Bathrooms are an integral part of any household and are considered to be a very important part of any home. Whether bathrooms are cupboard-like or palatial, there is a huge range of features that can be applied to bathrooms to make them work well for you and the family.

Choosing the right bathroom furniture, basin taps, bath taps or bathroom sink are all vital aspects of bringing your bathroom to life. It may be that you are looking to fit a shower cubicle or a shower enclosure in your bathroom. You may be looking to add that touch of class with designer radiators or high quality bathroom accessories. Or you may be going for a complete overhaul in order to bring your bathroom up to a high standard.

Whatever your aim, improving bathrooms does not only lift the character of the household, but can add significant value to your home, so this DIY task is most certainly worth undertaking. Adding shower cubicles or shower enclosures to your bathroom is recommended in order to save water and energy, and adding bathroom radiators can go a long way in helping improving the energy efficiency of your bathroom.

Bathrooms nowadays can be complemented by a myriad of decorative basin taps, bath taps, bathroom furniture, bathroom accessories and even the bathroom mirror can become a focal feature for all modern day bathrooms.
So if you are looking to improve the look and value of your home the bathroom is a  good place to start as the design possibilities are endless.

In the past, bathrooms were considered places of pure functionality. However, in more recent times the bathroom has assumed a place as one of the most important rooms in the home. Indeed, apart from the kitchen, the bathroom is probably the place where we spend most of our time.

No wonder then, that more and more attention is being paid to making the bathroom design a refuge from the trials of modern day living.

The rise in popularity of the bathroom spa exemplifies this trend. House owners are increasingly utilising any spare space in the house to enlarge the bathroom and turn it into a luxury area in which to thoroughly relax after a busy day. Indeed, many homeowners view a refurbished bathroom as an investment and one that will pay a good return if and when the property is sold.

Interior designers and bathroom appliance manufacturers have been quick to spot the trend. Virtually every day, new appliances are launched onto the market. Innovations such as the steam sauna, state-of-the-art bathroom sinks and toilets, baths in every shape and hue, underfloor bathroom heating and invisible ventilation systems, have all made their appearance and been quickly absorbed into the mainstream.

In essence, the vision is to turn the once humble bathroom into a luxurious spa. Where once you would only encounter such opulence in a 5-star hotel, new technology and design has completely transformed the way we use and see the bathroom. Today, homeowners from all walks of life have been quick to embrace the trend.

Giving your bathroom a thorough refurbishment need not cost the earth. In fact, for around £75, you can freshen up even the most jaded room and all it takes is a little paint and some inexpensive DIY supplies.

Firstly, take a look around the bathroom. Flooring and plumbing tend to be costly to replace, so try to live with them until you have a little more money in your wallet.

Apart from the bath, wall colour is perhaps the first thing people notice in a bathroom, so try to contrast both. For a soft, romantic atmosphere use pastels, such as pale yellow or fuchsia or strong bold colours like cobalt blue. Perhaps you might consider a monochrome look, with bamboo or rattan to soften the harshness. Whichever colour you choose, be sure to use an eggshell finish. It repels moisture and is easy to clean.

Take a good look at your bathroom accessories. Markets are a great place to pick up interesting glassware or ceramic items. These make a huge difference and easily double up as toothbrush holders or soap dishes.

Also have a search around your home. The chances are that somewhere in the back of a cupboard is an interesting vase or glass container. Any basket or box can be used to store towels and toilet rolls or how about an old bedside table? Perfect for an impromptu vanity unit. Just make sure it is eye-catching. Why not paint it to make a standout feature?

Finally, have a look for tiles that are being sold off cheaply at your local hardware shop. These could provide an inexpensive and chic way of cladding the bath and allow you to create your own stunning patterns and design.

Adding bathroom cabinets are the easiest and most effective way of increasing floor space in your bathroom. However, many homeowners seem reluctant to take on the work themselves, perhaps reasoning that they stand to spoil or damage the bathroom walls if they make a mistake.

This need not be the case; simply following a few basic rules will make installation cost-effective and incident-free.

The first thing to remember is that there are different bathroom cabinets for different uses. Choosing which is the right one for your bathroom is by far the most important consideration.

Firstly, determine exactly where you want to place the cabinet. Then mark off the area. Using wall studs rather than nails is a sensible choice, as you can never be sure just how heavy your cabinet might become and nails bend easily under weight.

Make sure everything is level. Once you have driven the screws in, there is little margin for error. Having to remove the bathroom cabinet to realign screws is frustrating and time-consuming.

Position your cabinet on the screws and hold. Having a friend to assist you at this point is a good idea. Working alone, it is impossible for you to make sure, for certain, that everything is straight.

Really that is all there is to it. Now, all that remains is to decide on a colour to complement the rest of the bathroom furniture. If you decide to repaint, think of the money you have just saved by not employing a handyman to install your cabinet.

When faced with the range of bath taps on offer it can be hard to choose the right one that will suit your bathroom. More modern-style bath taps are easily the most popular on the market, but there will only be a certain few that will be a suitable choice for your suite.

Firstly, you must decide whether you want a single-bloc mixer (one tap providing hot and cold water) or the standard two-tap set. Also becoming a common sight in the latest modern bathroom suites are wall-mounted bath taps that will provide a more sleek finish and will save space around your bath.

The majority of modern bath taps come in a chrome finish, with over-arching taps and helix handles a popular combination. If you do not have a power-shower installed in your bathroom, there will be plenty of tap-shower mixers on offer, but, of course, these will come at an extra price.

For traditional bathroom suites, bath tap styles tend to be categorized by the time periods from which they are designed, such as Edwardian and Victorian. It is well worth your while researching the style of your current bathroom furniture and accessories to see what bath taps will complement the current setting.

Also an important factor to take into consideration is the style of your basin taps. It is best to go for a complete match with the bath taps but this will not always b e possible if you wish to use antique items.

Designing traditional bathroom suites can often be harder than putting together a more modern style and finding the right basin taps, showers and bathroom accessories to suit your theme won’t be as easy.

The best place to start is often with the colour scheme you are going to choose. The majority of traditional bathrooms will have a white ceramic bath, toilet and bathroom sink, so it is often recommended to choose a colour for your tiles or walls that will give some contrast.

In Victorian-style bathrooms, darker colours tend to be the more common choice when it comes to bathroom furniture, and if you can also have stained wooden floors it will give the prefect finish to this period design. Obviously, it will always be better to have the room as bright as possible, so a light shade for the walls or tiling will be best. An Edwardian style bathroom will be slightly easier to recreate, as there will be more opportunity to use modern colours and themes. Bright blues and creams are some of the popular colours for this style of bathroom.

Of course, traditional bathroom suites can also include vintage designs from the 1920’s through to the 1960’s, which will come with their own unique colour schemes. But before making any decision, it will be best to browse through different bathroom showrooms to see what colours they combine with each design. Having the wrong colour scheme for your period bathroom will mean it will never look complete.

The Imperial furniture collection reflects the company’s core values, namely Imperial’s undying passion for traditional forms of craftsmanship. Their line of artisan bathroom furniture is all hand-crafted in the United Kingdom using ancient artisan techniques, handed down through the generations, and solid, high-quality woods and wood veneers. Imperial ensures that each piece is made for rigorous use in everyday life and guaranteed to serve individuals and families for years to come. Moreover, the timeless beauty of this furniture will ensure its enduring fashion and appeal.

Imperial’s North Shore line features white cabinetry and oak accents and tops giving the collection a timeless feel. The Cuda Metal Weave has a much more industrial feel, merging blacks, whites, and slate grey metal accents. Cuda Wood is, perhaps, the most solidly natural of all the lines. Dominated by oak-colour wood and leather accents, each piece in this line seems best suited to rustic retreats and those urban dwellers fantasizing about their returns to such places.

The Linea line is composed of light wood and airy, open cabinetry. Like the Cuda Metal Weave, the Linea line incorporates metal panels into its end panels, uniquely fusing the natural and the industrial in an appealing and even artistic way. The Esteem line achieves a similar effect, but a darker grained wood lends this line an almost Asian sensibility.

Imperial also has a diverse range of bathtub panels, ranging from the Deco-esque Linea to the geometrical, metal-wood-and-black of the Esteem to the simple organic quality of the Shaker.

The proper bathroom accessories can really help tie your newly remodelled or newly designed bathroom together. Moreover, the right cleaning brushes, soap dishes, shower organizers, and toilet roll holders can accentuate the elegant functionality of your bathroom. Imperial Bathrooms understands consumers’ needs for various sorts of bathroom accessories and provides them with items whose styles range from the historical to the contemporary. Using Imperial Bathrooms accessories to accent your Imperial fixtures is an effective way to lend your home lavatory an extraordinary sensibility.

With its sensible lines, the Imperial Rondine line is practical and versatile and uses ceramic and chrome to create truly inspiring designs. This line includes standard bathroom accoutrements including a free-standing toilet brush and a wall mounted toilet roll holder, soap dish and tumbler, towel rail, glass shelf, and robe hook.

The materials making up the Linari line are incredibly diverse. Stained wood, frosted glass, and polished chrome all fuse to make one incredibly diverse, albeit harmonized, design statement. This line includes all the aforementioned products.

The Istia line uses decadent, chrome scrolls to accent traditional porcelain and smooth chrome shafts. It includes all the standards along with the addition of a freestanding six inch mirror.

Those wanting to include more understated accessories in their bathrooms can do no better than the Henley line. Composed of clear glass and either chrome or antique gold finishes, the Henley line includes design standards like hooks, rails, and a soap dish.