You don’t have to check into a resort hotel or spa for an ultimate bath experience. A lot of homeowners want bath designs inspired by luxury hotels or resorts they’ve visited. While most people think that means expensive fixtures, the fact is the design approach is just as important. Here are six strategies for creating that five-star experience.
Color and Materials
Light, warm colors used in upscal hotels are perfect for residential bathrooms. Everyone looks better in those color schemes. In fact, striving for a warm color scheme in the bathroom is one reason natural stone flooring is commonly selected in spa and resorts. Honed and waxed marble slabs are also desired. But because marble requires some maintenance, a low-maintenance option can be spa-inspired porcelain tile that looks like limestone and is laid with minimal grout lines.
Lose the Clutter
Many designers create a hotel spa look for their clients by emphasizing uncluttered lines. Under-counter sinks, a soaking tub and a separate shower with frameless glass are preferred. It’s a contemporary look, but it also is warm and welcoming to come home to.
Light It Up
Natural light is an important part of the high-end spa and hotel bath experience. If you have a large windown in your bathroom, that is ultimately the best scenario, but if you don’t have a large window, opt for window treatments that allow for privacy when you need it, but can easily be opened for the optimum natural light exposure.
Count to Five
Emulating a hotel bathroom at home requires a five-fixture design: toilet, tub, shower and two sinks on one vanity. And because cleanliness is so important, most hotels select wall-hung toilets. They look cleaner, but you can take it a step further and place your toilet in its own enclosed space, separating it with a frosted-glass door, much like the shower is separated from the bath.
Water Works
A new trend is the multi-head massaging shower experience found in resorts and spas. The more jets, the better. This is like a “car-wash effect” and it is in. If you want the ultimate showering experience with multiple heads and settings that can be controlled from your smart phone, we recommend the U by Moen Shower.
Build in Warmth
Heated floors are gaining popularity in residential bathrooms as well. Customizing the installation will allow you to enjoy heat in every area of the bath, including around the toilet and even in the shower.
Assembled together, these six elements provide you with a place to feel pampered at the end of the day. Ultimately, people like the feeling of “getting away”. Your master bathroom is your retreat and can become your very own pampered escape.
