45 bathroom ideas to inspire your next big project
Browse these stylish bathrooms for a wealth of design inspiration, from contrasting grout to colourful terrazzo
Whether you want your bathroom to be your own relaxing home spa or a joyful space designed to energise your morning routine, we have inspiration aplenty. From geometric tiles to floor-to-ceiling marble, cool terrazzo and even wallpaper – specifically designed to survive in wet conditions, of course – there's something to suit every space.
Planning a top-to-toe renovation? Try our kitchen inspiration gallery, or take a tour through 20 living room looks we love.
Burgundy bathing
The interiors world’s recent love affair with oxblood has seen it used mainly as a lacquered finish, an approach that interiors studio Atelier Steve has taken with the shower room in this Parisian home – for similarly glossy tiles, try Bisazza’s ‘Colours 20’ range. ateliersteve.com
Electric inspiration
Colour inspiration can strike in different ways, but the tale of how Barcelona-based H30 Architects came across this palette is unique: it was informed by the sparks from lightning that hit this former barn long before work began. It’s a theme that follows through into the shape of the bespoke-cut mirror in the bathroom. h3o.es
Black is back
Selecting matte-brick tiles from Sydney-based supplier Di Lorenzo instead of full-on gloss lends this compact bathroom in Birchgrove House, Australian architecture firm Carter Williamson’s latest project, a softly moody appearance that draws attention to the unique pill-shaped windows. carterwilliamson.com
The crafted bathroom
Respecting craftsmanship was a key concern for designer Mónica Calderón and architect Ezequiel Farca when planning this bathroom in Casa Escuela, their home and creative retreat in Mérida, Mexico. The shower cubicle is made from concrete blocks, while the basin is an antique trough that horses used to drink from.
Defined by colour
In Altu’s redesign of a flat in Brussels’ Brusilia tower, the burgundy colour seeps out of this contemporary ensuite even when the aluminium door that separates it from the large bedroom is closed. The semi-circle of lime-plaster floor makes an iron-rich red statement against the cream carpet. altu.space
Industrial bathing
As the creative director of Dior Homme and Fendi, British designer Kim Jones is the definition of achingly cool. In his London home, designed by Gianni Botsford Architects, the bathroom is a symphony of polished steel and concrete. It’s a look that Jones has described as ‘a bit serial killer’ – and drop-dead gorgeous. giannibotsford.com
The body positive bathroom
Marble bathrooms are usually all about the luxury, but less about the frivolity. That’s why Obiekty Studio enlisted the help of Manchester-based artist Amy Victoria Marsh and local Polish tile brand Trufle Mozaiki to produce Running Naked Lady, a body-positive design that runs across an entire wall of this stone wetroom. obiekty.studio
Raise expectations
Used to section off an ensuite within the architecture of a larger open-plan space, burgundy tiles clad walls and floor, turning the raised platform that this bath sits upon into a theatrical moment within the otherwise neutral surrounds of Belgian studio Objekt’s Penthouse T project. objektarchitecten.be
The high-gloss bathroom
Traditional logic would have it that you should avoid darker colours when space and light is limited, but that rulebook was thrown out by Spanish studio Febrero, whose recent H59 project in Madrid served as an excuse to experiment with high-gloss black tiles – a choice that disguises this room’s dimensions. febrerostudio.com
Not your basic basin
Freestanding elements allow the traditional bathroom layout to be radically reimagined. When it came to building an installation for tap and shower brand Axor, Madrid-based Plutarco and Estudio Reciente knew the power of this approach, selecting a marble double basin as a monolithic centrepiece. plutarco.design; estudioreciente.es
Blue steel
Inexpensive compared with stone, metal can make a big impression on a budget. For the bathroom in a gelateria in Odesa, Ukrainian studio Sivak + Partners clad the walls and vanity in steel sheets, while the basin is actually a kitchen sink by Grohe. sivakpartners.com
Japanese bathing
The aesthetic of Japanese bathing traditions brings some much-needed calm to this bathroom in a Victorian terrace house in London – the work of Tuckey Design Studio’s Dan Stilwell and Ryuta Hirayama. The oforu tub sits beneath the glow of the skylight, fed by a bespoke, raw iroko-wood tap that will soften over time. tuckeydesign.com
Flintstones style
The giant boulder that accompanies those who shower in this Portuguese home designed by Andringa Studio was more than just an aesthetic choice – the entire property is built around it, like a stone held snugly within a peach. It’s an approach director Rita Andringa refers to as ‘organic architecture’. andringastudio.com
Pretty in pink
Sometimes, when designing a bathroom, you are presented with a gift. For Lebanese design studio David/Nicolas, who masterminded the redesign of Gio Ponti’s beautiful Casa di Fantasia in Milan, it was this petal-pink bath and shower tray, original creations by Ponti himself. The studio added to the existing artistry by hanging a canvas by Letizia Chianese. davidandnicolas.com
Blue sky thinking
Why can’t a bathroom be a genuine work of art? Miklós Kiss, otherwise known as Kissmiklos, thinks it definitely can. ‘Pop & Roll’, his public toilet in Budapest (with an attached gallery and shop), shows how creativity and humour can transform loos into masterpieces constructed from simple, pixel-like mosaic tiles. kissmiklos.com
Peachy clean
Designing for homeowners who wanted to mimic the feel of a stay in a boutique hotel, Australian design studio YSG devised a scheme that was high on quality and low on frippery. The vanity unit in this compact powder room makes a big impact, seemingly carved from a single block of Tiberio marble. ysg.studio
Pastel pick-me-up
There’s a detectable whiff of Wes Anderson about the palette of this bathroom by Gülmen Interiors. Situated in an old house in the town of Celaliye, Istanbul, the scheme accentuates the charm of a round portal window by following the wood trim across the dado rail and trim of the arched mirror. The bespoke timber vanity unit’s handles and the playful pattern of the tiles also echo this architectural detail. gulmeninteriors.com
Natural refinement
Three materials – solid oak, antiqued steel and dramatically veined marble – are combined with consummate precision in the design of this bathroom for a private villa in Bali. The success of the look is down to the sharp lines orchestrated by interior designer Polina Ditsman, who has arranged the natural elements like a well-tailored suit, not a button (or soap bottle) out of place. polinaditsman.com
Monolithic marvel
Bathroom fittings can be works of art in their own right, like this sculptural vanity unit by architect Crina Arghirescu Rogard. Boldly bichromatic, the piece is made of a single block of black marquina marble cantilevered on a foot carved from polished white marble. The same two stones have also been used to clad the large cabinet above. crina-architecture.com
Two-tone timber
Marquetry is a rare choice for the bathroom – a space usually reserved for ceramic and marble – but the natural grain and softly chamfered waves and edges of this bespoke vanity unit in a project by Polish interior-design studio Craft of Interior lend a warmth and softness to the otherwise contemporary scheme. Dark stain has been applied to sections of the timber to add a decorative stripe. c-o-i.pl
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