A well-designed bathroom prioritises function, material durability, and the relationship between light, storage, and the fixtures you use daily—not aesthetic trends. The studio approaches bathroom design through Discovery, Concept, Design & Specification, Commission, and Reveal, ensuring every choice serves the space’s permanent purpose rather than temporary fashion.
Why does the design process matter in a bathroom?
A bathroom is one of the smallest, most-used rooms in a home or commercial setting. Unlike a living room, where a design choice can be adjusted or replaced, bathroom decisions—tiling, plumbing, ventilation, storage—are costly and difficult to alter once installed. The studio’s approach begins with Discovery: understanding how the space is actually used, who uses it, how long they spend there, and what frustrations exist with the current layout. A commercial bathroom (as seen in projects like Fruittii Hair Salon and Beaulieu Dental Practice) has different demands than a residential one: traffic volume, cleaning protocols, and impression management shift the entire brief.
This structured process—moving from Discovery through Concept, Design & Specification, Commission, and Reveal—prevents costly mistakes and ensures the finished bathroom remains functional and visually coherent for years. When decisions are made reactively or based on magazine imagery alone, bathrooms often disappoint within months. Adequate storage is forgotten. Lighting creates shadows over the mirror. Finishes prove difficult to clean. A methodical process catches these problems before installation.
What should you think about during the Discovery phase?
Discovery is the studio’s first stage: the conversation before any drawings happen. The questions asked are practical: How many people use the bathroom daily? What time of day is peak use? Are there mobility or accessibility considerations? What is the natural light situation, and how does it change through the day? How much storage is genuinely needed, not wanted? What is the water pressure and drainage configuration? What is your tolerance for maintenance? These questions reveal the real constraints and opportunities of the space.
In residential projects like the Witham Project and London Embankment Apartment, Discovery involved understanding the household’s routines, whether the bathroom was shared or private, and what the surrounding architecture and materials suggested. In commercial settings like Keystones Estate Agent or Tone at Canary Wharf, Discovery established traffic patterns, brand alignment, and the impression the space needed to convey. The answers to these questions become the foundation for every subsequent decision. A bathroom designed without this clarity often solves the wrong problem.
How do materials and finishes affect bathroom longevity?
Material choice determines how long a bathroom remains functional and attractive. Bathrooms are wet environments: humidity, temperature fluctuation, and water exposure are constant. Porous materials (certain natural stones, unfinished wood, unsealed grout) absorb moisture and degrade. Non-porous or sealed materials—glazed tile, stainless steel, sealed stone, quality paint systems—resist this degradation. The studio’s Concept, Design & Specification phases focus on materials that perform under these conditions, not materials chosen purely for appearance.
Grout selection, for example, is not decorative—it is functional. The wrong grout formula fails within years; epoxy or urethane-based systems outlast traditional cement-based options in high-moisture zones. Similarly, bathroom joinery and cabinetry must use moisture-resistant substrates (plywood or engineered board with marine-grade finishes, not MDF in wet zones). Taps and fittings should be specified for water quality in your area: hard water requires different finish protection than soft water. These technical choices are unglamorous, but they are the difference between a bathroom that ages poorly and one that performs for a decade or more.
What role does lighting play in bathroom design?
Lighting in a bathroom serves three functions: task lighting (mirror illumination for grooming), general lighting (safety and visibility), and ambient lighting (comfort and tone). A common mistake is over-relying on a single ceiling-mounted fixture, which creates harsh shadows directly over the mirror—the worst place for shadows if someone is shaving or applying makeup. The studio’s approach specifies task lighting integrated into mirror surrounds or positioned at the sides of the mirror, separate from general lighting.
The quality of light matters as much as its position. Colour temperature—how warm or cool the light appears—affects how skin tones and finishes look. A bathroom with only cool daylight or cool LED can feel clinical; adding warmer tones (around 3000K) creates a more liveable space. In commercial bathrooms like those at Tone at Canary Wharf, lighting also communicates brand and creates a memorable impression; in residential bathrooms, it affects whether the space feels like a refuge or a clinical passage. Dimmable lighting offers flexibility: bright for task work, dimmed for evening or relaxation. These layered decisions emerge during the Concept, Design & Specification phases and are locked in during Commission.
How should storage be planned in a small bathroom?
Storage is often an afterthought in bathroom design, which is why many bathrooms feel cluttered despite being small. The studio’s Discovery conversation establishes what needs to be stored: daily-use products (toothbrush, soap, deodorant), less-frequent items (medications, first aid, haircare), and cleaning supplies. A bathroom without adequate, accessible storage forces residents to improvise, adding shelves, cabinets, and clutter that diminish the space visually and functionally.
During Concept, Design & Specification, storage is built into the room’s architecture: recessed niches in tiled walls (cheaper and cleaner than surface shelving), medicine cabinets with deep interiors, under-sink cabinetry with pull-out organisers, or a tall linen cupboard if space allows. Mirror-fronted cabinets serve dual purposes. Drawers with dividers for small items prevent the ‘junk drawer’ problem. In smaller bathrooms, vertical storage and wall-mounted fixtures free floor space and make the room feel less cramped. These decisions are made early, not retrofitted, because they require coordination with plumbing, electrics, and structural elements.
What distinguishes a timeless bathroom design from a trendy one?
Timeless bathroom design prioritises restraint, proportion, and materiality over colour trends or aesthetic fashions. A bathroom finished in this year’s trending colour or tile pattern will feel dated within three to five years; the fixtures, cabinetry, and structural elements remain. A neutral or softly-toned palette—whites, creams, soft greys, or warm naturals—paired with quality materials and excellent proportions creates a bathroom that feels calm and current indefinitely. Pattern, if used, works best in small doses (a feature wall of considered tile) rather than covering all surfaces.
The studio’s projects, from commercial spaces like Beaulieu Dental Practice and Fruittii Hair Salon to residential interiors like London Embankment Apartment and Witham Project, demonstrate this principle: the bathrooms that age best are those where every material choice served the space’s function and the building’s proportions, not the designer’s personal taste or the market’s current mood. A well-proportioned mirror, generous lighting, quality fixtures, and durable finishes in restrained colours remain elegant long after Instagram trends have shifted. This is the studio’s approach: design the bathroom your life will actually live in, not the one a magazine told you to want.