R.K. & Associates
Design & General Contracting
Design Tips for Turning a "Good" Bath Into A "Great" Bath...Without Breaking the Bank
Showcase bathrooms are all the rage today. Home design magazines highlight
pictorial
spreads full of glossy color photos of big, beautiful master baths
with marble floors, marble counters, gold-plated sinks and faucets, showers that
produce water from every direction and floors that are slightly warm to the
touch. These baths have features that you never knew existed but now you cannot
live without. Here's a reality check: These showcases can become very big and
very expensive.
Start by analyzing the space
The next time you are looking at a picture of the
bathroom you've always wanted, try figuring out how big that bathroom is. A
typical tub deck is at least 3-1/2 ft. wide and almost 7 ft. long. A two-sink
counter is almost certainly 6 ft. long and 2 ft. deep. The shower is probably 4
ft. square, and the space in the middle, with the chair and the small dressing
table, is around 5 ft. wide and 8 ft. long. Overall, you
can estimate that this room is 11 ft. by 17 ft. To get a
sense of how big this space is, start measuring some other rooms in your house.
This dream bathroom likely will be the biggest room in your house. It is
probably bigger than most of your bedrooms, a bit narrower than your dining room
and about the size of your eat-in kitchen.
Now do a quick check on the cost of fixtures and materials. Check
the price of a cast-iron whirlpool tub (about $3,000) and the incredibly
beautiful sink faucet you see in that magazine picture (it easily can cost
$900). These costs are on top of the marble that ranges from $70 to $80 per sq.
ft. or molded tiles that cost $25 per tile. A luxuriously appointed large master
bathroom, built in an existing space, will end up costing $30,000 to $40,000, as
well as taking up about one-third of your second floor.
Of course, there's the other extreme: the practical, minimally sized bathroom that has everything you need but nothing you want. This room might be the master bathroom you have now: one sink and a tub/shower combination with the toilet next to it. It is only 35 ft. sq., has inexpensive but functional fixtures and 4x4 tile, and serves its purpose to the bare minimum.
So how do you strike a balance? Where is the middle ground that satisfies
your need to be pampered but doesn't involve the creation of the bathroom that
ate your bank account and house?
First, you need to remember the essential functions and elements
of the master bathroom. They are washing, bathing and using the toilet. But
instead of fulfilling just these obvious and minimal requirements, the master
bathroom can be an extension of your personal living quarters, part of your
bedroom.
The master suite includes a sleeping area, a dressing area and
the bath. In much the same way that the kitchen has become more than just a room
to prepare meals and more of a place that accommodates the gathering of the
whole family, the master bath has become more than just a bathroom in recent
years. How do you make this room a pleasant place to start the day without
breaking the bank? Here are six suggestions that can help you to plan that
perfect bath.
Six Bathroom Design Tips
1. The bath and the bedroom need a comfortable connection
Consider the bathroom in the context of your entire
master suite and bedroom floor. The relationship of master bedroom, dressing
area, bathroom and entry into the suite from the hallway should be the foremost
planning principle. In both schemes, the baths are not the biggest spaces; the
bedrooms are. They are big enough but not too big compared with the other
spaces. They are adequate and comfortable without being opulent.
2. Designate spaces for specific functions
Design a specific space for each of the most essential
functions. For washing, design a contained counter area or a wall against which
a sculptural pedestal sink can be displayed. The same holds true for the tub,
shower and toilet area. Decide if you really need a separate tub and shower or
if a combined/shower tub, or even just a shower, will serve your purposes.
Decide if the toilet needs its own room or whether it can be part of the open
bathroom. Where fixtures are more artistic, keep some wall space clear so that
they can shine.
Try to control growth. If the bath has to grow to accommodate
function, keep it to a minimum. A toilet with its own room does require more
space. If space is limited, incorporating a well-designed toilet as a beautiful
element in the bathroom itself can help to make the bath seem bigger and airier.
3. Make your bathroom a room
Don't line the fixtures against the wall. Instead, organize different
functional areas around a central space, and give this space a roomlike feel.
Decide on the minimal space you need to move around in, and try not to let that
grow.
4. The bath should be an extension of the bedroom
When the bathroom door is open, which it usually is, what do
you see from the bedroom? Do you look at a beautiful tub in an arched alcove
with a small window facing your thoughtfully manicured backyard? Or do you see a
toilet with the seat up? Conversely, carefully consider what you see from the
bathroom. While lying in the tub enjoying a good soak, is your main focus the
hamper full of dirty clothes, or is it across the bedroom out the window? Use
the bathroom to make the bedroom bigger and vice versa.
5. Use compatible fixtures and materials
Carefully select fixtures and materials in keeping with your tastes and with the essential character of the house. If you live in a 1920s bungalow, stick with a tile that reflects that period, or use tongue-and-groove beadboard that picks up other features of the home. But don't make the bathroom the most nicely appointed room in the home. Although it is a place where you spend a lot of time, you entertain there only infrequently. Hire a designer sympathetic to your tastes and to your home. Don't believe expensive means better. Many beautiful, inexpensive light fixtures, faucets and plumbing fixtures can be used in lieu of the most expensive.
If you fall in love with a particular fixture outside your price
range, ask yourself why you like it. Once you identify the qualities that
attract you, you can take them to a design professional who can help you to find
a similar fixture in your price range.
6. Keep it in proper proportion
Always consider that your design response is proportional to
the problem. If you have decided that your tub is a little too small, don't take
away from the master bedroom to make the tub bigger. When you are done planning,
look over your bathroom plan. It should be smaller than your bedroom and,
ideally, smaller than your dining room. Although you should enjoy being in the
bathroom, it should not be the place where you stay all day because the rest of
the house is so depressing by comparison.
Don't let the bath take over; maintain balance in a master suite
by keeping the bath smaller than the bedroom. It should be a pleasant space to
be in, but the bathroom shouldn't put the rest of the house to shame. If your
available space for the master suite is 15 ft. by 30 ft., don't make the two
rooms equal in size.
If you follow these steps, you will have a master
bathroom that reflects your style, that enhances your house and that gives you a
reason to get up in the morning.
Excerpts from Fine Homebuilding Magazine/Kitchen & Baths 2002
