Showered with attention

Viva speaks to the design experts about what else is happening in the bathroom. Photo / Supplied

Bathrooms are the most private and intimate of all the spaces of our homes, and there was a time when they tended to be plain and utilitarian. But increasingly we are viewing these personal zones as an opportunity to express our individuality.

In recognition of this fresh freedom and sense of adventure, the bathroom industry has responded with an ever-growing array of creative fittings, fixtures and designs. To help navigate this rich and diverse world, we've quizzed three experts about the latest trends and the future of bathrooms.

David Kohler is president of US-based Kohler, a business that began in 1873; his great-grandfather traded a bathtub for one cow and 14 chickens.

Today the brand is the market leader in North America and China, has design studios in Wisconsin, Paris, Milan and Shanghai, and 55 manufacturing plants around the world.

Kohler's history may span 137 years but its preoccupations are very much of the moment. Sustainability and water conservation are key corporate concerns.

"We've spent a lot of time designing and developing products - low-consumption taps, shower heads, WCs - that can deliver the same level of performance but can reduce somebody's water footprint," Kohler says.

No longer merely functional ablution centres, bathrooms have become sanctuaries, places in which to retreat and luxuriate. "As people continue to be stressed and time-constrained, bathrooms are a haven for rest, rejuvenation and relaxation," he says. "Many people are designing that space to be a really very wonderful, inspiring, personal environment. They'll take the time to select the right surfaces, the right products, to create almost a spa-like setting at home."

Kohler's own master bathroom - which includes limestone finishes, a chromatherapy whirlpool that illuminates the water in any hue desired, two dressing stations and two toilet rooms - is an example of the trend towards luxury. "You can spice it up with accent pieces that have colour and texture. We like to work in a lot of different mediums from glass to ceramics to metals such as bronze," he says.

Greater freedom in design means there's absolutely no need to confine your product choices to one particular genre. "In my bathroom I've got some richly traditional or transitional elements in dark woods as well as a very contemporary leading-edge bath. You can mix styles and it can work in an overall environment."

Christchurch-based designer Davinia Sutton received two honours - Bathroom Design of the Year and Renovation Bathroom Design of the Year - at the 2009 National Kitchen and Bathroom Association awards.

"For me the key with bathroom design is that it ties in with your architectural content so that it reads as part of the home - not like: 'Oh, we did this in 2010'," she says.

Sutton notes that not all bathrooms are treated equally when it comes to design. "There is a trend towards a sense of hierarchy in the home as far as bathrooms are concerned; the en suite, for example, is often considered to be higher in the pecking order and so might have that point of difference." The master en suite bathroom may very well be larger and given a more highly specified fit-out than the other bathrooms.

Ongoing demand for a sense of spaciousness means bathrooms are increasing in size. Sutton is currently working on an en suite measuring about four metres by eight metres. Fortuitously this extra space accommodates another strong trend - the requirement for dual elements. Two basins, two showers and even two toilets often feature within a single room. Sutton has recently designed completely separate "his-and-her" bathrooms for one home; "his" bathroom is reminiscent of a gentlemen's space while "hers" has a subtle French provincial flavour.

Individuality and the desire to possess a bathroom that is truly unique is a strong driver. To meet this need, Sutton designs one-off bespoke vanities that look like freestanding pieces of furniture rather than cookie-cutter modular units. She also introduces items such as wingback chairs to add comfort.

Technology provides a layer of 21st century convenience. Sutton installs televisions so clients can keep up with the financial markets while showering, shower-heads on sensors for hands-free operation, wall-mounted massaging body-jets and soft LED shower lighting.

Stephen Horton displays and sells Boffi kitchen and bathroom collections in his Newmarket showroom. He describes the upmarket Italian range as "contemporary and timeless. It's a very honest style of product; it's not overdesigned."

Horton concurs that it's the en suite bathroom on which we typically lavish the most attention. "It's not the one you throw the kids into after football practice; it's the one you make the most luxurious," he says.

Up-to-the-minute Boffi luxury comes in the form of sculptural moulded baths and basins made of Crystal Plant - an "absolutely gorgeous, very milky" acrylic medium that has the look and feel of matt-finished stone - which are often married with solid stainless steel tap-ware. Vanities and storage units in a grainy wood along with hand-pressed clay tiles introduce an organic texture and "offset the stark whiteness and clean lines of the bath."

Horton says New Zealanders have a pragmatic bent when choosing bathroom elements and often favour items that are easy to clean. We're also quite a modest lot as evidenced by our response to the latest Boffi transparent glass bath. "In Italy they just love it. When I show that to clients in New Zealand they go: 'Ah, no, that's not quite for me.' But, hey, they appreciate the design, I guess."

*Kohler Design Store, 65-73 Parnell Rise, Parnell, Auckland, ph 09 336 1389,

*Detail by Davinia Sutton, Level 2, 179 High St, Christchurch, ph 03 365 9995

*Boffi Studio, Level 1, 11 Teed St, Newmarket, Auckland, ph 09 522 2159