Bathroom Design: Ideas and Inspiration

Often neglected, bathroom designs are very important to create an overall nice atmosphere in your home. Here are some bathroom ideas for those of you thinking about remodeling or want to simply update its look.

The bathroom is usually the smallest room in the house, but a person spends at least 30 minutes inside per day on the average. Some people spend even longer as they consider it their place of solitude and relaxation – think of a nice long bath with music playing in the background. You cannot ignore your bathroom in terms of usage, but most people ignore it in terms of design and leave them in their original basic state. After all, a bathroom is more functional than decorative, but whoever said that it cannot be both?

Thankfully in the recent years, people have begun to pay more attention to this vital room. House designs now incorporate more elaborate bathroom plans, instead of just placing the basic fixtures inside. Authorities in the design world have also started to set bathroom trends every year, and Sri Lanka is catching up with the rest of the world on this. The latest trend in Sri Lanka is to opt for an eye-catching look rather than your typical basic Sri Lankan bathroom. In this article, we prove that there are just as many things that you can do when designing your bathroom as there are for the bedroom or living room. Lanka Property Web helps you out by providing you some basic though taken for granted ideas you can do to spruce up your soon-to-be new favorite room in your home.

Bathroom Paint Ideas for Your Wall

Most people leave their bathroom walls alone, but this is actually the easiest way to improve the look of your bathroom.  If you want to make a statement, go for bold colors, especially if your floors are white. This will definitely brighten up the place, especially if the room does not receive any natural light.  

For those of you who do not have the time or budget to paint all your bathroom walls, painting just one side works as well – the best would be the wall where your sink or your bath is. This adds an accent to an otherwise plain and simple bathroom. You can even take it a step further by texturing the wall. Simply paint a thick layer of drywall joint compound on your wall of choice, then before it dries, texturize it using a broom, a brush with thick bristles, a sponge, or even a comb. Paint it with your color of choice once the textured compound dries.

Another option would be to install slabs of marble, bricks, or stone on the entire wall or only on some parts, such as corners or creating a geometric shape in the center with your material of choice. Placement can even be randomized, depending on your vision. These kind of wall accents are not only an artistic statement but show a taste for luxury as well.

For those of you feeling extra bold, a great way to add even more personality to your bathroom design is to cover your walls (or wall) in wallpaper. This can even be a cheaper alternative to buying the actual materials mentioned above, as wallpaper designs can imitate anything from wood to mosaic tiles. They can instantly change the way your bathroom looks. This year, the following wallpaper designs are in vogue: 1) subtle nature and florals, 2) metallics, especially silver and copper in geometric patterns, and 3) repetitive ethnic prints in cozy colors.

Bathroom Tile Designs for Your Floor

You can focus on your bathroom walls; you can focus on your bathroom floor. If you want to keep your walls clean and simple, an alternative to transforming your bathroom is by changing its tiles, and this is where small bathrooms are better for your budget than big ones. With less floor space, less tiles are needed, so your budget will not be carrying too heavy a burden when it comes to floor design.

You can instantly make your bathroom look cleaner and brighter by simply choosing the right kind of tiles. Light colored tiles can give the bathroom a youthful and airy feel. Richly veined tiles with high contrasts can make your bathroom look like a fancy spa, especially when you use stone (marble, slate, granite, etc.), ceramics, or porcelain. They are however, more expensive than vinyl or laminate tiles. You can also make a statement or catch the eye with bold tile designs. Mosaic tiles especially add movement to your bathroom design.

Trending right now are 1) geometric tiles and 2) monochromatic tiles. Geometric tiles are more striking than your usual square tiles. They are more visually interesting to look at and add depth to your design when the rest of your bathroom is plain. Monochromatic tiles, especially black and white or shades of grey make your bathroom look instantly modern and chic. Black is a timeless color, and you may hesitate to use this in other parts of your home, but it will be the perfect opportunity to use this color in your bathroom.

Bathroom Accessories for Everything Else

You have painted your walls; you have remodeled your floor tiles. What else can you do? Complete your bathroom’s new look by updating your accessories. This is perhaps the easiest and cheapest part of redesigning your bathroom. Actually, by doing only this and not the first two, you can already achieve the transformation you are aiming for, especially when you are working with a small budget.

For people who have deeper pockets, changing the fixtures can already have a drastic effect on the overall appearance of your bathroom. Start by changing your sink. Although there are many types of bathroom sinks, vessel sinks are proving to be increasing in popularity. They come in many shapes, colors, and materials – round, square, leaf-shaped, glass, marble, ceramic, you name it. You will be surprised at how instantly stylish it makes your bathroom. Next, switch from a shower to a bathtub. This is 100% indulgence, but only if you have enough space. Always consider the overall layout of your bathroom, although nowadays, there are enough bathtub designs to suit any space.

An alternative to installing a bathtub in your bathroom is to simply renovate your existing shower. This year, no one wants a dimly lit shower. The easiest latest trend to follow is to simply install lights just above your shower area. No one wants a claustrophobic bath this year either. This is why frameless glass enclosed showers are in because this particular shower design creates an illusion of space. As stated by Justine DiBella of Pivotech Australia, “nothing is cooler in the bathroom world right now than frameless showers.”

For people who are on a smaller budget, the earlier ideas may not be feasible. It is better then to work with what you already have and just add/remove/change some things. There is no need to go all out and buy new fixtures, when you can simply update its parts – faucets, knobs, and shower heads. The metallic look is in as previously mentioned, so go ahead and change all the boring silver in your bathroom to brass, copper, or even gold (only in color of course). Add even more metallic accents with towel bars, shower rails, soap dishes, and even your waste basket. Metallics can make even the simplest bathroom looks industrial, stylish, and contemporary.

Transform your bathroom into something more than a place for brushing your teeth and showering. Add plants and a piece of statement art to easily change its ambiance into something more inviting. You may not think initially think it is worth it, but the bathroom can be a design space. Occupy that free wall with a giant landscape painting. Add some flowers to your countertop. Put a hanging plant above your bathtub. Plants do not only freshen the air, but also the mood. Seeing a beautiful piece of art lightens the spirit.  Feel revived and revitalized whenever you use your bathroom.

Finally, remove the clutter. This is the simplest, but not always the easiest way to improve the look of your bathroom. Organize, organize, organize. Start by getting rid of anything expired and unused. Next, put similar items together: toiletries, cosmetics, towels, cleaning stuff, etc. then place each group of items in just one area or container. Baskets and dividers are you best friend in this divide and conquer strategy towards a mess-free bathroom. Using jars to store your cotton balls, earbuds, and the like is not only a storage solution, but is also an extra touch of design that lets you see when you have run out of supplies.  

Incorporate shelves into your overall bathroom design, so that you have a place to properly store everything. Corner shelves and floating shelves make the most of the space you have. Open shelves are the latest trend because nowadays, even bathroom accessories can serve as design pieces. With open shelves, you can put on full display your artisanal soaps, perfume bottles, and towels that are color coordinated with the rest of the bathroom arranged in artistic vignettes. Open shelving can even be a motivator for you to regularly clean and to keep your bath items organized. Keep in mind however, that not everything should be put on display.