How To Design Your Master Bathroom (Part 2)

Sakura Yellow Lustre wallpaper by Little Greene, with some tiles to get the colours right. I actually changed out the ivory colored tile for a medium olive green tile for more impact.

I promised that I would write more about bathroom aesthetics, and here we are!

Generally when we renovate a bathroom we know that it’s going to last a certain length of time. Say 10 or 15 (or more!) years. So it’s a big responsibility, as you know that you are going to live with your choices for a long time - no pressure, but it’s important to get it right!

So, as much as I love color, I have to say that I’m generally more in favor of neutrals, or classical colors, in your bathroom. You will probably regret having your tiles the Pantone color of the year, as it’s just too on trend (sorry Peach Fuzz!), at least for the tile colors on floors and walls. You can definitely play with the paint color though and then bring color into the space with accessories and plants.

Also, bathrooms, and rooms in general are often seen from other rooms (eg. master bedroom) or corridors. Which adds a level of complexity, as not only do you have to like what you choose for the bathroom, but what you choose has to be seen in the perspective of the other rooms which are linked to it.

As an example, for my new apartment, I’m creating a master suite which includes part of a corridor (I’m just adding a door to divide the space), my bedroom, the bathroom and a dressing / laundry room. I have chosen a wallpaper for the bedroom which will be the same for the corridor. The bathroom is reached from the corridor, so when you walk through the door to the suite, you’ll see the wallpaper, then the bathroom further on. 

As always, when designing, I choose the biggest or most important piece first. In the case of my bathroom (and most other bathrooms!), this is the vanity unit. Even though they are very practical pieces, I’ve had enough of the typical vanities they sell here in France. True, you get a lot of storage space, and as they are rectangular, you can slot them in between the wall and the bath or shower. Which is important here in Paris, as space is at a premium, and apartments rarely have space to spare in the bathroom! But for my bathroom, I want something different.

With this in mind, I finally found an unusual, pretty wooden vanity with a dark charcoal stone top. It has rounded ends with rounded cupboard doors and drawers. And also plenty of worktop space to put things down on - usually a big bugbear of mine in bathrooms! In terms of aesthetics, everything has to go with the vanity, as I love it and won’t change it! 

When deciding what to put where in a bathroom, I always try to place the vanity unit opposite the door. There may be space or technical (plumbing) constraints that makes this impractical or even impossible! But I do try to do this, as the vanity is usually the best looking piece in a bathroom, so it gives that ‘wow’ factor right away. Also the mirror above the vanity brings light and makes the space feel bigger. 

In my bathroom there is a window, and there isn’t one in the corridor, so I imagine that the bathroom door will remain open a fair amount to bring light into the space. From the corridor, looking into my bathroom you’ll see the vanity unit, the tile backsplash for the vanity and the mirror. 

Now, the wallpaper in the corridor is pink and cream cherry blossoms with light olive green branches and leaves on a gold background (Sakura, yellow lustre by Little Greene). Which is quite busy, so I need to keep it quite plain in the bathroom - by which I mean no patterns, not too many obvious textures, and colors which go with the Sakura wallpaper. 

As an accent color to the Sakura, I’ve chosen a dark olive green for the baseboards, and perhaps the doors and door frames (the jury is currently still out on that one though!). So the colors in the bathroom have to go with that too….! Wow, this is getting complicated!

I recommend using not more than three principal colors. Start with the biggest surfaces as they have the most visual impact. For the walls, I’ll only put tile where the wall will be splashed with water. Paris has a temperate climate, so I find tile is too cold for large wall surfaces. I’ve chosen a light beige paint for the walls - to keep it light and bright, I find it’s easier to see, apply make up and for men to shave when it’s bright!

For the floor, in order to coordinate with the beige stone floor in the corridor (which I’ve decided to keep), I’ve chosen a light beige stone effect tile in a large format, so that the eye is less distracted by the joints.

And for the wall tile, I’ve found a medium olive green, long rectangular tile, with uneven color - some flecks of lighter and darker color. I prefer tile with subtly varied or uneven color, or a crackled or slightly uneven finish. It avoids having a large block of solid color and adds visual interest without heaviness. 

From the corridor, you’ll see the beige floor, the pretty wood and charcoal stone topped vanity, the mirror and a thin, single strip of the green tile on the wall above the vanity. The bath is to the left, it will be surrounded by green tile, as the shower is over the bath. The green tile will be a good intense color, not a solid block as the green is varied and the surface is slightly uneven. The tile here will also reflect the light from the window.

Yes, I forgot to mention that I visited the apartment again, and I found that the bathroom needs to breathe! I had thought of squeezing too much into it! So in the end, it’ll just be the pretty vanity, the bath and the toilet.

So that’s it! Add some accessories - lots of plants, of course! Nice fluffy towels. And pretty trays to organize bottles and creams. I can’t wait!

Need some help designing your dream bathroom in Paris? Let’s zoom!