With the key pieces of bathroom furniture pretty much a necessity, how much flex is there in a bathroom layout? Well, you’d be surprised how much. If you’re planning a bathroom refit, it’s worth taking some time to think about whether your existing layout is actually the best use of space. The locations of things like pipes, windows and doors are certainly a consideration. However, there is flexibility within this so it’s important to explore how you can work within your bathroom structure to get the best layout.
Blank Canvas
Before you start dreaming about walk-in shower cubicles and recessed shelving, you need to understand the realities of the space you’re working with. This means creating your blank canvas. It’s hard to do by just looking at a space, so your first port of call is to create a plan.
Measurements
It’s so important to get your measurements right. Accurate and plentiful measurements are a huge priority for bathroom designers. They understand the impact of accuracy. So measure your room, and measure it again. Take accurate measurements of every dimension in the room, or where exactly the current pipes sit, light fittings are situated, and where doors and windows open to. Include anything in the space that cannot be moved, like beams, eaves, or other structural features.
Plan
Use these measurements to create a scale floor plan with pipework, windows, and doors marked. When you work with a bespoke bathroom designer, they will use room dimensions to create a 3D visualisation of the space. This allows you to accurately experience how different configurations and furniture choices will look and feel in the room. A more simple, but still helpful approach is to create a scale plan on paper. Then create scale paper blocks to represent furniture. Move things around to get a sense of the different options available to you.
Regulations
You will need to comply with specific regulations in terms of ventilation, and electrical and plumbing positioning. Professional bathroom designers have all this knowledge at their fingertips, so you know that a plan provided by us at Stone & Chrome will be fully compliant.
Useable Space
Whether specific pieces of furniture can fit is one thing. How usable the space is, and how well those pieces of furniture can be used is another. In this way, the space around a piece of furniture is as important as the space that it takes up. There are key things to think about and consider in order to assess how usable a planned layout is.
Traffic
The traffic in your bathroom means more than simply the pathways through the room. These are important, yes. However, who uses the bathroom should provide more of a direction. A family bathroom where multiple people might be using the space should have the most possible clearance room around a basin or vanity unit, for example.
Comfort
Using your new bathroom comfortably often comes down to little things. Think about clearance for the toilet position. Or whether there’s enough space to easily get in and out of a shower. What kinds of bathing options suit your lifestyle and habits? If space allows, most people prefer to include a bath and a shower. Is this right for you?
Angles
How and where does the entrance door, windows, and cabinet doors open? Is anything positioned to cause a clash here? Especially things like heated towel rails. After you’ve banged your knuckles a few times, you’ll soon be cursing not taking the time to consider these things at planning stage!
Losing space
It’s important to remember that, although existing pipe and electrical position isn’t always set in stone, it’s worth minimising interventions here if possible. While it’s often possible to box in pipes to enable flexibility for your furniture position, this tends to mean that you lose functional space. This might become critical in smaller bathrooms.
Style and Storage
While a bathroom should clearly include furniture and equipment that is appropriate to this room’s function, two key variables are style and storage. Try not to underestimate how much storage you will need. You may be planning to have an enormous clear out, but having excess storage is preferable to not having enough. Similarly, if you have your heart set on a vintage roll top bath, remember that this will use a greater floor area than a standard tub.
Using Height
Floor to ceiling storage is a growing trend, which keeps bathroom lines clean and clear. The best way to make the most of the height in your bathroom is to use bespoke design solutions.
Integrated Storage
A great way to combine style and functionality is with integrated storage. Vanity units and under basin drawers can be selected to reflect styles from contemporary to traditional. They provide extra storage without taking up extra floor space, and are great for tying in colour and design concepts.
Furniture Choice
As we said, certain bathtub or shower styles use a larger floor area than others. So when you go shopping or looking for inspiration, make sure that you have noted the maximum dimensions that will work in your chosen layout.
Lighting
Your bathroom layout should also dictate where your lighting sources will be positioned. It’s standard to have a general wash from ceiling spotlights. To prevent this lighting from appearing too harsh, you should plan further, more atmospheric and task based lighting. An illuminated mirror is ideal for beauty regimes, while under shelf or recessed colour wash LEDs soften your room and elevate its style. These are details which are harder to add later, so include them from the planning stages.
At Stone & Chrome, we love to find the bathroom layout solutions that will inspire you. We’ll realistically show you how your new room will look so that you can explore new ideas and styles before making a decision. Contact us now to find out how we can think outside the box for your bathroom layout.