The centre piece of any bathroom is the bath itself so when it comes to designing a new one – or redesigning an existing one – it is worth considering the style of bath you want. It will guide the theme of the bathroom, the style and even the colour.

There are many styles of bath from vintage to modern, corner to double-ended so there is plenty of choice to suit the most choosy of designer! Let’s look at some examples and what sort of bathroom they would suit best.

Remember, you want your bathroom to look good but you also want it to be practical and usable, so it is worth thinking about the material your bath will be made from. You basically have three choices in this area; cast iron, pressed steel or acrylic.

Cast iron suits vintage style bathrooms but is very heavy and expensive. You may need to reinforce floors but the cost can be worth it for a truly authentic look. Because cast iron baths are clad in enamel they are very hard wearing and will last for years.

Pressed steel is a cheaper, lighter option and although it is also clad in enamel it comes in a much wider range of colours. More shapes and styles are available too, as it is easier to work with. This could be an option for those on a budget looking for the authentic feel.

Finally, you can choose an acrylic bath. Acrylic is hugely versatile and can be moulded into almost any shape, comes in almost any colour and as it is the lightest of the available materials you can choose a much bigger bath than you might be able to with cast iron.

Now on with the potential design choices…

Those going for an opulent style, with a vintage feel especially, would do well to consider choosing a stand alone, claw footed cast iron bath. As has been said already, this style of bath has a limited range of designs due to its weight, but they are large, beautiful looking and scratch and stain resistant. Taps could be brass effect or even a cast iron look to complete the picture.

As these baths are predominantly white (though an off-white is also possible) it’ll be a clean, functional centrepiece to your vintage bathroom.

A more modern look would suit an acrylic bath, perhaps a large corner one with stainless steel taps and a well moulded exterior. As the choice of colours is extensive you can really have fun with this and let it contrast with your overall decor or fit right in, matching it to your chosen wall and / or floor colours.

Between these two extremes there is a whole world of design options available to you for your bath. Before you go spending a fortune on a particular bath, however, it is worth spending time checking the look and layout of your bathroom design using 3D CAD bathroom design software.

There are a number of free tools online or you can use a professional package, often available to use from your bathroom supplier.

CAD bathroom software is a very powerful tool that will save you both time and money in that it allows you to design and see, in full 3D and colour, what your finished room will look like, including the fixtures, fittings, floor and wall coverings.

Whatever you decide, consider making the bath the centrepiece and design your bathroom around it for a great effect.

Author Bio: Ian Grainger is writing on behalf of Nexus Design Software, developers of bespoke 3D CAD bathroom design software.

Category: Home Management
Keywords: bathroom design, baths, interior design, home improvement