Keys to Designing a more Beautiful and Functional Bath
Space is apremium in most bathrooms that we remodel in Cincinnati, and it’s essential tocreate realistic expectations for how to best use space. In tighter spaces,often is it not realistic or practical to include both a separate shower stalland a dedicated space for a tub. Some bathrooms would look crowded with adouble vanity and double sinks. When thinking about a bath remodel consider thearea and how much room you and your family need to maneuver after a shower or bathto prepare for the day or a night on the town.
A well-designed bathroom is an organized bathroom. Toiletries,hair dryers, curling irons, makeup, brushes, etc. can quickly clutter acountertop, making the bathroom look unattractive and feel uncomfortable. A tipfor designing a more functional, organized and pleasurable bath is to determinewhat you need to store during the design stage and specify storage solutions tomeet those needs.
We understand that time is our customers’ most valuable asset.Their days are hectic, and they don’t want to waste time searching for afavorite tube of lipstick or wait for a curling iron to heat up. Manufacturershave responded, offering vanities and storage solutions with interioradjustable shelving, pull-out trays, interior lighting, hairdryer/curling ironholders, interior electric receptacles, USB port charging stations and drawerdividers to keep baths organized and to increase their functionality.
In addition to adequate storage solutions, another functionalcriterion to consider when planning a new bath includes cleaning. The legs orbase of the furniture placed in front of the baseboard might create a gapbetween the wall and the cabinet. This may not be a concern aesthetically, butit does create a challenge to clean the gap space. The issue may be addressedif the furniture has a solid base that can be notched around the baseboard toeliminate the gap or notch the baseboard to dead end into the base of thecabinet.
In planning a new bath, we never lose sight of the need forfixtures and features to accommodate different family members. This isespecially important when specifying mirrors, sinks and shower fixtures.
Lighting is another key, and often overlooked, component of afunctional and aesthetically pleasing bath. Good lighting makes a bathroom moreenjoyable and bad lighting just the opposite. We understand how light interactswith materials, users and tasks to enable recommendations that are mostappropriate for a new bath project. We often will look at the potential to addor expand natural light to a bath renovation project because natural lighthelps to make smaller baths appear larger. This often involves identifyingopportunities for new a new skylight, especially in bathrooms withoutwindows.
Effective lighting illuminates a space in layers using differentcomponents and strategies to paint the final picture. You can buy a functional$40 faucet in a home center, but most likely that faucet will not add much tothe beauty of the bath. A similar analogy holds true for lighting. Merelyplacing a flush-mounted fixture in the center of the bathroom and a light barover the mirror can provide functional light, but a single fixture or bathlight bar may do little to beautify the space, create a mood or evoke afavorable emotional response. Layers of light contribute not only to thefunctionality of the bath but also to its design and beauty. ( Downloadour guide to lighting a new bathroom ).
When we help our clients to create the bath of their dreams,we recommend a focal point which could be a sculptural freestanding soakingtub, dramatic light fixture, unique floor covering or vanity.
If you would like additional ideas and suggestions to help designand build the new bath or your dreams, call our Mariemont showroom at513-271-3490 or our Loveland showroom at 513-722-3490 or stop by and seeus at either showroom. We are open Monday-Saturday!
