Practical and Effective Bathroom Design Ideas

Jan 26, 2012 by Frank Scherer

A bathroom is without a doubt by far the hardest room in any home to work in as far as home improvement projects are concerned. So here are five general rules to follow, to make sure that your bathroom design ideas don’t turn out to be more difficult projects than they should be.

#1 Come up with a reasonable project plan that fits your bathroom. For instance if it’s small don’t try to fit something over-sized into it. It’s also always best to avoid blowing it up into a major project by relocating a toilet, sink or bathtub.

#2 Make sure that all your fixtures and components match. It’s just too easy to miss something like perhaps the color or finish on a metal shower door frame during the planning and materials ordering process, so check out every detail carefully.

#3 Water in bathrooms means the potential for mold. Then when you consider that older materials such as tile and wallboard often contain asbestos you need to wear a dust-mask and provide adequate ventilation when doing tear out work.

#4 If you’re not going to do the work yourself make sure that your contractor is licensed and also that you check out his references. Or if you plan on doing the job yourself, track down some good online sources for information that you can study beforehand, and refer to as the work unfolds.

#5 Take some time to become familiar with paint types and application techniques before you start in painting because there’s far more to the topic than meets the eye. For instance you don’t want to use a flat color in a bathroom, and try to stay away from oil base paints because they’re difficult to work with.

Here’s Some Good Bathroom Tile Design Ideas

If you’re looking for some inspiration to help you out while you’re brainstorming for bathroom tile design ideas there’s no need to reinvent the wheel. That is that you don’t want to start from scratch when there’s just so many proven design styles for you to pick from. Take the subway look for examples that’s noted for its sensible rectangular tiles with inlaid stripes.

Believe it or not the “subway style” name is taken from the tile work you can see on the walls, floors, and stairwells of New York City subway system.

The tradesman who did the work decades ago could never imagined the effect it would have on the countless commuters and they were doing it.

Folks who grew to admire the simple, and orderly yet very eye-catching design style with its checkerboard inlaid stripes, and solid looking bull-nose edging.

“Deciding on a tile pattern took us a while. We were going use a stripe of glass mosaic 3 tiles wide just beneath the shower head but we thought it would look too much like the kitchen accent tiles. So I went to my best sources of inspiration.”

Tile murals can also be another source for solutions in your search for good bathroom design ideas, and no you don’t have to hire a ceramic artist to create one for you or settle for a low quality mass-produced made in China mural either. This is because there are now online venues were actual artists will create a mural to your exact specifications. If you’re willing to spend money that it takes for something like this.

If you are on a more restrictive budget that doesn’t allow for this type of custom work though, there are still other more affordable options. Options like limited editions tile murals for instance, that don’t cost near as much as custom work. Ocean and sea shore design motifs in particular work great in bathroom settings and keep in mind that a mural doesn’t have to be huge. So if you’re short on funds even a smaller mural can be the crowning touch on perhaps shower wall.

Design Ideas For Small Bathrooms

“So I’m sharing tips and tricks on how to turn these closet size rooms into well designed jewel boxes. I hope you enjoy these small but stylish bathrooms.
Check out how a vanity with an open base feels visually lighter in a tight space. Adding mirrors opens up the room and reflects light.”

The problem that too many people run into with regards to designs ideas for small bathrooms is that for some reason they will have it stuck in their head that the floor space itself has to be big or at least good size to accommodate good work.

In truth however, the very fact that a bathroom is small works to keep materials cost down to a minimum which in turn can open a lot of doors for a remodel project.

So you’re you’re much more free to go with more costly materials expensive black polished granite for countertops and floors for instance. Materials that in a larger project can be too expensive to use.

Smaller bathrooms are also a great place to try your hand at creative decorative painting techniques, and wall paper styles that give the illusion of greater space and volume.

Through it all though, when you’re brainstorming for small bathroom design ideas for sure the last thing you want to come up with is anything that can make the room look even smaller.

So stick with options like open shelving located high up on a wall rather than bulky space robbing cabinets. Also keep in mind that lighting, particularly soft, filtered, layered can also have a positive effect on space perception.

Color Ideas for Your Bathroom: Tips Before You Shop

If your bathroom is calling to you for a new a new color there’s a good reason for that. A reason that you’re soon going to discover first-hand.

The reason the jobs been getting put off for to long. That reason is that this one room is by far the most difficult to paint because of all nooks and crannies, and the fixtures, cabinets that have to be masked off and work around.

“Bold Color: Bold color if used with a sense of decoration can bring huge change in any space.”

Kitchens and bathroom walls and cabinets also require semigloss or gloss paint but because of the higher level of moisture, and in a bathroom in particular you really are better off going with gloss.

Then another discovery you’ll make is that gloss paint dries slightly opaque, so it requires up to three coats to achieve solid coverage. Particularly if you plan on going over a darker color with the newer lighter one. Something you really need to take in account when you’re considering color ideas for your bathroom.