good bathroom idea book for smaller bathrooms?

16 years ago

Does anyone have any ideas? Books, magazines, online??? I'm having a hard time finding a good resource with photos to get ideas of what to do with my smaller bathroom. When I did my kitchen there were so many books and magazines to look at to help me decide. With bathrooms, not so much and most are large, grandiose bathrooms which don't apply. I'm most interested in efficient use of space especially unique storage ideas. The best things I found were for bathroom furniture in the UK but I'm still trying to find something other than that. I spent a while looking through everything in a bookstore the other night but little help. One book did have a cool idea for a retractable shower curtain rod - wouldn't work for me but it was a unique idea for a smaller space - the kind of thing I'm looking for.

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Comments (4)

house_vixen
16 years ago
Hey Gibby -- 6 x 10 bath here [finally demo'd last week!] and I know that my size isn't even that small.

I've been on the lookout for 3 or so years and it's been surprisingly difficult to find ideas. Aside from "recess whenever possible," of course!

There's the "monochromatic = more spacious" school of thought but IMO there are alternative ways to lead the eye around the room and create interest in a small space. Things to consider:

* color / color contrast
* the lines of an object (round vs square)
* judicious use of oversized scale
* having some consistency with eyelines/sightlines of your vertical elements

Here are some of the apparently-smaller baths I've found that put at least one of the above into action:

We're adapting this built-into-doorway cab for our bath -- ours will be built out from the wall, perpendicular to the sink, and serve as a med cabinet.

I'd use a wall-hung if this were a full bath, but I do love this! [Note horizontal cladding]

I was involved in this [5 x 8 with TWO doors!] bath:

Grabbed space from kitchen to make this 15" cubby:

IMO one of the biggest challenges with small baths is to create negative space that serves to set off what IS in the room. In our case, we splurged a bit on a demilune/semicircle vanity instead of a square or rectangular one -- given our bowling alley dimensions, it helps carve out some pleasing curves.

However, having lived in a place where the tiny wall-hung sink, toilet, and clawfoot were all accessible from one spot I know negative space is sometimes non-existent!

I've enjoyed the book below, which has a mix of sizes and lots of materials in it --"ideas for tiny half-baths, medium-size his-and-hers, and large, luxurious home spas. Specifics on ventilation, waterproofing, faucets, showers, tubs, and more."

Here is a link that might be useful: New Bathroom Idea Book (Taunton Press)
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house_vixen
16 years ago
More for you after checking a few of my bookmarks:

Thread with pics of Biancap's lovely small bath reno:
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/bath/msg1000354422751.html

4'9 x 7'9 bath reno:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.battandlear.com/residential/natural_bathroom/images/DUTEEcab_sm.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.battandlear.com/residential/natural_bathroom/&h=300&w=194&sz=10&hl=en&start=29&um=1&tbnid=kJsGltsuzQeBJM:&tbnh=116&tbnw=75&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dsmall%2Bbath%26start%3D20%26ndsp%3D20%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN

Taunton's tips:
http://www.taunton.com/finehomebuilding/how-to/articles/six-bathroom-design-tips.aspx
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dedtired
16 years ago
There is a wonderful series of books about the "Not So Big House" by Sarah Susanka. I'm sure there are small bathrooms in one of them. I love these books for gardening, decorating, remodeling. They're for those of us who do not live in McMansions!

Here is a link that might be useful: Not So Big House
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bathroom_daddy
16 years ago
Hey Gibby,
I just wrote an ebook that is mainly about small bathroom design projects. I have been doing this a while helping my friends out with their bathrooms and finally was pursuaded to write the book to document the projects. I agree all that is out there is basic DIY stuff...not much meat at all. My book "Bathroom Remodel - Bling on a Shoestring" has real life projects and bathrooms...not some rehashed online pix and lame descriptions. I am a genius at thinking outside the box and making designer looking bathrooms on really tight bugets. Go over to my sight and I would be curious about your thoughts. Drop me a note with the support email address and I will get back with you.
Cheers
Karl Eberhardt
aka Bathroom Daddy

Here is a link that might be useful: Bathroom Daddy
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good bathroom idea book for smaller bathrooms?

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house_vixen

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