Soft close gets my vote.

I don't think it's really a decor issue, as much as comfort and preference.

My Mother likes a "comfort height" toilet with an angled seat. When we replaced one of our toilets, that's what I bought, and DH and I, much to the amusement of the plumber, each took a turn sitting on it before he installed it. I'm glad we did, because we both hated it.

We ended up with a standard height toilet, with a flat, snap-on Bemis seat. I like that you can just pop the whole seat off so that you can really clean it and the base where the seat attaches.

Wood and composites are warmer than plastic, but we live in a warmer climate, so that wasn't an issue for us.

We have soft close that are made by the manufacturer,Toto. Decorator wise, I think the color of the seat should match the toilet. Ours was pretty easy to choose since ToTo only made 2 types at the time.

If we're talking more than just seats I disagree. Comfort height is a no-brainer. And if you can convince your dh to sit instead of stand elongated is a necessity. Wood seats don't hold up near as well as plastic.

I like plastic with a soft closure hinge. I replaced one of the fancy ones that was coated MDF with chrome hinges with a plastic one because I think the plastic holds up better and is easier to disinfect.

So... patterned seats, swirlies and such, are no good? Tacky? I'm talking a white seat, not pink animal print.

Here is a link that might be useful:

:) Prairie. Our master bath has a comfort height, elongated bowl and I purchased a seat only, no lid. I was hoping that it would prevent the whole seat up thing. It worked well, but after dropping my third eyeliner in the commode, I bought a soft close system. I'm not in love with it, as I thought that it would close automatically, but it doesn't. You have to touch it, and sometimes, if DH leaves the seat up, I can't wait that long.

I'm in cold weather and the seat has always been like sitting on ice. Never had this problem before in other homes, but this toilet never warms up.

Mentioned looking at the heated seats and to my delight one of my kids bought it for me as a present. Love this seat, it stays 10 degrees above the room temp. Although for the summer I will change it out to plastic.

Any seat like wood, etc. is iffy for cleaning well.

"Any seat like wood, etc. is iffy for cleaning well."

I'd disagree... when we had wood, I cleaned it with Simple Green just like the non-wood.
No problems, no "iffy".

We have 3 toilets in our house and 3 wooden seats, one shiny ebony, one oak (came with the toilet) and one a reddish, unknown wood. I could care less about "disinfecting" them, we just use vinegar and water in a spray bottle and baking soda in the bowl. No one has ever gotten the plague from using the bathroom at our house.

gsciencechick, I always enjoy seeing your fresh, fun and lively home.

sandyponder

As much as we disliked the comfort height, I'm thinking of installing one in the hall/guest bathroom. We both found it to be uncomfortable tall (we're not tall people) but a lot of people seem to like them, and I think my Mom has a hard time getting on/off of a standard size. She won't even go into the powder room, which has a toilet that's a few inches lower than a standard height.

Deee, I wonder if it's what you're using for cleaning that's causing the problem? I've read that some disinfecting cleaners can etch plastics over time.

I don't think a "fancy" seat is tacky, as long as it goes with the rest of the room.

Once I saw this colored seat I had to have it. It has "bubbles" in it, and it fully matches the beachy look of the bathroom. The other bath just has a standard Kohler painted wood seat.

I replace the seats every so often so they always look new.
And elongated, hard, non wood seats in white. As sleek as possible for easy cleaning.
Comfort height, of course, but I am tall. We have a counter height vanity in the master bath too.

We have 2 boys and got a beemis that has a covered closed hinge and no gap between the seat and lid at the back. For the first time ever, I don't have lots of issues of cleaning behind and around the seat/hinges. It has not improved their aim but it has made cleaning up much easier. I cannot find the image online, but I think I got it at Home Depot.

Franksmom: Thanks for mentioning the snap-off type. I'll have to look for that -- Home Depot? Lowe's?

Housecleaning is not at the top of my list of things I want to spend a lot of time on -- until it comes to the toilets!

(And I kind of like that "swirl" pattern!)

We like our comfort height with elongated seats and lids very much.

Sally, I love your cleaning solutions! I'm always feeling guilty and wondering where all these nasty chemicals really end up going. I don't know if they are gimmicky or not, but I've been switching over to the "Natural" cleaning solutions that are carried by Lowes. When using them, they are much gentler on the nose and skin. Plus they work well.

As far as toilets go...We replaced our main floor toilets with the comfort height & soft close. The upstairs are still the standards. I don't have strong feelings about either one. Due to infrequent use of the upstairs by me, when I do end up there, I forget they are different than my customary toilet. So, I end up falling back onto the toilet when I sit down, and then I forget about the lid and I end up dropping it, so it slams down! Such is life!

What really creeps me out are those soft cushy vinyl wrapped toilet seats that some folks have. What on earth is that about?

I don't like the decorative swirl on toilet seat covers unless you have a swirl design going on in the bathroom. I prefer to keep the toilet, seat and cover strictly utilitarian and not draw any attention to them. I say that, however, I like shiny chrome hinges. And, I kept the Toto happy face on the backside of my toilet seat cover.