Latest Designer Bathroom Ideas and How To Guides for your Home

Bathrooms have long been underrepresented by interior designers, that is until now. Finally, one of the most critical rooms of the house is getting a makeover and the one item most people ignore, the bathroom radiator, is standing out with style.

Designer radiators are making their way into homes everywhere. People are finding that a designer radiator is an inexpensive way to quickly add dash and style to a room, while increasing comfort and energy efficiency. Old radiators can be horribly inefficient, wasting your hard-earned money on inefficient heating. Today’s new designer radiators can heat your bathroom for much less money, in fact, many of them are programmable or can be installed with a programmable thermostat, which only turns on when you want it to.

Radiators by Reina, Lazzarini and others are so sleek and slim that you’ll gain floor space as well as warmth and comfort. In fact, many of the designer radiators can be mounted on the wall or in a corner and also hold towels. Imagine nice warm towels after your bath and a designer radiator to update the room.

Today’s designer radiators are much more reasonably priced than you might think. Compare the cost of an old, stodgy radiator to the sleek chrome or brushed metal designer models and you’ll see that for just a little more money you can purchase a radiator that has had attention to style incorporated into the design. 

When friends and relatives visit, they invariably use your bathroom, so why not treat them to a room that reflects you and your unique style? Take that old, inefficient radiator out and install a sleek, efficient designer radiator. You’ll wish you had done it sooner.

Yep, if you’re like me you will remember those old cast iron radiators from school – big chunky things that get dead hot and you used to sit on them when you were cold until the teacher told you off.

Well, they are making a come back! The cast iron radiator can be a beautiful focal piece in any room nowadays – whether you want the traditional or contemporary look.

Check out the range of cast iron radiators available from our friends at the Radiator Centre.

If you are in the market for a quality shower enclosure, you may have to look no further than a corner shower stall. In fact, it is a smart choice for a small bathroom, because they leave additional space for a bathroom vanity unit or storage accessory. As they are installed in the corner, this shower enclosure only requires two walls for its installation.

Corner stall shower enclosures are available in a wide variety and come with glass doors that have been etched, pebbled or set with wavy blocks for added privacy. The shower enclosures also come frameless, with very trendy right now look, or framed in materials like chrome, steel and aluminium for an updated look.

The corner stall shower enclosure gives a cosy look to a modern bathroom and can be installed as a home renovation project. However, you will need to purchase the shower pan, flooring and door. If you choose to build it from parts, you have the ability to add design features such as seating, shower trays, and other shower accessories such as built-in nooks or ledges designed to hold shampoos, soaps and the like. Another choice is the custom kit, which is a prefabricated piece that needs only the right place for installation. It comes as one solid piece, and the biggest issue will be ensuring proper drainage.

However, the method is secondary. The fact that you have chosen a corner stall shower enclosure for your bathroom demonstrates you are not only design conscious but budget savvy too. Corner stall shower enclosures can be a very economical choice.

Living in the cold climate of the United Kingdom, central heating radiators are an essential part of any household. Bathroom radiator designs, however, have come a long way from their bland, cold, purely functional origins. In recent years, however, radiator designers have realised that there is a large consumer demand for radiators that do more than just warm the house, but also compliment the interior decoration of it in surprising, colourful and tasteful ways.

The old fashioned white rectangle radiator has slowly but surely disappeared from the majority of British households, replaced by an almost unending choice of radiators in all colours and many sizes and shapes, including some truly bizarre and memorable ones such as spirals and whorls, and even some that resemble kinds of abstract works of art! This newfound wide variation of designer radiators also means that not only can you have a more aesthetically pleasing and imaginative kind of radiator, but that you can have radiators in different shapes, styles and colours in every room of the house if you so wish, for example children’s rooms can be adorned with designer radiators built in the shape of animals etc.

A bathroom radiator is essential and bathroom radiators come in many styles and colours. The variety of shapes and sizes has enough impact above and beyond mere style, of course – it also means that they can fit into almost any area of the room you wish to have one in. Modern radiators also heat up a lot quicker than the old fashioned models due to their use of materials such as aluminium and stainless steel as heat conductors. Searching through a radiator suppliers website such as UK Bathrooms will give a good idea of what designer radiators are out there and help you to make the perfect choice for your home.

Designer radiators have truly taken the radiator into the 21st century; a designer radiator can add an element of class and sophistication to any room.

Mirror, mirror on the wall. Who’s the fairest of them all? With a designer illuminated mirror in your bathroom, the response to that question just might be, “me”. Illuminated mirrors range in style from basic, backlit mirrors to standalone illuminated mirrors with LED lighting.

When choosing a bathroom mirror, pick one that will complement the décor and hardware – mixer taps, towel rails, and shower accessories – already in your bathroom. There are several designer options available, so it shouldn’t be difficult to find one that fits.

Backlit illuminated mirrors come with multiple squares of light edging the mirror or with a frame of light. These types of mirrors, which come in a variety of sizes, usually come with a pull cord and would work well in a bathroom with a simple, modern décor.

The vertical Lelia Demista illuminated mirror has a single halogen lamp and glass shade at the top of the mirror and is fitted with a Demista heating pad to keep its image clear. The Felix Demista illuminated mirror offers a landscape option, and it has two halogen lamps and glass shades up top. Both have a pull cord.

The Aztec illuminated mirror looks more like a flat-screen TV than your typical bathroom mirror. It sits on a shelf, landscape style, and has bevelled edges. It will stay steam-free, and its LED illumination – tiny lights on the left and right – has a life span of 50,000 hours.

An illuminated mirror serves as a focal point in your bathroom, so be sure to choose one that you won’t tire of looking at over time.

When choosing the perfect bathroom suite, size certainly matters. A large suite in a small room or alternatively a small suite in a large room would not be aesthetically pleasing. The character and period of the home must also be considered as this too will have an effect on the finished look.

Large rooms with high ceilings can carry off vintage style suites, freestanding roll top baths that have tiny feet, and toilets with a high cistern and a long chain flush will certainly look the part in an older style house. Bathroom tiles on the walls and floor, and jardinières with flowing greenery help to finish off the look.

Larger modern style bathrooms are likely to have a Jacuzzi style bath and a separate shower cubicle.  Larger bathrooms can also carry off the ‘his and hers’ style basins. There are many styles to choose from including round glass bowls and square porcelain styles. Good quality taps are also important to complete the look.

If you have a smaller bathroom in an older home you may find that opting for a shower enclosure instead of a bath provides more free room. Enclosures are available in all styles so there will always be something to suit the period of the home.

Small bathrooms in modern homes are easy to shop for, a standard shower enclosure with simple shower doors, possibly with plain glass to give the illusion of a bigger room, and smaller basins in a simple design helps to keep the room unfussy. Minimalism is almost essential in smaller rooms as too much clutter makes the room feel claustrophobic.

Illuminated bathroom mirrors add a chic finishing touch to any bathroom. Since bathrooms are often lacking in natural light, mirrors can actually make the room appear larger and brighter. Of course, the bathroom mirror is where we preen ourselves and therefore we want to ensure that we can see as clearly as possible whether it is night or day. It therefore makes sense, as well as looking elegant, to combine mirrors with inset lighting.

Lamps are actually situated behind the mirrors. On a standard mirror there is silvering behind the glass but this is sandblasted on an illuminated mirror which actually allows the light to shine through the frosted glass at the front.

You will also have a choice to make when selecting an illuminated mirror regarding whether your priority is the standard of the colour rendering provided by the actual mirror or the lamp life contained within the lights. You will also need to consider the size, shape and style of mirror which is best suited to your overall bathroom theme.

One option is to choose an illuminated bathroom mirror with halogen lamps which provides high colour rendering which will give a natural image similar to looking in the mirror in daylight. The halogen lamp life is approximately 2000 hours.

Another option is fluorescent lamps which can last for up to 10,000 hours. However, fluorescent light has, in the past, been considered rather unflattering to the complexion although advances have been made.

The choice you make will depend on your personal preference, budget and style but one thing is for sure – an illuminated mirror will finish off your bathroom to perfection.

When it comes to choosing a shower tray for your bathroom, it is important to look at how much floor space is available. A very compact bathroom will probably need to be fitted with a pentagonal shaped tray if you want to maximise space. This shape gives maximum shower space but takes up minimum area in the bathroom.

A quadrant design with a curved front gives more room in the shower than the octagon but you will need to fit a curved shower door which will usually be a lot more expensive that a conventional flat one.

Rectangular shapes give lots of room and come in different sizes. Squares are available up to about 90 square centimetres in size. Both of these shapes can be fitted almost anywhere you want them.

If you have a bit more space available, a shower tray with a built in area to dry yourself in is a real luxury. It means that you can towel yourself dry without stepping outside the shower and treading water everywhere.

Low level shower trays are recessed into the floor and usually come as rectangles, or squares. If these are tiled up the sides you can get the benefits of having a wet room without the expense of waterproofing the entire bathroom.

Your choice of shower tray will depend very much on the amount of space you have available and on what you are willing to spend. The best way to select the most practical shape and size is to draw a plan of your bathroom and find out exactly how much room you have to position a shower tray. Most bathroom shops will draw a plan for you if you have the measurements.  They will then advise you on the best options for the space you have.

Reducing fees from experts in the building trade by acquiring some of their basic skills is a useful habit to cultivate. If you can manage DIY jobs like plastering, painting and decorating, the chances are that you can manage some simple soldering, too.

You’ll need a plumber’s blowtorch, heat resistant mat, some solder, flux and flux-brush and abrasive wool, along with a pipe-slicer and some files to remove copper burrs. Copper fittings connect lengths of pipe together or make branches, coming in many shapes (elbows, tees, straight connectors, tap connectors) and sizes.

Rub the thin layer of oxide away from the inside of the fitting and the outer surface of the pipe where the fitting will cover it. Unless you do this, the solder won’t take. Next, paint a layer of flux over the cleaned area of pipe, slip on the fitting and add the other length(s) of pipe (all similarly cleaned and fluxed). Set the blow torch to a medium flame – it should hiss vigorously but not roar, and it shouldn’t be ‘floppy’ (or it won’t be hot enough). Straighten a length of solder from the roll and hold in your left hand (if you’re right handed), direct the blowtorch at the middle of the fitting with the other hand, and wait until the flux starts to bubble. Point the flame at the edge of the fitting and lightly caress the joint with the solder – suddenly it’ll melt and seal the connection. Once all ends are soldered, turn the torch off and allow it to cool.

Just because your bathroom may be small and slightly on the dingy side does not mean it has to be uninviting. On the other hand, if you have a massive bathroom you don’t have to make it cold and uninviting either. The goal should be to have a bathroom that is warm and calming regardless of the size.

This does not have to be an expensive or complicated process. There are a few efficient and effective changes and additions you can make to your bathroom that will make an amazing difference.

If you have a drafty house and a bathroom with cold floors one option to consider is a bathroom radiator. Some of these designer radiators even come with a towel rack attachment to keep your towels nice and warm regardless of the outside temperatures. Overall the radiator’s benefit is the same – a nice, warm bathroom that invites you inside and tempts you to never leave.

Another option is to examine your bathroom colour scheme. A bright, colourful bathroom accessory such as a new set of towels or a colourful rug may be all that your bathroom is missing. You can also add a new set of bathroom tiles in a new colour scheme to add some warmth to your bathroom. Be careful not to make the colour scheme too loud and outrageous. You don’t need to redo all the colours; just focus on one aspect.