The bathroom differs from other rooms in the apartment or house in many ways. It has its own functional features, specific microclimate and design rules. People spend much less time here than in the kitchen or bedroom, but it’s impossible to do without it in the modern dwelling. The bathroom interior should be multifunctional, comfortable and stylish. It will be much easier to do this if you follow a number of recommendations contained in this article.
Purpose of the bathroom: modern beautiful interiors
The bathroom in a modern apartment or house is not only a place for taking sanitary and hygienic procedures, but also a kind of improvisation of a home spa, where you can fully relax, pay the necessary attention to your appearance, rest your soul and body. Therefore, it is quite natural that the owners of the house or apartment want to make the bathroom not only the most functional and comfortable, but also stylish and beautiful.
Bathrooms may be a separate room, or combined with a bathroom. In modern interior design a bathroom is not just a standard set of sanitary ware in the form of a bath, washbasin and toilet, but also a set of other important items for the organization of water procedures. A bidet, hydrobox, shower cabin or mini-sauna can be installed here. The interior of a modern bathroom is created in accordance with the chosen style and taking into account the personal preferences of the inhabitants of the house.
Historically, the bathroom also serves as a laundry room. The realization of this function requires the installation in the room not only a washing machine, but also other auxiliary items such as a basket for dirty laundry and a device for drying. Spacious rooms sometimes have an ironing board as well. And also, if there is free space in the bathroom, it is possible to install a dressing table. What exactly the functions, in addition to the main, will perform the bathroom in an apartment or private home, depends on its size, preferences of owners and their financial capabilities.
The main conditions for a successful layout of bathrooms
In order to properly plan any room, you must first of all think about what benefits it can bring, and use these opportunities to the maximum. The bathroom should be comfortable and practical for all residents of the house, regardless of gender and age, especially if it is in the house alone.
If there is only one such room in the apartment, it is better that it was located in the center of the apartment and had an entrance from the hallway. Thus, it will be easily accessible from different rooms. In individual projects of private houses usually provide two bathrooms: one is located near the bedroom of the owners on the second floor and the other is downstairs for guests.
The arrangement of the bathroom should be designed so that the usable area is used as rationally as possible. The area around the sink should also be designed properly. This is a compact cabinet under the sink and a hinged mirror cabinet or a mirror of appropriate shape. The total area of the work area should not take up a third of the room, because you still need to provide space for the bath and toilet.
It is much easier to plan a large bathroom. In this case, you can divide the room into functional zones, allocating appropriate places for the bath, work area, sinks with pedestals and a toilet. If the area allows, you can allocate a corner for changing (with a dressing table) and, in addition to the bath, install a shower stall. To any of these areas need to ensure free access.
Bathroom design projects: features and stages of drafting
Before equipping the bathroom, it is required to create an individual design project. It should contain a clear statement of design of the future room for water procedures, and it is required to calculate all the details. It is necessary to make a compulsory sweep of the room, which should specify the dimensions of the walls, doors, windows and their location. It is worth thinking in advance about options for wall covering, flooring and method of finishing. All niches and protrusions should be shown on the plan.
Already at the initial stage it is necessary to determine plumbing and to allocate a place for its location. Particular attention must be paid to the size and shape of the bathtub, sink and shower enclosure. In separate drawings, it is recommended to make a wiring of communications, to make diagrams of the layout of tiles on the wall and floor. Select the appropriate dimensions of furniture and think about its arrangement is also necessary in advance. Do not forget about lighting systems and electricity, in advance to consider the location of lighting fixtures and outlets.
Made sketches and drawings will be the starting point for the designer in making the final project of a stylish bathroom.
Actually, the development and drafting of the design project (with the involvement of a designer) consists of these steps:
- departure of a specialist to review the scope of work, determine the timing and signing of the contract and measurements;
- development of a 3D-project;
- making changes, creating the final version;
- making installation diagrams of plumbing, furniture, lighting and communications drawings;
- drawing up a plan for decorating the room.
You can also independently create a design project, using a special computer program.
Key requirements for the bathroom design project
The arrangement of the bathroom, as well as other rooms, involves a design project. It is recommended to follow the current trends that are most popular in modern construction.
The design project of the bathroom should meet such requirements:
- The bathroom in a modern apartment is a spacious room with excellent lighting, the layout of which is characterized by practicality, ergonomics and functionality;
- Bathroom arrangement, including color design, layout of storage systems, features and location of sanitary ware, decorative elements, aimed at saving space and visual enlargement of the room;
- Sanitary ware in this room is not only an object for hygienic needs and water procedures, but also a kind of highlight of the interior, which can be expressed in an original and ergonomic design;
- in the design of the bathroom should provide clear and simple forms of storage systems, characterized by a minimalistic design and maximum practicality – preference is given to open shelving and shelves, not weighing down the room;
- The number of decorative elements should be reduced to a minimum, and only functional objects needed for water and sanitary-hygienic procedures may be used in the role of decorations.
Trends in the design of modern bathrooms
Design in the bathroom is formed on the basis of personal preferences, taking into account popular trends and fashionable style trends. Clear lines, minimal amount of furniture (which is compensated by hidden storage systems), monochrome and harmonious union of tradition and new trends are welcome. Natural motifs are especially popular now. Therefore, accents can be placed through the use of wood, and greenery can be used as a bathroom decor.
It is desirable that the design of the room reflects the characters and tastes of the inhabitants of the house. Examining the numerous pictures of bathrooms in the apartment, you can choose the most acceptable variant of the interior, making your own special notes.
Concerning the style of decoration, nowadays the minimalism is welcomed, which provides the attraction of restrained and at the same time outwardly attractive elements. A variety of materials, furniture and sanitary ware, which are available in a large assortment, will help to realize the most daring dreams.
To implement the plans and plans concerning the arrangement of the bathroom, will help to follow a few simple rules:
- Creating a special and stylish interior, first of all you should decide on the theme and decide what exactly the function of the room is supposed to perform. Necessary items and details need to be selected taking into account the requirements and intended functional load.
- It is important to consider the size of the room, especially when choosing sanitary ware. A huge bath will be inappropriate in a small room.
- When creating a design, you need to strike a balance between comfort and fashion trends. The bathroom should fit harmoniously with the stylistic design of the home.
Creating the interior of a small bathroom: successful solutions
The main problems in a small apartment are small kitchens and bathrooms. Nevertheless, everyone strives to find a way out of the situation and create not only functional, but also beautiful, original interior. Quite often it happens that after installing a bathtub remain free only a couple of square meters, where it is quite problematic to arrange also a toilet with a washbasin. On the placement of equipment and furniture in that case is out of the question. However, there is still a way out, it can be found by using the following ideas for a small bathroom:
- First of all, it is necessary to take measures with regard to the visual increase in space. To this end, it is necessary to use mostly light colors, in particular white, beige, light pink or soft blue. Dark tones can be present as accessories and underhand items, playing the role of accents.
- Mirrors occupy a special place in the design of a small bathroom (photos demonstrate how with their help the illusion of infinity is created). The bathroom is a room where it is allowed to place mirrors everywhere, including on cabinets, on the walls and even on the ceiling. Their presence will not only visually expand the room, but also give luxury to the interior.
- Lighting in a small bathroom plays an important role. Skilled experienced designers advise installing multi-level fixtures with bright lamps.
- When decorating the interior of a small room, special attention should be paid to the choice of furniture. In a small room, it is better to install small hinged cabinets, vertical shelves, a compact corner shower or a small corner-type bathtub.
Secrets of ergonomics in small bathrooms
In addition to the rules listed above for the visual enlargement of space in the rooms, some tricks will help to save the missing space. The main one is the elimination of unnecessary items and determining alternative places of storage for them.
The room should be used exclusively for its intended purpose: things should be in their places, and it is advisable to keep at hand only the most necessary.
It is recommended to remove decorative cosmetics, superfluous bottles of shampoo and shower gel, as well as packages of laundry and cleaning products from the bathroom. Dirty laundry should also preferably be stored elsewhere.
Alternative places to store the above items may be:
- decorative cosmetics, hair dryer and hair styling products can be placed in a special closet in the bedroom or hallway;
- cleaning tools, detergents and chemicals are better stored in a special closet or pantry;
- a basket for dirty laundry is not necessary to put in the bathroom, it can be placed in a closet or in another room. As a result, there will be more space, and things will not be exposed to the harmful effects of moisture, which is typical for bathrooms.
Using these tricks will not only help to save a lot of space, but also open up additional opportunities to create a cozy and stylish design of a small bathroom.
Small bathtubs for small bathrooms: which is the best to choose
Thus, if you do everything correctly and competently decorate the walls, install compact furniture and sanitary ware in accordance with the chosen style, then even the smallest bathroom will turn into a comfortable and comfortable room for sanitary and hygienic procedures, which is not always seen in a spacious room.
When equipping the bathroom, special attention should be paid to the plumbing as the main item in the functional plan. In modern apartments more and more often classic bathtubs are replaced by more compact shower cabins.
To choose the right size bath you should measure the room where you are going to install it. A great option for a small bathroom is a classic tank of rectangular shape length 150-160 cm, width 70-75 cm and height of 65 cm. Popular today the format of shallow baths of 180×80 cm in size simply will not fit into a small space.
Correctly chosen form will help to save space significantly. Photos of bathtubs for a small bathroom demonstrate the advantage in this regard of products of angular type, which will fit perfectly into rectangular small rooms. The traditional rectangular shape bathtub is suitable for a square room. From round and oval designs in a small room is better to refuse.