Bathroom_Design

And where’s it going?

We asked industry experts for their current views and
future forecasts for baths, basins, showers and taps.
And look at the changing concept of the bathroom

Over the past decade, industry experts have witnessed hotel design ushering high-pressure water into UK bathrooms, thereby making Continental brassware designs accessible. ‘Just as racing car technology filters down to family cars, and ideas from the catering industry are incorporated into domestic kitchens, innovations and aesthetic trends in the hotel bathroom are a huge influence on our bathrooms at home,’ says Laurence Pidgeon of Alternative Plans.

Exotic hotels and spas first convinced homeowners that the bathroom could be a sanctuary and not just a cleansing zone. Our eyes have been opened to the luxuries of twin bowls on limestone slabs, and our ears to discreet ceiling speakers that pipe in music. And one of the latest trends – the bathroom as a living space – also began in contemporary hotel design.

‘Hotels have been at the vanguard in blurring boundaries between bathrooms, bedrooms and living rooms, with many locating free-standing tubs in the bedrooms of their top-rate guest rooms in order to create an indulgent and relaxing environment,’ says Iain McKinlay of Hansgrohe.
Italian architect and designer Antonio Citterio, who designed the Axor Citterio bathroom collection for Hansgrohe, has also addressed the bathroom environment. ‘He’s devised various layouts that treat the space as a single entity, and he uses transparent, full-height screening to create a seamless transition between bathing, living and sleeping,’ explains Iain.

This avant-garde vision will not suit many, but a compromise is offered. ‘Bathrooms will continue to have a greater prominence in the home: property developers will recognise this by planning larger family bathrooms,’ believes Liz Rae, chief designer at Colourwash. ‘The bathroom will remain a room for relaxing, and a living environment will be created by bringing in living elements such as loungers and media systems.’