fixtures, resting atop the basic Schneider bathroom cabinet design, while the Splashline and Wangaline offer various creative re-renderings of the same.

Inda bathrooms are the height of sophistication in terms of bathroom design and it is no coincidence that they are based in Milan, Italy. This city is well known for being one of the fashion ‘hot spots’ of Europe and Inda bring fashion to the bathroom, in quite a serious way!

The Inda Bathrooms style concept is very swish, yet modern. This is not about a clinical white bathroom this is about colours, use of space and modern living in the 21st century. Their products have an air of the future about them, with very angular and sharp lines, nestling alongside rounded, curved wash hand basins. The result is a blend of the two styles, with one setting off the other. This concept makes their designs almost unique and certainly worthy of consideration.

For those with young children, some of the products may not be entirely suitable, due to the sharp edges on some of the basin counters/vanity units, but for everyone else, they are a real style statement.

These products are also quite cutting edge in terms of design, so if you like heritage pieces and a charming or quaint bathroom, then this is probably a range that you will not find too interesting. For anyone who likes a timeless style, expressing individuality and an endorsement of modern life, particularly in the urban setting, this really is a quality range, which will last a lifetime. Since you will probably love your new bathroom suite so much, you may well want to keep it for a lifetime.

Sharing a bathroom with family members or housemates can be difficult. If you have a large bathroom, then installing more than one sink is a good idea; so that people do not have to wait to use the sink for quick and simple tasks such as washing their hands or brushing their teeth.

If you need to decorate the bathroom there can be disagreements about colour schemes and furniture if you are sharing with someone else. The best solution is to settle on colours that suit everyone and if new bathroom furniture needs to be added, make sure that everyone contributes towards the cost so that you do not have to spend as much yourself.

Sharing a bathroom can also be frustrating if you have people using products that you have purchased for yourself. The best option is to buy double bathroom cabinets and give a section to each person or buy one cabinet each. If you do not feel comfortable with having your products stored in the bathroom, then there are a variety of wash bags and cosmetics bags to choose from. These are available from a variety of stores for around £5.00 and are ideal for keeping your bathroom products private.

It is also important to keep your bathroom hygienic. Since there is more than one person using the bath, shower, sink and toilet, you will need to make sure that you clean each one after you have used it. It is always a good idea to share cleaning tasks so that one person does not end up having to do all the work. 

Every bathroom needs one or two cabinets for storing items such as hair products, medicine and shavers etc. There are many different types of cabinets, such as vanity cabinets and cabinets for storing linen. If you want your cabinets to match other areas of your bathroom, then you can buy vanity sets. These usually consist of a sink and a selection of cabinets with a mirror. They may be a little expensive, but they will help you to achieve a stylish look for your bathroom.

If you have a lot of bathroom items, then it may be a good idea to choose more than one cabinet for your bathroom. Double bath vanities offer lots of storage space and are ideal for large bathrooms. These bath vanities also have space for more than one sink, which make them ideal for bathrooms with lots of users. They are also ideal for keeping your bathroom products organised, such as storing hair products in one section and make-up in another section.

If you are looking for a cabinet specifically for medicine, then are single and double cabinets available. Some medicine cabinets come with locks, which are ideal if you have children and wish to prevent them from having easy access to the cabinet for safety reasons. It also helps you to keep your medicine out of view for when visitors use your bathroom.

If you do not wish to have your cabinets fixed to the wall, then there is a selection of floor cabinets to choose from. These are useful as you can store items on top of the cabinet as well as inside it.

Mirrors are a great addition to any bathroom, not just for checking your reflection, but also for making your bathroom look stylish and reflecting light to make your bathroom appear much brighter. There are many different types of mirrors to choose from.

Mirrors usually look good when placed above a sink or a set of vanity cabinets. If you do not have much space, then you could opt for a cabinet that has a mirror for its door. Some mirrors tend to distort your reflection, so be sure to choose a mirror that has distortion-free glass.

If you have a lot of space in your bathroom, then a full-length mirror may look good. Not only does this allow you to see more of your reflection, it also provides your bathroom with more light. There are a variety of styles to choose from, so have a look around to see what would suit your bathroom.

The amount of steam in the bathroom can cause mist on any mirrors that you have in the room, so it is a good idea to choose mist free mirrors. Wiping the steam away can leave marks and make the mirrors harder to clean, so having a mist free mirror or plenty of ventilation will help you solve this problem.

To give yourself more light when using your mirrors, you can purchase mirrors that have built in lights, which you can control with a pull switch. Spotlights above a mirror look good and can give your bathroom a more luxurious feel. 

If you are aiming to have a Victorian theme for your bathroom, then there are a variety of accessories available that will help you achieve the look that you want. Victorian bathrooms usually have dark colours and wood. Antique stores are a good place to visit if you are looking for Victorian bathroom furniture and usually have a wide variety of top quality products to make your bathroom look good.

Victorian Plumbing, a UK company, offer a selection of Victorian products to suit your theme, including Victorian basin taps, which can be purchased with a matching bath mixer if you wish. If you are looking for a bath to fit your Victorian theme, then Plumbworld offer a Clearwater Victorian Bath, which is available in Green and White, with stone cast resin reinforcement and is priced at around £530.00.

Having a Victorian theme may be more suitable if you have a lot of money to spare, as some products can be quite expensive. But if you look around on sites such as eBay, you may be able to find a few bargains. There are some stores that offer discounts for products purchased on their website, or you could have a look around to see which stores have items on sale.

Finding a website with an online decorator will help you to see which colours are suitable for your Victorian theme. Visiting showrooms is also a good idea, as this will give you an idea of different layouts, colours and products for your Victorian theme.

The bathroom is where we use many different products, such as bath oils, body lotion, hair products, make-up, shaving products, medicine and many more. Having a wide selection of bottles and soaps can make the room look cluttered, especially if you do not have much storage space. Cabinets are the best solution, but there still might not be enough space for you to store everything.

There are numerous shelves for you to choose from and they are available in many styles, so finding one to match the rest of your bathroom should be easy. Glass corner shelves are the best option for stylish bathrooms and are ideal for storing hair products and make-up, particularly top brand products, as these tend to look good on show. For the less interesting items, such as toothpaste, a simple cabinet is the best option.

Accessories such as toilet-roll holders and towel-rails, which are also available in a variety of different styles, are useful and can make your bathroom look much neater. For shower and bath products, there are baskets on the market, which make your bathroom look neat and stylish. Steel corner baskets are particularly useful for storing body lotion or shower gel.

If you have gone for a spa theme for your bathroom and need somewhere to store your aromatherapy oils, then there is a selection of stylish storage options for you to choose from. Wooden aromatherapy boxes look attractive or you could opt for an aromatherapy basket instead, which has enough space for all your oils as well as bath products, shower products and soap.

In very many houses the bathroom is indeed quite small with larger space having been allocated to living and eating than has been awarded to functional activities; so for many householders, space is certainly at a premium in the bathroom.

However, this does not mean that you cannot still enjoy a full range of facilities.  There are some spaces saving tips which will help you to make the most out of the space you do have available.

First of all if space is very tight, then you should look at installing a close coupled toilet since this will save you space in terms of how far the toilet projects into the room.

Next, it is also possible to buy baths which are slightly shorter than normal, but still an adequate length (unless you are exceptionally tall).  These are often narrower as well, so allowing you to get that extra bit of space next to, or at the end of, the bath.

Consider installing a shower over your bath and then fitting a bath / shower screen to make sure that the water is contained.

Fit a countertop wash hand basin and, if space is really tight, then consider installing the wash hand basin in the corner.  Storage space can then be created underneath the basin, enabling you to completely maximise your space.

Finally, consider fitting a towel rail over your radiator or have a heated towel rail adjacent to the toilet.  Therefore, you can have all the luxury of a modern bathroom even in the tiniest of spaces.