Luxe Up Your Bathroom

Julia Broder -- Greetings from The Riverside Realty Group in beautiful Westport, CT! You can get some great inspiration from my Luxe Properties website! Visit it often for the latest and greatest in high-end real estate.

I would love to show you outstanding high-end residences, Luxies! If you are confident that you can benefit from the prices in the market, then now is a good time to buy. Please contact me today at 1-203-247-7500 for more information on how we can work together. Wouldn't it be great to celebrate this wonderful season with a new home?

This month, I'd like to talk about how you can make some important changes in your bathroom to make it extra luxe and lovely. Some of these changes don't cost a luxe amount, but the results will be worth it. For example, look at this Colorado powder room, showing off art and beautifully lavish handmade materials. Go wild in a small space!

Even though the bathroom is often the smallest room in the house, it's a place that almost every guest who visits your home will stop by. Make it look great.

I went to Cheryll Gillespie, the vivacious host of Let's Shop TV. She advises that your bathroom makeover should begin from the ground up:

• Begin bathroom projects with the floor.
• Since the bathroom is usually a smaller space compared to other rooms in the home, it's often affordable to indulge in a few flooring luxuries.
• "Radiant heating under ceramic tiled floors is one of my favorite indulgences," says Cheryll. "Stepping from the shower or bath onto warm ceramics is heavenly."
• Luxurious chenille or thick terry bathmats are also great indulgences for the feet. When selecting a mat for the floors, remember your style. Sea grass or bamboo mats in a Zen-styled bath, traditional-patterned carpets for the elegant formal bath, plush faux sheepskin mats for the minimalist modern spa-inspired bath.

Cheryll has these bathroom lighting tips:

• Lighting in a bath is one of the most important design elements of the room.
• It's imperative to have good lighting for the functional aspects of the space such as shaving and make-up application. Good grooming demands adequate lighting. Plan for lighting from above and from the sides of the mirror area.
• "Mood lighting is also necessary for those quite times when we need comfort and tranquility," Cheryll adds. "Put your overhead lights on a dimmer switch and be sure to accessorize with candlelight."

And what about the walls?

• Changing the wall texture and color is one of the easiest changes you can make in a room.
• In a small powder room, go for drama! Since this space is usually used for short, functional visits, you can be especially daring and creative.
• Here's a great tip from Cheryll: "The size of the space also allows us to use materials that may otherwise be too pricey for larger rooms: expensive wallpapers, custom-painted faux walls, or even fabric or metal-paneled walls."
• Darker colors add personality and create impact.
• A bathroom used for daily grooming, makeup application, and shaving needs a carefully selected paint color. We need our skin color to look as real as possible in this room, so consider that wall color will reflect onto your skin. Neutrals, peach, mango, taupe, gray, and soft yellows are good choices to maintain "real" skin tones. The bathroom in the photo above is a great example of a room color that will be flattering on the face, with lots of mirrors for putting on your face and looking fabulous. Use additional dramatic or vibrant colors as accents, like the punchy green leaves in the bathroom shower curtain above. 
• "The next step in your bathroom makeover is the detailing: small touches that provide efficient storage and a feel of luxury. Think beyond the ‘traditional’ bath product scope. The bathroom is a room for living - it needs furniture and accessory items like all other living spaces."
• Is there room in your bath for a bench or chair? A seat provides a place to sit to remove socks and shoes as well as a place to lay clothing. Think creative upholstery coverings for your seat - terry or chenille toweling, plush wild animal prints, or Egyptian cottons.
• If you enjoy lounging in the tub, but hate to miss the morning news, install a wall-mounted television set or a shower radio.
• "A clock is also an important and often overlooked bathroom detail. How many times have we been in the tub and wondered how much time we have left before we need to leave for work?"
• Warming drawers and heated towel bars are other pampering additions for the bath.
• Indulging your scent sense is easy in the bath with baskets of scented soaps, sachets, bath crystals, and oils.
• Natural sea sponges displayed on shelves, in baskets, and bowls or laid to rest on the side of the tub are not only functional, but also visually interesting. Cheryll advises, "They also make great scent holders. Drop a few drops of your favorite scented oil directly onto the sponge for lingering aromatic effect."
• Use baskets, glass shelves installed above the toilet, or wine bottle holders to store extra towels and bottles of shampoos, conditioners, and bath oils.

Create a luxe bathroom sanctuary with a little style, imagination, creativity, and a few simply sensational ideas!

This article was made possible with the help of casaGURU. casaGURU is an everyday, everywhere, anytime homeowner website built on the premise that every home deserves a house expert.