How To Make Your Bathroom Look Good

How To Design A Bathroom

So, it’s time to renovate your bathroom. Naturally, you want to make it the best it can be, but you may be unsure how you can do that. Have no fear, for this article contains all the juicy secrets you need to know about how to get your bathroom looking the best it ever has.

Seek Inspiration

First thing’s first, you need to prepare. This means you need to draw inspiration, so you know what has been done well and not so well by others. This will help you figure out what you like and don’t like and therefore, what you would like to see in your ideal bathroom.

We recommend using apps like Pinterest to search for interesting aesthetics and designs. Numerous users constantly upload their own projects and ideas, so it is a wonderful app for creating community inspired mood boards. You can search for interesting aesthetics, fixtures and items with the search bar and then follow where the app’s algorithm leads you, as it recommends things it thinks you’ll like based on what you have previously liked.

Collect lots of imagery and ideas that you like, they will serve as a well of possibility from which your ideas can spring.

Decide On a Theme

Now your ideas are growing, we need to prune them into shape. It isn’t very often sheer chaos works as an aesthetic. (Don’t let that deter you however, as it is very fun when it does.) So, you need to decide on a theme.

Do some research online to see what kind of bathroom themes already exist, such as modern, rustic or Nordic. Look at your own tastes and your collected moodboards, what theme fits a lot of the things you like? What theme allows you to express yourself and feel comfortable? Once you have found your bathroom theme, pursue it! Do lots of research on the tenets of that theme, what values it expresses and what logic it adheres to. For example, does it favour or avoid certain colours or materials? Find out the how’s and why’s of the themes you like and figure out which one suits you best.

For example, a modern bathroom embraces simplicity. Everything is sleek and functional, with a focus on geometric, straight lined designs. Meanwhile, a classic bathroom is busier and more focused on filling the space. It also has a penchant for rounder, bubblier design and is more likely to featured ovals and curves.

Practice Colour Theory

Once you’ve decided on your general theme, you need to decide on a colour palette. A colour palette will allow you to evoke certain feelings and moods. For example, the colour green is often associated with life, growth and ambition. If you’re going for a natural, biophilic theme, the implementation of green could make for a fantastic addition.

Most themes will incorporate a range of colours. Narrow these down to work out your exact palette. The average colour palette contains between three and eight colours, depending on how restrictive you are being.

Websites like Coolors help you generate colour palettes by constantly recommending colours that fit with ones you select. As each colour is given the name of a Hex Code, you can then find their equivalents in paints and tiles by looking for the same Hex Codes. It is worth noting that not all brands use Hex Codes, so be careful. You can even look at existing and popular palettes as well as extract palettes from images, so if there is a specific image you are drawing inspiration from, you can check their exact palette.  

Colour Theory dictates that there are complimentary and clashing colours. Complimentary colours are colours that naturally look good when used in unison. To find the complementary colour of a primary colour, simply combine the other two primary colours and use their secondary colour. For example, the complimentary colour for red is green, which is the sum of blue and yellow. This combination is often seen throughout nature, such as with wild strawberries, which is potentially why we find the combination so appealing. You will want to include complimentary colours in your colour palette to help create some cohesion.

Clashing colours are the exact opposite, they are colours that don’t look good together. These colours don’t work together because of their tone. For example, despite red and green generally working together, a bright green coupled with a muted red would not. This is because their tones are clashing. To get the best of your colours, you want to keep bright green with bright red and muted green with muted red.

That’s Colour Theory explained.

Activate Your Other Senses: How To Make Your Bathroom Smell Good

Your first taste of your food is with your nose, or so the saying goes. Our senses often intertwine and inform each other, so it stands to reason that by pleasing the other senses, we may begin to feel a space looks better as well.

The best sense to appeal to in a bathroom is of course the sense of smell. Your nose may be exposed to many a horror in this space if you’re not careful, so use scents and aromas to set the tone and mood you want. Building on the green nature theme mentioned earlier, you could include a pine based air freshener to spruce up your bathroom. In contrast, you could build a warming red theme and equip a cinnamon scent which has connotations of Christmas, warmth and cosines.

However, do be careful to only have flammable objects like candles and incense sticks lit when you are in the room. No matter what anyone says, burned down is not a theme!

Building on this, air quality is always key to a space’s enjoyability. Make sure your space has at least one window for natural light and air flow. You can then capitalize on this by placing small plants in the space which will grow and provide clean air for you, as well as looking pretty.

If sound is important to you, look to battery operated white noise machines. Majestic whale song or the calming sound of rain or a gentle breeze on a summer’s day could be just the auditory cue needed to put you at ease and make the space feel better as a result. It’s important you don’t drag any wires throughout the bathroom that could create both tripping and electrical hazards, but investing in a small, battery operated sound system could be just what you need. Just keep it away from any water in the room!

Build To Your Needs

Every person and every household are different, so every person and every household will have different needs. It is important to take this into account when designing your bathroom. For example, a wall hung toilet can have its height customized, which could be more comfortable for everyday use in your home than a floor mounted toilet with a standardized height. When designing a bathroom for a disabled person or a bathroom for an elderly person, you must understand that extra amenities may have to be installed and certain requirements will have to be met. For example, if someone who makes use of a wheelchair uses your bathroom, you need to ensure there is enough floor space for a wheelchair user to comfortably navigate the room. If you yourself are not disabled or elderly, but are designing a bathroom with someone like that in mind, it is imperative you discuss their needs with them and do your research so you can ensure a happy bathroom experience for all.

Build To Your Space: How To Design A Bathroom Layout

So, your theme is decided on and your colour palette is secure, how do you make the big decision of which fixtures and accessories to install? It’s simple! Let the space guide you. You will want plenty of space to be able to do what you need to, so make sure to measure the bathroom or cloakroom area.

You can then check the measurements of potential items and draw up a floor plan to figure out which combination of items will best fit in your space, while giving you the ideal Feng Shui.

To draw a floor plan, draw a scaled down version of your space from the top down perspective and make a note of where any key elements are, like where specific pipes may already be in place. Then you can draw in the items you desire to the same scale to see if they fit.

This method will save you time, energy and money in the long run as you don’t have to worry about fixtures not fitting or accessories taking up more space than planned. An hour in planning saves a day in panic.

Source the Finest

Now it’s time to source your items! Depending on your theme and space, you may be getting lots of bespoke items from all over the world. It will be most practical to ensure they all arrive at similar times, so you can install everything at once. You don’t want to be waiting for weeks to get started and having to traverse a maze of delivery boxes in your halls.

Check delivery times and order your items at appropriate periods to make sure they arrive around the same few days period.

If you’re looking for a place that sells lots of bespoke, beautiful bathroom fixtures, furniture and accessories, then don’t worry because you don’t have to look far. Durovin Bathrooms has a wide range of wonderful products that allows anyone working with any theme to find what they are looking for.

For unique decorations that can work as finishing touches, it is always worth looking to local artists to see what bespoke and interesting art can fill your home. Whether it’s a painting, a model or something else altogether, having something unique can give your space a personal flourish.

Install Effectively

Now, none of your previous choices will amount to much if something is installed incorrectly. It is always worth hiring a professional to ensure you get a high quality of installation to match the high quality of your products.

However, installing it yourself is also an option. If you are installing your bathroom fixtures yourself, be sure to prepare and give yourself ample time to do so. You can’t rush perfection!

As well as this, whether you are contracting out installation or doing it independently, you must ensure that everything is installed and decorated in a certain order. For example, it is always best to install a toilet after installing new flooring as to get the best possible seal. If you install and decorate in the wrong order, you could make extra work for yourself, cost yourself more money and even break things!

Clean and Maintain

You need to take good care of your space and items, to ensure the aesthetic endures. It is worth keeping this in mind when installing fixtures and accessories. If you have lots of trinkets in the space, you will need to clean more often, as more dust will accumulate. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have trinkets, but that you should be aware of the amount of cleaning and maintenance your choices will require.

It is also worth researching how to perform maintenance on your fixtures, as you don’t want to have to disassemble the entire room just to fix one issue. Design the space with ease of maintenance in mind and it will be more practical and less time consuming if anything ever goes wrong.

You should clean your bathroom at least once a week, to keep it fresh, looking good and to lower the chance of the need of maintenance.

Keep Improving

Finally, it is worth keeping in mind that there is always room for improvement. Finishing a project that you have worked extremely hard on can be very satisfying and gratifying. Take a well-deserved break from the project and rest. You’ll soon find yourself with new ideas for improvements, new décor items that can fit into your space just so and new fixtures that can add extra layers of practicality. Enjoy your space, but never be afraid to help it evolve.

Now, let’s look at some examples and discuss how you can best achieve them.

Example: The Modern Bathroom

For building the modern bathroom, we are going to go for a high contrast, minimalist look. A walk in shower allows the busy professional to get all their cleaning needs quickly and effectively, while a large, angular matte black basin with black taps and a resin vanity unit, coupled with a light up mirror allows them to take care of themselves in style.

Rounding out the bathroom fixtures is a wall hung toilet with no exposed cistern or piping to interrupt the space.

Build your walls and floors with blacks and steel tones to exude a purposeful and professional energy. Combine this with a muskier scent, to give a feeling of earthiness, and Tada you’ve created a modern bathroom.

Example: The Classic Bathroom

For the classically themed bathroom, we’re going for freestanding white fixtures with silver accessories. Choose an oval bathroom basin on a freestanding pedestal, for a smooth addition. Clad your space with white tile and soothing cremes and beiges to allow for a more flowing colour palette.

You can break this up with potted plants that can breathe a bit of life into your bathroom space and provide nice, natural scents.

Finally, allow a large acrylic bathtub to be your centerpiece, as it allows for a more luxurious, calming and thoughtful clean.

With that all done, you’ve officially made a classic bathroom.

What Colour Is Most Flattering In A Bathroom?

When decorating a bathroom, it can be easy to inadvertently make your bathroom seem overly eclectic. So, how do you make your bathroom look good? What colour is the most flattering in a bathroom?

It comes down to monochrome. Black and white are both very universal colours that pair well with other colours so well. This is why tile is often black and white and why most bathroom fixtures come in black and white.

The easiest way to find your bathroom’s most flattering colour is to follow the colour of your basin. Whether you choose to compliment it or contrast it is up to you, but by focusing on designing around the colour of your basin, you can create a highly unified look.

Conclusion

There are a lot of ways to make your space look good, from theming, to cleaning, to drawing up floor plans. It takes effort to make something look effortless and making your space look good requires dedication, persistence and a creative mind. If you think you have what it takes, check out our wonderful bathroom fixtures and accessories to begin planning your dream bathroom.