I haven't mixed them myself, but I'm currently considering buying a Grohe faucet & Hansgrohe shower head/ diverter/ etc for our master bath renovation. I went to a store that sold both recently & compared the 2 finishes side by side; they looked extremely similar, so you may be able to pull this off!

I find it hard to tell the diff between the chrome and nickel finishes but others have said that the nickel has a warmer tone to it. Rumours in the kitchen forum have nickel on the way out fashion wise but those guys are usually decades ahead of their time.

bebotivo, Which is more important to you, style or function? We demolished and rebuilt our large shower in 2002, and the plumbing fixtures we put in were Hansgrohe (that was before Hansgrohe was bought out and became a Masco company.) We had a rainshower-style shower head. We have low-ish (not REALLY low, but fairly low) water pressure, and after seven years we decided last year that we wanted more vigorous showering. In searching for a replacement showerhead, we conducted very extensive and intensive research into our options, including purchasing, installing, and (up to the last) returning several showerheads from several different makers. The bottom line: you owe it to yourself to include the Moen Velocity 6320 in your plans. Accept no substitutes. You will see a lot of positive user reviews of the Moen Velocity on amazon.com and elsewhere; the positive reviews are true, based on our own experience. Returning to the style or function issue, the Moen Velocity is a rainshower-type head, but it is pretty heavy. Your articulating connecting arm had better be able to keep the head perky. We had to use a chrome-plated arm from Danze that does not match the brushed nickel/stainless steel plumbing fixtures that we have elsewhere in our bath. The performance of the Moen Velocity is very much worth the loss of style points from the mismatched finish in the arm. And (a bonus) Moen customer service really is customer SERVICE in these days that "service" seems to be more of a word than a concept. Encourage them.

Sorry I'm late to the party, but I may be able to chime in for anyone who has similar questions regarding Grohe & Hansgrohe. I am in the process of a renovation and wanted to go practical high-end (Im not sure what that means either). To make a long story short, I obtained a series of faucets: Dornbracht Tara in chrome, Hansgrohe Focus 31730 (chrome), Grohe Atrio in Satin Nickel, Hansgrohe Metro in steel & and a KWC Systema in steel. I also purchased a Everpure drinking water faucet in nickel. My mother had purchased the Dornbracht for me (yes nice gift) and ultimately this is the faucet I chose to put in the bathroom. But I had purchased a Hansgrohe Focus that I was planning on having installed. As well as a Everpure faucet for my Everpure water filtering system (quality of the Everpure was on par with the Hansgrohe Focus you will read about). When I received it (Hansgrohe Focus chrome) and put it in my hand it just felt so light and insubstantial. I am not saying that it felt "cheap", hardly, it is a nicely made unit, however I was not impressed with it. However it was certainly nicer than anything I saw in my local Home Depot. I ultimately decided I will put it in one of my girlfriends rental units. Next, I purchased a Grohe Atrio which is similar in style to the Dornbracht Tara. Now let me remark on the differences between the Hansgrohe and the Grohe: First of all, the Grohe feels considerably heavier and more rigid. The routing is cleaner in the rear and the tolerances are tighter between the parts. The handles also feel much smoother to the point you actually can distinguish this. The plates are also heavier and more "substantial" than the Hansgrohe ones. The brass diverters are also heavier on the Grohe though the Hansgrohe ones are visually more appealing. For the kitchen I purchased the Hansgrohe Metro because I liked the way it looked and it had pretty good reviews. The faucet itself is definitely of higher quality than the Hansgrohe Focus I had originally purchased to put in my bathroom. Though I think the pull-out spray spout feels "plasticky". I decided I wan't happy with the quality for the price and plan on returning it. I ended up going with a Swiss made KWC Systema, the quality is sick, so is the price. Throughout this process I have looked at quite a few Grohe and Hansgrohe pieces. I think there is no question that Grohe is the superior product.