When you choose to remodel a part of your home, you commit to a set of semi-permanent, or at least until your next remodel, choices that you’ll be stuck with for the next couple of years. You’ll be seeing your design choices daily, feel the comfort or the discomfort brought by the materials you chose as you use the room, and see the reaction of other members of your household and visitors who use it as well. The same can be said for your bathroom. Your remodel can be as extreme as stripping off everything to just switching up simple things like your shower curtain and refurbishing your bathroom vanity.
Your bathroom’s design, vibe, and materials affect not just you, but everyone around you as well so it is best to take into account the long-term effects of the themes, materials, etc. you chose with regards to the functionality for everyday use of your household, the durability of your remodeling and pleasantness of your chosen design aesthetic and how your household members and visitors will appreciate it. With this, let us help you out by giving you a few do’s and don’ts as you plan your next bathroom remodel.
1. Stick To A Theme
While your household’s bathroom or bathrooms are arguably the most functional room in the house, this is because a bathroom is rarely used for leisure and is more for our body’s needs, doesn’t mean that you just throw any thought of artistry and aesthetic out of the window, no. With your bathroom, the perfect way to make going to the bathroom, which we have established is a need, as a pleasant experience for the user is to make sure your bathroom is functional AND aesthetically pleasing. This is where choosing a theme comes in.
Make sure that everything you buy and install in your bathroom coordinates with one another to create a theme. Modeling your bathroom to stick to a theme gives your bathroom a homey and welcoming vibe that makes its users feel more comfortable doing their business. It may not seem like it, but making sure that your bathroom is pleasant to the eyes lifts the mood and the experience of your household members and visitors. Themes can be anywhere from rustic, minimalistic, industrial, and other concepts to give the vibe you want – so remember, before purchasing anything, decide on a theme and you’re good to go!
2. Ensure The Integrity Of Your Bathroom Fixtures And Replace Them When Needed
Bathroom fixtures are the appliances and materials you buy that you install in a bathroom for a specific purpose. Basic bathroom fixtures include your toilet, shower, sink, and plumbing. Naturally, all the fixtures I mentioned are the main reason why we go to the bathroom in the first place, because we use these fixtures to go about our body’s business and needs. This is why it only makes sense that your bathroom’s fixtures should be the top priority when you remodel your bathroom.
Before doing anything else like putting in purely decorative fixtures, designing your theme, make sure first that all the necessary fixtures in your bathroom are working properly, that their functional integrity has not yet degraded, basically to see if it’s not damaged. If you see that you have damaged or subpar working fixtures, replace them immediately! Trust us, once you make sure all your fixtures are working to their optimal capacity, you’ll thank us as it makes your entire bathroom’s durability last longer than you would expect.
One thing to remember is, don’t be shy if you’re now knowledgeable enough about these fixtures! There are people who specialize in looking into your fixtures and your plumbing so just think of it as an investment and hire trustworthy professionals to inspect your bathroom and your fixtures, determine their integrity, and follow your recommendations, it’ll be so worth it in the long run.
Bath and nature: Modern bathroom design and visualization by Yousef Sattari / View Studio
3. Natural Light Is Good Light
Your bathroom most often than not is sure to be the most poorly-ventilated room in your house – and that’s alright, bathrooms are typically designed this way. It is even why it has become the norm for bathrooms in commercial spaces to have exhaust fans and other means to stimulate ventilation installed. With this, your bathroom’s damp, dark environment proves to be a thriving location for all kinds of bacteria and living organisms, this is where natural lighting saves the day.
Permanent installations like putting in a bathroom skylight or increasing the number of windows not only give your bathroom the aesthetic view that it needs but also allow a lot of natural light to come into your bathroom and decrease the damp and dark environment that organisms and bacteria thrive it. It will make your bathroom a healthier place as it is where every single one of your family and visitors goes to clean up. Natural light is good light – remember that no amount of lightbulbs or other forms of artificial light can give the benefits that natural light gives, so if your bathroom is located in a part of your house where it is possible to remodel to allow more natural light to go in, then go for it.
4. Invest In Running Water Near Your Toilet – YES A Bidet!
While western households typically show split aversion when it comes to having running water near a toilet, meaning it’s about a 50-50 chance that when you visit your friend’s house that when you go to their bathroom you’ll see a bidet (or not), the healthiest option is to actually invest in installing a bidet within arm’s reach to your toilet. Bidets were made to make you taking your number twos a pleasant and convenient experience as you are able to clean yourself up quickly and properly BUT, one has to remember that you actually need cleaning anytime you use the toilet, even if it’s a number one, number two or just changing a pad or tampon – using a little water to wash your intimate areas allow your lower front and back parts to stay clean and protected. These areas of your bodies are one of the most susceptible body parts when it comes to infections and diseases so treat your body like a temple and invest in running water near your toilet.
Bidets come in many shapes and forms so if your preference is not having a bidet that’s obvious, you can have one installed directly in the toilet or you could opt for the traditional bidet that acts like a small shower hose clipped to the wall within the arm’s length of your toilet. Whatever your preference is, there is a bidet design out there for you so make sure you prioritize having running water near your toilet.
5. Ensure Your Bathroom Smells Nice
One thing that we have grudgingly accepted when we use bathrooms in our house and when we go out – it stinks! Bathrooms for both men and women tend to stink especially if there is not enough ventilation because of the fact that the things that come out of our bodies aren’t exactly the most fragrant specimens. It is normal for our numbers one and two to smell unpleasant so there’s really nothing to be ashamed about. However, it still doesn’t feel nice when the smell lingers in the bathroom and you worry about the next user smelling the bathroom and knowing it was you now is it?
This is where fresheners designed for your bathroom come in! With a long-range of available products from classic air fresheners, candles to even the more traditional option to keep incensed burning in your bathroom, there are tons of different ways to make sure your bathroom smells nice all the time. The fragrance from these products helps eradicate unpleasant smells faster by infusing the room with stronger pleasant smells – this will do the trick and have your bathroom smelling nice all the time! Just be mindful of your household member’s preference when it comes to fragrance – don’t pick scents that are too strong that it hurts the nose, opt for calmer and cooler smelling fragrances, and give your bathroom the cool and fragrant effect.
Remodeling your bathroom may seem like a perfect fun way to pass the time as life continues on while we are in the middle of a world pandemic, but we must never disregard the needed functions of a bathroom. Your bathroom is probably the only room that everyone in your household and every single one of your visitors will use and frequent, which is why it deserves your full attention when making your remodeling choices.
Stick to the five tips stated above to achieve not only an aesthetically durable bathroom but a functional one as well – it will surely make your household members and visitors feel at home and as comfortable as they can possibly be as they go about their business and give them a healthier experience as you take the necessary precautions to make your bathroom a hostile environment for unhealthy bacteria and living organisms. Think of your bathroom as the most important room in your house, give it your full attention and you’ll be conquering this year with the most amazing bathroom your house has ever known!
