A luxurious bathroom means different things to different people; for some, it might be acres of gleaming, veined marble, while others might prefer a claw-footed bath on original wooden floorboards. The design element of making a bathroom feel luxurious is entirely subjective, but there are certain non-negotiables that every bathroom, from modern to country, can benefit from when it comes to elevating the space.
Let's start with the things you touch, which are always integral to making any room feel more luxurious. In the case of the bathroom, these will be taps, towels, toilet fixtures and knobs. “I find that good taps really make a difference, while you can get away with it with a cheaper bath, loo and basin,” says Rita Konig. In use every day, multiple times a day, these higher-quality ‘touchable’ fixtures are more likely to last longer – they are likely better-made than their cheaper counterparts and therefore worth the investment. Anna Haines agrees: "Taps are where you can elevate your space and it really makes a difference," she says. "Drummonds and The Water Monopoly both produce elegant designs in a variety of finishes. The Water Monopoly Aged Brass finish is a particular favourite for taps. It sits well with the odd antique piece and has a charming faded glamour feel to it." Also worth splashing out on, if budget allows, are towel rails, as well as light switches, handles and hooks – just make sure they match the colourways of the room's larger fixtures for a sense of cohesion and that considered, luxury look.
For a more easily accessible and affordable fix, do try to buy the best towels you can afford. Every bathroom has them, we use them at least once a day, but multiple times when we're talking about hand towels. Are fluffy, Egyptian cotton towels that little luxury needed after a shower? Absolutely they are – but it doesn't stop there. There are few things more unpleasant than grabbing said fluffy towel only to find it's still wet. Even in the warmer days of summer it's not a pleasant experience, and it's positively ghastly in the depths of January. How to ensure the damp towel mishap never befalls you? The trusty towel rack. Investing in the best towel rail you can find will make a huge impact on your bathing routine and ensures that you always have dry towels, making it one of the most essential pieces in a family bathroom. This could come in the form of a heated radiator towel rail or a lovely antique wooden one – but it is essential as no one wants to see a towel drying over a doorway or hanging limply from a peg on the wall. If you do go for a heated towel rail, it's Decorating 101 to make sure it can be turned on and off independently of your central heating – warm towels are a year round must, after all.
On the more expensive side, consider the shower itself. A steam shower is certainly one way to hugely improve things. London-based interior designer Deniz Bayern of Studio Kaya has done just that in her north-west London terrace, carving out space in the bathroom for a steam shower when she renovated five years ago. ‘I’d always wanted one and we use it almost everyday in winter,’ says Deniz. It was, of course, more costly than a standard shower – not just the steam function itself, but also the additional ventilation required and the built-in tiled bench – but for Deniz it was well worth the extra effort.‘With some essential oils, it has a spa-like quality,’ she explains. ‘It’s also very helpful when you have a cold.’
On the subject of decoration, we quickly reach a point that many interior designers can agree on: a luxurious bathroom is one that is decorated like any other room in the house, complete with personal elements. Joanna Plant explains that that means “proper furniture, curtains, pictures, and very probably wallpaper.” All these elements make what Rita calls “a highly individual, fabulous bathroom.” She continues, “I like to use wallpaper, hang pictures, have a little chair if space allows and almost always use a mirror I have bought in an antiques market rather than a bathroom supply shop.” Many designers also create bathroom vanities using antique chests or washstands, which can bring tons of personality to a room. Nicola Harding is in full support and recommends thinking about “how you can make your bathroom personal to you – perhaps with art, books or a riotous mix of family photos… Find something that makes you smile and points your mind in the direction you want it to travel.” Nicola's bathroom, for example, features a framed poem gifted to her by her parents. Small, meaningful objects like these are usually priceless, bound to spark a little bit of joy during every visit to the bathroom.
Fabrics may not be the first thing you think about for a bathroom, but they can make a huge difference. One thing we've noticed more and more in bathrooms this year is designers creating pretty shower curtains. It's a simple move that has a big impact and adding a frill to a shower curtain that's made from a lovely fabric instantly elevates it to another level. Lonika Chande has always done very covetable curtains and says “it’s an opportunity to add fabric and potentially colour to what typically can be a more utilitarian space in the home. You can have a lot of fun with a shower curtain, using contrast trims or backing fabrics.” Lonika does this by “fitting a shower curtain liner – which is water repellent – behind a cotton fabric curtain of your choice, making the curtain long lasting and easy to maintain”. Kate Guinness stresses that “the liner goes inside the bath, and the fabric outside,” which avoids the ugly issue of your shower curtain sitting tucked inside the bath. All you then need to do is replace the inner liner when it gets a little shabby or the first flares of mould appear. Just as effective at adding a level of prettiness to a bathroom is the sink curtain, which many designers use instead of a boxy vanity.
As for lighting, it is crucial to avoid anything harsh and clinical, which will instantly kill the mood. It can be hard to achieve soft lighting in bathroom – and you need to have both as there are times when you need the full glare – but if you are renovating a bathroom from scratch, always consider wall lights as well as ceiling lights. They can cast a softer light which is more flattering, especially when you are looking in the mirror and offer the chance of adding something pretty, or traditional, or folky – whatever works with your bathroom style. Our guide to bathroom lights (chosen by interior designers) has some good ideas. If you don't have that option, bringing a temporary light into the bathroom can be helpful. Some essential oil diffusers actually have lights within them, such as the ESPA Diffuser Pod, or consider a wireless lamp that you can pop on a high shelf or windowsill away from any water that might splash on it.
A last word – and perhaps an odd one given that they are so integral to a bathroom – hide the loo, if you can. In what has become a well-known quote from Nina Campbell's dos and don'ts of decorating, the renowned interior designer says “I hate it when a loo can be seen from outside the bathroom. Set it around the corner from the door so that passers-by are not confronted by it.” It's of course not achievable for everyone but hiding a loo really does make a bathroom feel more luxurious – and it's worth noting that most five star hotels have separate loos from bathrooms. Angus and Charlotte Buchanan added a pair of tiled ‘cabins’ in their bathroom (above), housing the shower in one and loo in the other, and if you have the luxury of more space, the Paris-based interior designer Marianne Evennou likes to put up a stud wall to “create a hidden nook for the loo”, which makes it feel completely separate from the other facilities in the bathroom.
