Beautiful Bathrooms that aren’t white

As more high-density developments continue to pop up with a standard form of design, there has been an understandable desire by homeowners, renovators and designers alike to create bathroom designs that engage the eye and differentiate a space from any ubiquitous design trends that have jumped on the development bandwagon. That is why so many people are shirking white walls and white baths for a variety of textures, materials, geometries and pallets in search for a bathroom retreat that reveals something of who they are, and what they want to communicate through design.

Whether you have been playing with the idea of renovating your bathroom or are already knee-deep in swatches, go beyond just selecting a few bathroom supplies and creating another off-the-rack bathroom and instead draw some inspiration from 2018 bathroom trends and ditch the white for some of the below palettes and materials.

can still have elements of white in your bathroom but completely steal

the attention of guests by making the most of a feature wall. The above

colour blocking works by using the white timber ceiling and tiled walls

to frame the rudimentary house-shape of the shower tiles, which are

given further dimensional detail with the square inset and shower

screen. Not only is the bathroom’s shape and geometry made obvious

through this colour blocking, but the white also acts to brighten what

is a dark shade of Tuscan yellow.

Monochrome bathroom designs continue to maintain their popularity as they allow designers to use white rather than have it act as a passive canvas. Your imagination is your only limit as far as the patterns you choose to make, enabling you to channel a range of traditional design eras and philosophies without worrying about colours clashing.

Charcoal, timber and metals, such as brass or copper, are enriched with the use of a detailed design that looks like it would be comfortable in a Turkish bazaar as much as on the wall of this engaging bathroom design.

Recycled darkwoods can be a superb textural choice for walls, especially when used like above in play with the natural surrounds outside a house. Darkwoods work especially well in the Australian landscape but should be used with minimalist and thin-lined bathroom fittings as it can quickly become busy and clunky.

The above bathroom design is being increasingly seen in modern bathrooms as customers wish to use alternative materials and palettes to just white walls and tiles, but don’t want to sacrifice on a feeling of space and light in their bathroom. The variety of light blue shades in the above tiling helps to soften the feature wall’s effect and bring out the white seen in the bathroom fittings.

You can still have a Scandinavian-inspired bathroom without having it look like it has come with assembly instructions straight from IKEA. Committing to a minimalist look as above gives you the freedom to play around with the bathroom fittings, but it works best when there is an equal level of commitment to these as there is to the wooden panels.

This look is based on a London design that was made popular in traditional early 20th century clubs and even underground subway stations. If you are looking for bathroom supplies in Melbourne and want to tap into what is an opulent and confident look, simply mentioning the words ‘subway tiles’ will usually get you going in the right direction. These sorts of designs are for bold personalities that know exactly what they want. Metallic accessories and tapware compliment this look perfectly.

Greek style mosaics are becoming as popular in bathroom designs as provincial french tiling is becoming in kitchen splashbacks. Blues are traditionally used when blocked against bright whites, to reflect the palettes made so famous by the small towns dotted across the Greek islands.

Harking back to a more Georgian English mentality, off-green plain walls (not tiled) are used to great effect with a variety of metals and timbers but require both effective accent and atmosphere lighting as well as strong natural light during the day to pull the look off.

A nod to Chanel, this is an impressive use of colour as well as matte-black grid lines but runs the risk of being compromised by a single toothbrush, let alone the realities of a modern bathroom. A less heavy stroke weight on the black lines could open the room up to allow a greater use of indoor plants and storage solutions.

Cook & Bathe differentiates itself among other bathroom suppliers in Melbourne as it doesn’t passively sell bathroom supplies, but engages with customers through the entire process of creating new bathrooms and kitchens, from the design phase right through to installation. Head to the Cook & Bathe website to view their product range, or visit their showrooms in Flemington or Fawkner.