Having the right bathroom decorations makes the difference between a bland bathroom, and one that actually shows how much you care about the way that your house looks. Remember, your bathroom decorations show off your tastes as much or more as the layout of the rest of your house, so you should really do all that you can to make sure that everything is looking just splendid.

Of course, bathroom decorations are not just a matter of finding any picture and putting it up. Sure, having pictures as part of bathroom decoration is a good idea, but you really need to have just the right taste to get the look that you need for your bathroom. Whatever you put up has to be soothing, yet also show your good taste.

Truly the most obvious of all bathroom decorating ideas – paint a fresh, clean color. If you’re a resourceful and energetic homeowner, you might want to tackle repainting the bathroom in a weekend. The job itself really won’t take too much time, and the results will be worthwhile. If you’re adventurous, try one of the many faux finishes that will make your walls really distinctive. And, if your walls are in good shape, it’s not hard to stencil a simple border or design around the baseboard, mirror, ceiling, or window. This project will add a pattern to the room and help to either introduce a theme or enhance a theme that you’ve chosen. Choose colors for the stencils that will catch the eye. Also, consider a contrasting color for the baseboard.

Paper the walls. Wallpapering is not a job for the faint at heart; but a small room like a bathroom is a good place to start. Choose paper that is made to withstand humid areas and pick the appropriate paste. You’ll need to shop for and order the paper well ahead of time. If the whole bathroom seems like too big a job, paper on one wall will really update and transform the space. Add a border paper. Border wallpapers are sold by the yard and can be custom-ordered or purchased from the in-stock section of the home store. A border 6″ to 12″ below the ceiling, around a mirror, above wall tile, or bordering a doorway adds interest. When choosing a border to go all the way around a mirror, be sure you select one that looks good upside down. And either hand-cut around a pattern or mitre the corners for a professional look.

A very basic bathroom suite is a toilet, a washbasin and a bathtub with matching taps and handles. However, there are more appliances, such as bidets, and extra items like bathroom cabinets, sauna room, mirrors and storage solutions for the toiletries and other bathroom paraphernalia. For a long time, if you wanted to enjoy the benefits of a sauna, you had to find a local gym or other facility that offered such luxuries. Many people often did this, as there are several health advantages associated with such comforts. In more recent years, however, it has become quite possible to add a sauna, or a sauna alternative to your own home.

While it is true that adding a sauna can be a major undertaking, it might not be as difficult as you think. Today, there are many different types of home kits available. These sauna kits come pre-fabricated, and are equipped with detailed instructions outlining what you need to know before you begin, and how to construct the actual sauna. The more difficult part is doing your homework before you begin.

Bathroom cabinets play a major role in maintaining an organized bathroom. Add a small piece of furniture. Even if your bathroom is small, you could probably find room for a small shelf or chest. Extra attention is paid to details such as outlets inside tower cabinets for hair dryers, electric shavers or other electrical appliances, as well as ironing boards and hampers built inside closets. Also, top cabinets hide bathroom clutter while offering access to everything. The side cabinet, from the floor to hip level, is one of the latest trends. It comes with a washbasin and shelves to store the daily toiletries like the toothbrush, toothpaste, soaps and more. In the cabinet one can store towels and other linens.

The design of any bathroom will always include bathroom storage. One can find a combination sink/vanity for extra storage. A great bathroom design idea is that one can never have too much bathroom storage! One has to use the wall space wisely, with shelves or cabinets over the commode or almost anywhere in the bathroom. One can consider using corner shelves, and hanging towel bars above one another. Also, one can add a medicine cabinet with a mirror to the bathroom to store grooming supplies, medicine or toiletries. Traditionally, the medicine cabinet was always located above the vanity or sink, but nowadays one can place it elsewhere in the bathroom. One can also add a shower caddy to the corner shower for extra storage.

A bathroom is a room that may have different functions depending on the cultural context. In the most literal sense, the word bathroom means “a room with a bath”. Because the traditional bathtubs have partly made way for modern showers, including steam showers, the more general definition is “a room where one bathes”. There can be just a shower, just a bathtub or both; and often both plumbing fixtures are combined in the bathtub. The room may also contain a sink, often called a “wash basin” or “hand basin” and often a “lavatory”.

In the United States, “bathroom” commonly means “a room containing a lavatory”. In other countries this is usually called the “toilet” or alternatively “water closet”, lavatory or “loo”. The word “bathroom” is also used in the U.S. for a public toilet.

In the United States, bathrooms are generally categorized as a “full bathroom” , containing four plumbing fixtures: bathtub, shower, toilet, and sink; “half (1/2) bath” (or “powder room”) containing just a toilet and sink; and “3/4 bath” containing toilet, sink, and shower, although the terms vary from market to market. In some U.S. markets, a toilet, sink, and shower are considered a “full bath”. This lack of a single, universal definition commonly results in discrepancies between advertised and actual number of baths in real estate listings. An additional complication is that there are currently two ways of notating the number of bathrooms in a dwelling. One method is to count a half bathroom as “.5″ and then add this to the number of full bathrooms (e.g., “2.5″ baths would mean 2 full baths and 1 half bath). The other, newer method is to put the number of full bathrooms to the left side of the decimal point and to put the number of half bathrooms to the right of the decimal point (e.g., “2.1″ would mean 2 full baths and 1 half bath; “3.2″ would mean 3 full baths and 2 half baths).

Types of bathrooms

A bathroom directly connected to a bedroom is often called an en-suite bathroom. Its use is primarily intended for the occupants of that bedroom only. In French the term “en-suite” literally means “a following”, in this case referring to the bathroom being part of the bedroom to which it is attached. A bathroom adjacent to or directly connected to a master bedroom in a private home is generally called a master bathroom, unless it is shared by other bedrooms or is the only bathroom in the home. An en-suite bathroom attached to two bedrooms is sometimes referred to as a “Jack and Jill bathroom”. Travelers often get confused regarding different types of bathrooms when booking rooms in hotels and bed and breakfast accommodation. Some common questions relate to en-suite, “private” and “shared” bathrooms (sometimes called “facilities”). Both en-suite and private bathrooms are for the exclusive use of the occupants of a particular bedroom. An en-suite bathroom is accessed from within the bedroom, however, whereas a private bathroom is accessed from outside the bedroom but is normally adjacent or near to the bedroom. A shared bathroom is a bathroom outside of any bedroom that is shared between guests staying in two or more separate bedrooms. Although the word bathroom may be used, this room may have a shower stall instead of a bathtub. The bathroom would also normally include a toilet as well as washing facilities.

Design considerations

The design of a bathroom must account for the use of both hot and cold water, in significant quantities, for cleaning the human body. The water is also used for moving solid and liquid human waste to a sewer or septic tank. Water may be splashed on the walls and floor, and hot humid air may cause condensation on cold surfaces. From a decorating point of view the bathroom presents a challenge. Ceiling, wall and floor materials and coverings should be impervious to water and readily and easily cleaned. The use of ceramic or glass, as well as smooth plastic materials, is common in bathrooms for their ease of cleaning. Such surfaces are often cold to the touch, however, and so water-resistant bath mats or even bathroom carpets may be used on the floor to make the room more comfortable. Alternatively, the floor may be heated, possibly by strategically placing heater conduits close to the surface.

Electrical appliances, such as lights, heaters, and heated towel rails, generally need to be installed as fixtures, with permanent connections rather than plugs and sockets. This minimizes the risk of electric shock. Ground-fault circuit interruptor electrical sockets can reduce the risk of electric shock, and are required for bathroom socket installation by electrical and building codes in the United States and Canada. In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, only special sockets suitable for electric shavers are permitted in bathrooms, and are labelled as such.

History of bathrooms

Although it was not with hygiene in mind, the first records for the use of baths date back as far as 3000 B.C. At this time water had a strong religious value, being seen as a purifying element for both body and soul, and so it was not uncommon for people to be required to cleanse themselves before entering a sacred area. Baths are recorded as part of a village or town life throughout this period, with a split between steam baths in Europe and America and cold baths in Asia. Communal baths were erected in a distinctly separate area to the living quarters of the village, with a view to preventing evil spirits from entering the domestic quarters of a commune.

Not all ancient baths were in the style of the large pools that often come to mind when one imagines the Roman baths; the earliest surviving bathtub dates back to 1700 B.C, and hails from the Palace of Knossos in Crete.[2] What is remarkable about this tub is not only the similarity with the baths of today, but also the way in which the plumbing works surrounding it differ so little from modern models. A more advanced prehistoric (15th century BC and before) system of baths and plumbing is to be found in the excavated town of Akrotiri, on the Aegean island of Thera. There, alabaster tubs and other bath fittings were found, along with a sophisticated twin plumbing system to transport hot and cold water separately. This was probably because of easy access to geothermic hot springs on this volcanic island. Both the Greeks and the Romans recognised the value of bathing as an important part of their lifestyles. Writers such as Homer had their heroes bathe in warm water so as to regain their strength; it is perhaps notable that the mother of Achilles bathed him in order to gain his invincibility. Palaces have been uncovered throughout Greece with areas that are dedicated to bathing, spaces with ceramic bathtubs, as well as sophisticated drainage systems.

The Roman attitudes towards bathing are well documented; they built large purpose-built thermal baths, marking not only an important social development, but also providing a public source of relaxation and rejuvenation. Here was a place where people could meet to discuss the matters of the day and enjoy entertainment. During this period there was a distinction between private and public baths, with many wealthy families having their own thermal baths in their houses. Despite this they still made use of the public baths, showing the value that they had as a public institution. The strength of the Roman Empire was telling in this respect; imports from throughout the world allowed the Roman citizens to enjoy ointments, incense, combs, and mirrors.

Although some sources suggest that bathing declined following the collapse of the Roman Empire, this is not completely accurate. It was actually the Middle Ages that saw the beginning of soap production, proof that bathing was definitely not uncommon. It was only after the Renaissance that bathing declined; water was feared as a carrier of disease, and thus sweat baths and heavy perfumes were preferred.

In fact throughout the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, the use of public baths declined gradually in the west, and private spaces were favoured, thus laying the foundations for the bathroom, as it was to become, in the 20th century. However in Japan shared bathing in sento and onsen (spas) still exists; the latter being very popular.