Oddly shaped or unnaturally shaped bathrooms can be very difficult to furnish, and the best solutions are often made to order.
We asked design experts for bathroom ideas to employ when laying out awkward rooms, including tricky floor shapes, sloping ceilings, and architectural structures that might be worth fixing.
“Often small bathrooms, or just small bathrooms, have the double danger of being awkwardly shaped,” says Jen Ebert, associate editor at Homes & Gardens. “That means the challenge is even bigger.” However, there are some simple measures you can take with your layout to make the most of your space. ”
Jen is the Associate Editor (Digital) at Homes & Gardens online. Before taking this position, she completed various interior design courses at her KLC Design School and worked as an interior writer for 'Ideal Home', 'Living Etc', '25 Beautiful Homes' and 'Country Homes & Interiors'. I was there.
1. Focus on interesting colors and finishes
(Image credit: Design: Carden Cunietti / Photo: Guy Archard)
Depending on the size of the bathroom and the location of windows, doors, and sloping ceilings, will there be sufficient head height for a shower, sufficient wall space, and space to hang bathroom storage units and sanitary products? You may decide on ideas for your bathroom layout, such as: To include a bathtub.
With less layout flexibility, you may be better off focusing your energy on interesting bathroom colors and finishes instead.
Interior designer Eleanora Cunietti of Carden Cunietti added bold accents to her recent project (above). “Following the shape of the room, a freestanding black bath fits snugly across the width and brings it into the center of the room,” she says.
“An open vanity and wall-mounted toilet create the illusion of more space than a typical floor-mounted design.”
Installing windows in the sloping ceiling visually brightens the room, allows light to enter, and saves wall space elsewhere.
2. Choose a wall hanging design
(Image credit: Future/Colin Poole)
“Standard” wall-mounted basins are often too large for awkwardly shaped bathrooms, but smaller models are also available. If you want to wash your face as well as your hands, choose a deeper basin.
Standard toilets can also be too large. Natalie Bird, brand marketing manager for British bus company Roca, said: “The most compact models in terms of projection are wall-mounted designs. Compact frames are only about 3 inches deep, but you should consider a frame that can support toileting and boxing.”
These designs don't just save space; It will make a small bathroom look larger.
3. Build purpose-built storage for your space
(Image credit: Design: Otta Design / Photography: Jonathan Bond Photography)
Good storage keeps surfaces neat, organized and out of sight, improving the sense of space. Bathroom vanities come in a variety of sizes, including shallow ones, corner ones, and wall-mounted ones. You may also prefer to have your furniture custom-made, as Otta Design director Alex Keith chose to do in a recent project.
“This vanity was designed to be wall-to-wall to maximize storage space,” she says. “Both sides are set back so that when you increase the size of the shower screen, it doesn't overwhelm your space and you still have a reasonably sized, easy-to-use sink.” The faucet is wall-mounted rather than deck-mounted. You can also save space by installing it on the ”
Also note the location of the wall-mounted heated towel rack above the vanity for space efficiency.
4. Find a tailored solution
(Image credit: Design: Aflux Designs / Photo: Vigo Jansons)
“To ensure enough space and comfort in the shower room, we recommend a minimum shower tray size of 27 inches wide,” says Amit Malhotra, co-founder, Aflux Designs.
“This provides enough space to get in and out of the shower and open and close the enclosure door.”
Some shower manufacturers offer bespoke solutions that allow you to create shower zones in extra spaces such as recesses.
5. Maximize area with a wet room
(Image credit: Design: West One Bathrooms / Photo: Paul Craig)
Instead of an enclosure, you can also consider a wet room with horizontal access.
“The same bathroom floor tiles are used throughout, which makes the space feel larger,” says Susan Roach, designer of West One Bathrooms, of the bathroom above (and top left). “A single fixed screen eliminates the need for hinges or handles, reducing visual distractions and improving the sense of space.”
6. Invest in a compact bathtub
(Image courtesy of Albion Bath Company)
Bathtubs are usually the largest item in a room, but many manufacturers offer smaller designs. It offers a more “sit-down” style of bathing, but can still provide a surprisingly luxurious experience, especially if it's deep.
“Alternatively, if you're tight on space, you might want to go without a bathtub and instead have a more spacious shower space,” says John Norton, managing director of Bathroom Design Studio London.
7. Combine bathtub and shower
(Image credit: Matthew Williams)
You can put the shower stall on the wall behind the bathtub to save floor space and fit everything you need in the room. Glass instead of solid wood helps visually open up the room and emphasize the sense of space.
“There are many ways to do this,” says editor-in-chief Lucy Searle. house and garden, this largely depends on the shape of your bathroom. If it's wide enough, you can install a simple glass screen along the length of the bathtub, with entrances to the shower at each end. ”
Lucy Searle wrote about interiors, real estate and gardens for over 30 years, starting in the interiors departments of women's magazines before switching to interiors-only titles in the mid-1990s. In 2018, Lucy took on the role of Global Editor-in-Chief for Realhomes.com, where she led the site from a small magazine add-on to a worldwide success. She was asked to repeat her success with Homes & Gardens, where she also took on the role of editor of the 103-year-old UK's oldest interiors magazine. Lucy is a serial renovator and she also owns rental properties in the UK and Europe, so she brings first-hand knowledge to the subjects she oversees.
FAQ
How can I fix a weird bathroom layout?
Fixing an odd bathroom layout is somewhat limited by the plumbing, but assuming you have some freedom in the location of the toilet, for example, you can always change the location of the bathtub, or the enclosure in the case of a shower room. Start by prioritizing. If you can place these, or perhaps the vanity, in the center of the room, often in the middle or under a window, the rest of the layout should fall into place as well.
When designing an unusually shaped bathroom, it is important to always consider functionality. For example, whatever your layout, make sure towel rails are easily accessible in the bathtub or shower, and that the sink and toilet are nearby. Aesthetics is important, but a bathroom must also be practical.
