Bathroom trends for 2012
While every bathroom should be designed according to your individual needs and personality, when re-designing or installing a new bathroom it helps to look at the latest trends and incorporate elements that are efficient, space saving, timeless in their design and work towards giving you a better bathroom.
For 2012 design experts predict that more eco-friendly materials will be used in bathrooms, with soft lines and natural materials being foremost. We're still taking design cues from bathrooms with a more Japanese Zen approach, with a restricted colour palette and modern, minimalist design.
Modular free-standing bathroom furniture remains a popular choice, but instead of cutting down more trees, new designs incorporate eco-friendly materials such as plywood and bamboo. With the introduction of water-resistant BisonBord V313, making affordable furniture for a bathroom is now within the reach of my DIY enthusiasts.
Another way of bring green technology into the bathroom is to upcycle furniture such as bureaus, sideboards and cupboards as practical bathroom furniture as an alternative to buying new. This ties in with the popularity of Shabby Chic furniture as an alternative trend.
The soothing, natural, bath trend is coming through the wood-grain ceramic or porcelain tile. Glass tile will also gain popularity, but recycled glass tile is even more eco-friendly.
Earth tones of pale blue and green, ivory and warm shades of white are definitely a must for anyone wanting to create a retreat.
Concrete and weathered wood, and stone finishes - whether real or faux - are definitely hot for 2012.
Overall design will be modern rather than traditional as homeowners move towards simple, more natural design lines.
Bamboo is definitely a sustainable material that we are going to be seeing more often in bathrooms, whether for furniture or for floors. Having installed a bamboo floor and bamboo bathroom cabinets some months back, bamboo has proven itself beyond my expectations.
On the fittings side, while large, soaking tubs will always have a place in the bathroom, showers are replacing the traditional tub and the emphasis is on showers that utilise water-wise technology.
New shower designs include all-in-one shower units that feature rounded or surround style glass doors to visually create a spacious feel for small bathrooms.
However, the popularity of freestanding baths continues to grow and new designs incorporate green, eco-friendly materials.
Rather than tiling walls, there is a growing movement towards cladding bathroom walls, or finishing in natural cement-based finishes.
On the lighting front, many consumers are looking at ways to make the bathroom brighter and more eco-friendly - with plenty of natural lighting combined with energy efficient lighting sources.
