Latest Designer Bathroom Ideas and How To Guides for your Home

Bathroom cabinets and bathroom furniture go a long way in establishing the look and function of your washroom.  Homeowners looking to save time and money on the job often undertake the task themselves.  Here are some important factors to keep in mind if you are planning a do-it-yourself bathroom cabinet installation.

Plan to have plumbing and wiring done first if necessary, then cabinets.  Flooring should be put in after the bathroom cabinets have been installed.

The first bathroom cabinet you install must be level and plumb in every direction.  All the other bathroom furniture will be aligned to this first cabinet, so a flush placement is crucial. If you plan to install a corner cabinet, place this piece first. There’s a greater chance that you’ll run out of room for each unit if you work from the outside of the room inward. Mount cabinets on smooth, clean walls.  Locate wall studs to help secure top cabinets, especially if these will be used to store heavy items. 

As installation progresses, you may need to compensate for uneven flooring or wall surfaces.  Small pieces of wood are very useful for this function; simply tap them into place to fill gaps beneath and behind cabinets.  For serious defects you may need to use a scribe rail, a longer piece of wood that can be custom moulded to fit the wall. Always be sure to screw cabinets securely into the mounting wall. Screws should penetrate wall studs by at least three centimetres.

Taking the time to install bathroom furniture properly will ensure safety and serviceability.

The bathroom may seem like an insignificant room in the house, but when you start to evaluate bathroom accessories and the accompanying price tags suddenly its significance becomes clear. The number of items available to restore or fix-up your bathroom is quite staggering and the prices associated with each item can be daunting.

However, this does not have to be the case. There are many ways you can restore your bathroom without using all your savings. For example:

Clean the room thoroughly: The two key aspects in your bathroom are the shower cubicle and the toilet. If they are covered in grime and stains your bathroom appears to be on the shabby side. You can use lemon juice, a scrubber and a bucket of water to eliminate mildew and mould from the shower and bath. For the toilet, use white vinegar to eat away the stains and discolouration.

Minor Adjustments: There is no need to redo your entire bathroom. A minor adjustment can have a major impact and give your bathroom that restored look. Check out the bathroom accessories or shower accessories section at your local hardware store and instead of buying the whole section focus on one thing such as a new bathroom mirror or new bathroom tiles. Fixing the tiles or installing the mirror while adding a new shower curtain, rug or bathroom cabinet can provide your bathroom with that extra shine and make it look like new.

If you are considering selling your home in the near future, taking a good look at areas of the house that could do with improvement is a definite priority.

Near the top of the list will surely be the bathroom. As most people are now aware, the bathroom, along with the kitchen, is the most used room in the house. Simply put, this means that if your bathroom is not up to the mark you will lose money on your house. Conversely, presenting a beautifully finished bathroom will add to the resale value of your property. It is therefore a sure fire investment opportunity. 

A generally accepted fact is that a second bathroom automatically increases the value of your property. This is particularly true if you have a family home. Parents are often not keen on sharing a bathroom with their children and vice versa. If the main bedroom is large enough or adjoins a smaller room, creating an en suite bathroom is a very useful bargaining tool.

If this is not possible, improving the existing bathroom is another very sound ploy. Do not be afraid to spend money. Purchasing a state-of-the-art shower unit with combination showerheads is bound to impress potential buyers. Installing a bidet is also worth considering.

Consider if there is space enough for a double sink unit. Increasingly, both partners work and a double washbasin allows a couple to use the bathroom at the same time, saving time and increasing efficiency.

For those households with small children, bath time can be a trying affair and as they get a little older and a little more independent, this can turn into a real source of worry. Perhaps the ideal advice when designing a bathroom in these circumstances is to try to put yourself in a child’s shoes. What are the potential hazards? How is the bathroom to be a safe as well as enjoyable place? What does a toddler need to encourage him or her to use the bathroom without harm?

Perhaps the most obvious improvement, though often the most overlooked, is to have a stool next to the bath. This allows the child to climb in without clambering and slipping on the wet tiles. A bath mat is essential. Vinyl floor tiles are also a good idea.

As they get a little older, a drawer could be reserved especially for the toddler to keep towels and pyjamas in.

Similarly, try to purchase a shower curtain with little pockets for toys. Ideally this should be of a breathable material to reduce the possibility of mould.

As we are constantly warned, children can drown in a very small depth of water. Oddly, parents assume this refers only to the bath, but toilets are also a major hazard. A lock or clip fitted to the seat is a vital safety device, particularly when the child is still very young.

On the subject of locks, make absolutely certain that all the cupboards, particularly the medicine cabinet, are secured at all times.

Thanks to a highly competitive market, there is now a wide range of bathroom designs that offer a wealth of different bath taps to suit people on a budget. But if you are designing your own bathroom from scratch and are looking to reduce the cost, you will find that the majority of budget bath taps will be based on modern styles. Traditional style bath taps, as well as other bathroom accessories, usually come at a higher price, and anything at the cheaper end the market is usually not of good quality.

When it comes to finish, chrome is easily the most common in the budget range, whereas other finishes, such as brass, will be more expensive. Fortunately, simplistic and modern designs are currently the trend, and it is also relatively cheap to manufacture these styles.

If you are stuck for space, and perhaps also want to save money on labour cost, a single bloc mixer (where both the hot and cold water is connected to one tap) will be ideal. However, if your bath has already been fitted with separate taps, it would be worth your while sticking to this style, as the cost of a new bath could be quite high.

Another way that you can save money when designing your bathroom is to have a showerhead connected to your bath taps. Not only will this save you installing a power shower, but you can also forego the cost of having a shower enclosure installed.