Read Before Remodeling: 4 Common Bathroom Design Mistakes
Home design is both an art and a science, and for a truly wonderful remodeling project you need to have an eye for both practical and aesthetic considerations. Many homeowners or designers lack one or the other, and fall into a few common traps, especially when it comes to bathroom remodels. Here are a few tips to help you avoid these mistakes on your next project!
- Don’t Ignore Ventilation
Ventilation is one of those things we rarely think about and often only notice when it goes wrong, yet it should be at the top of any bathroom designer’s mind. Bathroom ventilation is about more than unpleasant odors—if the moisture that collects on the walls of the shower, ceiling, mirror, and floor can’t properly escape, you’re going to have a nasty mold or mildew situation on your hands. Many homeowners aim for a water-tight bathroom, especially when they’re working with stone and tiling, but carefully-directed, quiet ventilation is actually crucial. Make sure your designer sizes your fan properly, chooses something quiet, and then make sure you maintain it!
- Vanity Lighting has Changed
When lighting their bathroom, many homeowners will opt for a single light above the mirror as the primary source of vanity task lighting. We all know how important excellent bathroom lighting is for our daily grooming and hygiene rituals, but overhead, downward-facing lighting will actually cast unflattering and unhelpful shadows across the face. We recommend choosing vertical lighting on either side of the mirror for the best possible illumination.
- Don’t Forget About Storage
When designing a bathroom, people typically think about the fixtures first, but once you’ve plotted out the location of your sink, vanity, toilet, shower, and possibly more, do you still have room for towels, robes, cleaning products, hair accessories, etcetera? You’re going to be much happier with a simple linen cabinet than a whirlpool tub—don’t let your remodel run out of space for the things you actually need!
- Natural Light
Sometimes the single best thing you can do for a bathroom is add more natural light. If your bathroom is dim, dark, and uninviting, expanding or adding windows could be the best use of your money. If a window is impossible, ask your designer about adding a skylight. Also, a window in the shower (at either eye level or with opaque glass, of course) is a great way of adding light and life to the dimmest corner of the room.
At HomeStyling Design, we bring a skillful and experienced eye to the custom design of your project. We would love to help bring both art and science to your bathroom remodel—contact us today to talk more about