A new mood is taking over our bathrooms and it’s decidedly dark and a lot more masculine, as Paula Shearer discovers
GOODBYE sparkling white surfaces seen shining in those TV cleaning ads, and hello brown – of the chocolate variety – and black, yes, black!
Award-wining Brisbane bathroom designer Lee Hardcastle, of Enigma Interiors, says all those home renovation shows we’ve been tuning into at night are having an influence on what want to live with – and our expectations on what we can have in our own homes have certainly increased.
“I think consumers are more informed now,” Hardcastle says. “All these TV shows put a lot of emphasis on design and appearance. So, today, people are going a step further than the pen to paper drawing a builder would have given them a few years ago.
“They want to get a little bit creative with what they can use and see all these designs and textures that are available.”
Mena re now having more of a say in the design, introducing darker colours and a stronger look for the room, which used to be kept light and airy.
“People are going for much more of a bold look,” Hardcastle says. “We’re seeing black toilets, black baths and black basins.”
“Although it’s not happening everywhere, it is a trend people are taking up. You will see the use of dark timber grains, chocolate browns and blacks.
“We’ve got a couple of bathrooms on the go at the moment that are really dark and moody. It gives the bathroom a bit more of a masculine slant to it.
“It’s got to be the right person in the right home, but it’s quite a beautiful look.”
The Housing Industry Association awarded Hardcastle the 2010 Queensland Bathroom Designer of the Year for a black and chocolate brown ensuite project. This design is in the running for HIA’s 2011 national bathroom award.
While darker colour schemes are still emerging, one trend that has taken hold is the use of floor-to-ceiling tiles. Hardcastle says that while these have always been used as a design feature, more recently they are being seen in every house.
“It does look good,” he says. “And with all the moisture and humidity in the bathroom, it means you don’t have to worry about washing down the walls. It also gives you greater opportunity to use the feature tiles somewhere. They can go right up the wall as well – you don’t have to make a decision on where to stop them.”
Tiles have also gone bigger, with larger wall and floor tiles now covering most areas, while mosaics are worked into feature panels of walls. Ausbuild interiors designer Kristy Gilchrist says 600mm x 300mm tiles were popular in bathrooms last year, but in 2011 the 600mm x 600mm size will be big news.
Other bathroom trends that Hardcastle sees as moving from the luxury range to more everyday use include heated towel racks, double showers, overhead rain showerheads and – the big one – ensuites without doors.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics says the typical Australian home has evolved from three bedrooms and one bathroom to four bedrooms, one bathroom and an ensuite. These first ensuites were typically pokey little rooms offering just enough space for a shower, toilet and hand basin. But over the years they have evolved, mostly now featuring a luxury bath or spa and taking the master bedroom from a place to put your bed to a parent’s retreat.
“Ensuites now are nearly twice the size of the main bathroom, they’ve just been transformed,” Hardcastle says. “With large walk-in-robes, they have become a key feature of the master parent’s suite.”
He says very few ensuites will now have doors on them.
“Once you are in your bedroom, you shut the door and it doesn’t matter,” he says. “You will be walking from your ensuite to your robe and back into the bedroom, so doors will only get in the way.”
And by positioning the shower as far away from the wardrobe as possible, and using an extractor fan, you shouldn’t have a problem with moisture from the bathroom affecting your clothes.
Although some luxury homes have been known to feature one bathroom per bedroom, Hardcastle says it is wasteful.
Use the formula of one ensuite for the master bedroom, a ‘powder room’ (toilet and basin) for day visitors and one bathroom for each additional two bedrooms.
“Ask the average person who is responsible for the cleaning in their house what they think of cleaning seven bathrooms. If you had a five bedroom house, an ensuite, two other bathrooms and a powder room then that’s enough toilets to clean!”