Successful bathroom design is about marrying up your visual aspirations with the practicalities of less exciting items such as soil pipes and drainage. Without these key essentials in place, even the most luxurious looking bathroom simply won't work as it should.
But that's not to say it's all dull and boring. Instead, it's simply a case of making sure you tick the right boxes before you add the stylish finishing touches.
And who better to advise on what makes a good bathroom design than those in the know. From start to finish, here are the 9 elements experts say you need to consider to ensure a good bathroom design – every time.
1. Where to start
Chances are, if you're renovating a bathroom it's not just because you don't like how it looks, it's because you also don't like how it works for you. And it's no different when thinking of bathroom ideas for a new self-build.
The key to getting it right? "Think about how you’d like to use it in the future and use that as your starting point," says Barrie Cutchie, design director at BC Designs.
Top of your checklist? Who will use the space. This will fundamentally impact the final choices, as ensuite bathroom ideas, for example, should be very different to the products or layout you pick when considering family bathroom design.
Create a moodboard with the styles and ideas you like, and decide on your key objectives. Are you looking for practicality or a more luxurious feel? Write a brief for your space, even if you're not using a bathroom design professional, and make sure when you've finally picked everything that your design still meets this brief.
Barrie Cutchie founded British bathroom brand, BC Designs in 1999. An award-winning designer who has been at the forefront of bathroom design for over 30 years makes him an expert on getting your bathroom design right.
Getting your bathroom layout right
Getting your bathroom layout right can make or break how you feel when you use the room. Get it wrong and you can end up with all kinds of issues, from lack of circulation space through to ugly pipes on display that could have been hidden.
One of the main things that will influence your layout will be the current or proposed position of your soil pipe as this will dictate where your toilet needs to sit. "Protruding and visible pipes can really spoil the finished design of your bathroom so careful planning of pipework, including the soil pipe, is essential," agrees Barrie Cutchie.
"Depending on the layout of the property and where the existing soil pipes are, this can be an easy or challenging job. Fortunately, modern flexible pipes, different types of toilet and macerators provide plumbers with more options so there is nearly always a solution," he adds.
Once you know the location, you can then start to think about the rest of the room, taking into account the measurements and the amount of items you want to fit in there.
"Even if you plan on hiring a designer, you can start by checking the measurements of your bathroom and making a scale plan," suggests Barrie. "Make sure you include elements that will affect your design, such as window positions and heights, external walls (as this will impact on your bathroom ventilation and drainage) and door openings.
Using a few sheets of graph paper or a home design app, play around with the space, drawing out your bathroom layouts to scale, and don't forget to note alcoves, sloping ceilings or bulkheads. Then add in the main sanitaryware and storage and you'll start to see what may or may not be possible
The best tip for this stage? Understand what clearance spaces you need around the key items to avoid bumping your knees every time you use the loo.
Recommended clearance spaces
Item |
Ideal height or width |
Clearance space |
Bath |
Height 500 - 600mm |
530mm to side |
Basin |
Height 760 - 1190mm |
510mm to front; total span (left to right) 760mm |
Shower |
Width 760mm |
610mm to front |
Toilet (close-coupled) |
Height 595 - 800mm Seat height 390 - 460mm |
760mm around toilet 510mm in front |
Choosing your sanitaryware
Deciding on the right sanitaryware for your bathroom will depend on the size and purpose of the room you're designing. “For a separate shower and bath, plus toilet and basin, you need a bathroom of at least 1.7m x 3m," says Barrie Cutchie. "It might be that you have to compromise on a particular feature, but this doesn't mean dismissing it entirely," he adds.
"If you are set on a freestanding bath, for example, it could be that you are able to maximise space by positioning it under a window or sloping roof, as not many other items work in these spaces."
A full bathroom suite typically comprises shower, bath, toilet and sink(s). However, within each of those products, there's a whole range of options on offer. Walk-in shower or wet room? One sink or two, and so forth.
To help you get started, here are some tips relating to each different item so you can start to assess what is, and isn't possible, when curating your bathroom design
Shower enclosures
When looking at different types of shower enclosures, remember that ones with doors that swing open will require space around them for the door to open, and to allow you in and out. Enclosures with fixed glazed panels may be more suitable for small bathrooms – as will sliding shower doors.
If you're keen to incorporate a wet room into your bathroom design in an existing property, this may depend on there being sufficient space beneath the floorboards to fit hidden pipework. Always check with a professional before you start to avoid extra expense.
You'll also need to think about the best type of shower for your bathroom and some of this will come down to your boiler and water pressure, which we'll come onto cover when looking at bathroom brassware.
Freestanding or fitted bath?
Although the standard bath size is 1700mm x 700mm, there are bigger and smaller sized baths available, which means you will need to decide on the type of bath you prefer.
“Selecting a bath is never just about the shape you like. It affects how the entire bathroom works and how comfortable the room feels day after day," says Keeley Sutcliffe, design manager at BC Designs.
The main things to consider are if you have space for a separate bath and shower, or if you need to consider a shower over the bath instead. Next, Keeley suggests your decision making should be guided by the following:
1. Position
A bath needs clear space around it so you can walk, clean and reach the taps without strain. If it is pushed to one side or boxed in too tightly, the design loses impact and the user experience suffers.
2. Proportion
A bath that is too large overwhelms circulation; one that is too small is rarely enjoyed. Length, depth and back angle determine how supportive it feels, so homeowners should look beyond headline measurements and test the internal shape.
3. Material
This will have a direct impact on performance. Copper and brass warm quickly and maintain water temperature, which makes them especially comfortable in cooler bathrooms, and they develop natural patina that many homeowners value.
Acrylic baths remain popular for standard installations, but do not have the same heat-retention or structural solidity as engineered or metal models. They also aren’t great for anyone looking for a bath with eco credentials as acrylic is classed as single-use plastic.
4. Style
Slipper designs support the upper body and suit long soaks. Roll-top styles are traditional but can sit comfortably in contemporary spaces when paired with streamlined brassware. For modern schemes, thinner rims and clean linear silhouettes help keep the room feeling open. Homeowners who prefer built-in baths often choose them for the ledges they provide, but the boxing must be detailed correctly to avoid warping or movement over time.
The best bathroom basins
Your bathroom sink will be one of the most used items in your bathroom design so it's important not to skimp on the size. In a busy home, adding two is also a good solution – particularly in a family bathroom.
Wall-mounted basins, or semi-pedestal designs, can give the illusion of more floor space and also allow the basin to be set at a height that works well for you and your family. Full-pedestal basins tend to be cheaper and give a more traditional look.
You'll also need to decide if you want one that sits on the countertop or is recessed inside. Perhaps you prefer a more moulded finish or are keen to incorporate a more vintage-style bathroom idea into the mix, by upcycling a cupboard into a vanity unit, for example.
Keeley Sutcliffe is Brand Manager for award-winning British bathroom designers, BC Designs. Since 1999 the award winning company has been leading the way with its thoughtful, innovative and considered bathroom designs.
Shop for bathroom basins
This simple but stylish modern rectangular bathroom sink will sit neatly on top of a vanity unit
This ceramic basin would pair beautifully with gold brassware and wood-effect finishes in your bathroom design
Understand what's involved when selecting brassware
While your sanitaryware choices are important in your overall bathroom design, your choice of brassware impacts looks and performance in equal measures.
“Brassware is only as good as the system feeding it. Before looking at finishes or style, homeowners need to understand the water pressure available in the house and whether the current boiler and pipework can deliver the performance they expect," explains Keeley Sutcliffe.
"For example, a tap or shower valve designed for high pressure will never operate properly on a gravity-fed system, no matter how well it is installed. Flow will be weak, temperature may fluctuate and the user experience will fall far short of what the brassware is engineered to provide," she says.
"The first step is identifying the existing setup and the type of boiler you have, whether this is a combi boiler, an unvented cylinder, or a gravity system with a cold-water tank," advises Keeley, as this will affect the type of fitting you choose.
"Combi boilers can supply good pressure for taps and showers, but only if they are appropriately sized for the property. Large rainfall heads demand a generous flow rate, and some older combis simply cannot sustain this," she warns.
"Unvented cylinders usually offer stronger, more consistent pressure, making them well suited to contemporary brassware and multi-outlet showers, while gravity-fed systems often need a pump to achieve reliable performance, particularly if the shower is positioned at a higher level than the tank," she adds.
"Pairing low-pressure brassware with a voluminous bath is one of the most common errors we see," continues Keeley.
Shower valves also require particular attention, making it important for you to understand that the product you choose matches the system you have.
And finally, the finish you choose needs to match the overall theme of your bathroom design. Will you pick chrome or do you prefer a more luxurious finish in the form of matt gold or shiny brass? Or perhaps you would prefer black designs for a more modern bathroom scheme.
Including bathroom storage in your design
While your bathroom storage ideas will vary depending on the size and purpose of your bathroom, "storage is often the element that determines whether a bathroom feels calm or chaotic, yet it is usually considered far too late in the design process," says Richard Eaton, design manager at Tissino.
"The most successful schemes begin by understanding what actually needs to be stored and how the room is used day to day. Once those patterns are clear, the layout can be shaped around the points of daily interaction – the basin, the shower and the spaces where people naturally pause," he suggests.
"The key is to build storage into the architecture rather than treating it as an add-on. The most effective storage often comes from spaces that would otherwise be wasted. Voids beside cisterns, unused corners and areas within stud walls can be repurposed into slim pull-outs, or discreet cupboards that hold everyday items without interrupting the architecture," says Richard.
"Even small ledges created by boxing in pipework can be designed to support decorative objects or folded towels when handled thoughtfully.
"The balance comes from proportion and purpose," he adds. "When homeowners think early about what needs to be hidden, what should remain easily accessible and how each piece of furniture affects the visual weight of the room, the bathroom feels more composed and easier to live with."
Shop for extra bathroom storage
This tall bathroom storage unit comes in a choice of mint or cream and includes shelves, a mirror and drawers.
This towel stool provides not only a place to store or hang towels, but also somewhere to sit.
This pebble-shaped mirrored cabinet comes fully assembled ready to mount on your bathroom wall.
Richard is senior design manager at Tissino and is responsible for designing many of Tissino's market-leading bathroom products. His speciality areas are showers, baths and heating, and he enjoys nothing more than developing products that people enjoy using on a daily basis, while making sure they look the part.
Bathroom flooring options
There are several questions to ask yourself when looking at bathroom flooring ideas. Is my choice water resistant, easy to clean and maintain, will it be warm underfoot and is it non-slip?
Good bathroom flooring options include natural stone tiles, porcelain and ceramic, rubber flooring, vinyl and linoleum and even engineered timber – providing it has been properly acclimatised.
But, one of the biggest bathroom flooring mistakes is not ensuring that the sub floor is in good condition. When remodelling a bathroom, you may find that the existing floor requires some preparation. Timber floor joists should be sound and capable of withstanding the weight of new sanitaryware, or heavy stone tiles.
This might mean the joists need to be reinforced with extra timber and noggins. Adding in extra noggins overcomes the potential for large-format stone tiles to crack. Using an anti-fracture or uncoupling matting underneath new floor tiles is also a good idea if you are concerned about tiles cracking due to movement within the floor. Uneven concrete floors can be remedied with a self-levelling compound.
"A successful wet room, for example, relies on what happens long before the tiles are seen," confirms Grazzie Wilson, creative director at Ca'Pietra.
"Waterproofing, substrate preparation and the drainage layout determine how the space performs over its lifetime. Once these technical foundations are secure, the tile becomes the expressive layer – a finish that can be simple, sculptural or richly detailed, depending on the character the homeowner wants to bring into the room.
"Large-format tiles can create a sense of continuity, but only when the build-up allows for accurate alignment around corners, channels and edges," she explains.
"Maintenance should always be part of the decision-making process, when designing a bathroom," Grazzie continues. "Porcelain offers ease because of its density and resistance to daily wear, while stone develops character as it ages. In hard-water areas, homeowners may prefer denser surfaces that resist limescale, particularly near showers and baths where splash patterns are more consistent."
And finally, with bathroom flooring, or wet-room flooring, slip resistance is key.
“Slip resistance is one of the most important yet least understood parts of bathroom tile specification," explains Grazzie. "Every floor tile is tested to determine how it behaves when wet, and those results guide where it should be used.
"In domestic bathrooms, the most common measure is the ‘R’ rating, assessed using a ramp test. It runs from R9 to R13. R9 indicates the least slip resistance and is generally suited to dry areas.
"R10 offers a reliable level of grip for standard bathroom floors where the space may be wet underfoot but is not subject to constant water flow," she says. "R11 and above are used where surface water is present more regularly, including some wet rooms, entries to showers and areas where the slope directs water across the tile."
Grazzie Wilson is head of creative at tile company Ca'Pietra and is known for her creative and stylish approach. Offering consistently stylish and innovative solutions to tile and bathroom design has made her one of the most well-known and admired names in the industry.
Heating a bathroom
When considering your choices for heating a bathroom, radiators are an easy and cost-effective solution, while underfloor heating is the perfect partner for hard, tiled floors - and is perfect in wet rooms and walk-in showers where it speeds up the drying out process of the floor.
But, if you're looking at the best bathroom radiators you will need to decide whether you want it to double up as a towel rail, or whether you will have a separate heated towel warmer.
This may also depend on how much heat you need to effectively warm the space. Working out what your space needs is covered in more detail in our article on what are BTUs.
A heated towel rail is a must if you want warm, dry towels – even in rooms with underfloor heating. It is also wise to fit an electric or dual-fuel towel rail that can be turned on even when your heating is off. Make sure you also consider your towel storage ideas to see if you can find a solution that lets you combine the two.
Try this Milano Artle Dual Fuel Anthracite Straight Heated Towel Rail from The Big Bathroom Shop, if a dual option is best for you.
Picking bathroom wall finishes
Although bathroom tiles are the traditional – and still most popular – way of protecting the walls from water in a bathroom, these are not the only option.
If you do choose to tile the walls but are on a budget, consider tiling only the areas most exposed to water – such as the area around the shower and bath. There are also plenty of options when it comes to bathroom splashbacks that could help add an additional feature to your overall design.
Bathroom panelling ideas are another option in your bathroom design. Wall panels, such as this Nes Home PVC Wall Panel Carrara Gold Marble panel from B&Q, are an increasingly sought-after method of protecting walls, being easy-to-clean and avoiding the need to find out the best ways for cleaning grout.
Another popular alternative to tiles is to fix glass or perspex panels over a painted or wallpapered wall, although just using wallpaper in a bathroom is a viable option if you choose the right product, application method and location for your bathroom wallpaper ideas.
Bathroom paint
If, on the other hand, you want to combine tiles with painted walls, it's essential to choose a specialised paint product. The best bathroom paint should allow for breathable walls, preventing moisture from the air becoming trapped and inhibiting the growth of mould and damp in the walls.
Calming, natural colours work particularly well for your bathroom colour choices. From green bathroom ideas through to water-reminiscent blues, the right choice of colour will help foster a relaxing feel in your space.
Getting your bathroom lighting right
Once you know the layout of the bathroom, you can plan your bathroom lighting ideas, taking into account any features you want to highlight, as well as how much natural light enters the room.
A combination of downlighters (for general background lighting), task lighting (bathroom mirrors with lights, for example) and accent lighting (such as spots directed at features of note) works well. You might also consider some feature lighting set into the floor around the bath.
When it comes to Building Regulations, the bathroom is split into zones and the Ingress Protection (IP) rating of the lighting you choose should reflect the zone that it will be used in.
Zone 0, for example, is the closed to a water source, such as within a shower enclosure. B&Q have an extensive range of bathroom lighting if you're looking for some ideas to start your scheme.
Shop for bathroom lights
A simple chrome and exposed bulb bathroom wall light.
A semi-flush ceiling light with ribbed glass shade.
A multi-bulb ceiling light with stylish brass finish.
FAQS
Do I need a bathroom designer?
Although it's entirely possible to design your bathroom yourself, it's important not to underestimate the value of speaking to a professional who lives and breathes bathrooms every day.
“A bathroom retailer can be worth their weight in gold as they have a wealth of knowledge on how to make elements work together, as well as maximise the layout to its full potential," advises Barrie Cutchie.
They will also have the insight on any of the latest bathroom innovations should you be looking to add a touch of tech to your final design.
Can I fit my own bathroom?
Many people choose to fit all or part of their bathrooms on a DIY basis. Jobs that are easy to undertake without the help of the professionals include removal of the old sanitaryware and tiles. Decorating jobs such as painting and tiling are also popular DIY jobs and doing these tasks yourself will save on your bathroom costs.
Certain aspects of plumbing and electrical work will need to be carried out by a professional, whilst other jobs can be done by a proficient DIYer. Some bathroom fitters are skilled in every aspect of bathroom installation including plumbing, electrics and tiling.
Of course, successful bathroom design isn't just about knowing what to do, it's also about knowing what not to do. Barry Cutchie's final tips on bathroom design mistakes?
Number one, if layout permits, avoid your toilet becoming the focal point in your bathroom. “One thing we always advise not to do is place the toilet in direct view of the door leading into the bathroom," he concludes. "This can often be the first thing people can see and you can make a much better impression with a beautifully designed vanity unit that showcases the design of the room and makes it much more than a purely functional space.
And finally? Make sure you keep a watchful eye on your budget. “A big issue we also see is people overspending," he warns. "It is actually easy to do, but is one of the major pitfalls when it comes to having a new bathroom. To ensure you don’t run over your budgeted bathroom renovation costs we always recommend adding an extra 20 per cent to your budget as a contingency – just in case."
