Luxury Bathrooms

Homeowners looking to make a change to their existing bathroom suites this year have been advised that 2011's big bathroom trend is all about emphasising luxury.

Fashions this year include showing investment in a bathroom and decadent features, which could include freestanding baths, high-end materials and sophisticated taps.

Among the luxurious features to be considered in this space, could be tiled spa showers with multi jet system and steam options, giant role top baths with heated bottoms. Other high-end touches include under floor heating, surround sound fittings, TVs and fridges in the bathroom.

Homeowners keen to get cracking on luxury bathroom suite renovations have been advised to ensure they plan meticulously before ripping out walls and expanding living spaces.

A great place to start on this sort of project, is to jot down sketches of the rooms to be changed and an overview of potential costs.

With regards to design, collecting magazines and clipping out images that appeal, and keeping a diary of these clippings, which you can revisit over a number of months to see if tastes have evolved, is also a great way to construct your ideal luxury bathroom.

Another point to bear in mind is who will use the bathroom and what its function is - making mainstream design choices will also help if people decide to sell a property.

To get you started on planning your luxury bathroom, Architect Randolph Gerner, from Gerner Kronik Valcarcel, recently discussed a renovation job at the luxury Park Hyatt Hotel in Istanbul with Hotel Interactive. As part of the makeover, the hostel's bathrooms became a "celebration of bathing", boasting Turkish baths, steam baths and rain showers.

The spaces come with Turkish baths, a light therapy shower, a deep-soaking bath, a steam bath and a rain shower, apparently designed to give guests the chance to experiment with a range of experiences.

Mr Gerner explained that the steam room tends to be the first stop, followed by the shower.

"I think to myself that this is really the way we should think about bathing," he remarked.

The Edmonton Journal seems to have similar ideas, recently noting that big baths situated beneath large windows and glass showers with seating options, as well as a number of jets, are all part of the at-home spa concept.