It’s getting so techy in the bathroom these days that it feels like you need an interior design degree – or to have swallowed a bathroom manual – just to get to grips with the basics. But knowledge is power, particularly when it comes to planning your new bathroom it seems. So gen up on your mixers and monoblocs, your composites and your concealed showers, and you’ll be bathroom-happy in no time at all. Notebooks and pencils at the ready…
Dyer Grimes Architecture
Jargon bust No 1: All-in-one basin and vanity
For the ultimate in hygiene and sleek lines, you can’t beat a combined basin and vanity top, just like the one in this smart all-white bathroom.
Fashioned from a single piece of material, such as limestone or marble, or a man-made, solid surface such as Corian, the basins and vanity top are integrated and flowing with no joints or seams to harbour dirt or bacteria.
Double up the luxury with a twin vanity top and finish with beautiful streamlined taps.
Why twin vanity basins are twice as nice
Lisette Voute Designs
Jargon bust No 2: Exposed shower riser
A beautiful, vintage-style shower demands to be seen and that’s exactly the case with this shower head and exposed riser rail.
Rather than just having the shower head and controls on display (and the rest hidden from sight behind the walls), this surface-mounted design takes pride of place in the bathroom.
This sort of shower is also much simpler to install as it is fixed straight on to the wall whereas a concealed system needs to be built from scratch and plumbed in as the walls and tiles are assembled.
Jargon bust No 3: Invisible frame shower enclosure
Sleek, chic barely there showers are more like sculptural works of art these days than functional bathroom fixtures.
And it’s all down to the humble shower enclosure which has gone all upmarket and got rid of its bulky, boxy image – all chunky, white plastic frames and ugly upstands – to be replaced by slender sheets of glass fitted invisibly to walls and floors.
What looks simple and straightforward is in fact full of technical know-how and craftsmanship so this is definitely one to leave to the experts.
Jargon bust No 4: Hinged overbath screen
If you haven’t got the space for a separate shower and bath, an overbath set-up with glass screen is the next best thing.
Of course, you might stand in the shower curtain school of thought, but if you prefer a glass screen, try a hinged design like this one. The smaller fixed panel at the shower end of the bath stops water leaking out, while the hinged panel makes access and cleaning easier.
Look out for minimalist designs made from at least 8mm thick toughened safety glass, concealed fixings, good-quality chrome hinges, simple adjustment features and leak-free seals.
Shower curtain or shower screen? Follow this advice
Torie Jayne
Jargon bust No 5: Monobloc tap
There’s nothing wrong with two separate bathroom taps, but many prefer to be able to blend both hot and cold water when you need something in between.
And that’s exactly what you can have with a single-lever, monobloc mixer where the water temperature and flow is controlled by one lever and comes out of one spout (and with just one hole drilled into the basin).
The look is pared-back and modern but still looks the part in a vintage-style bathroom.
Sonnemann Toon Architects
Jargon bust No 6: Wall-mounted taps
Fixing your taps to the wall rather than on the rim of your basin offers so many plus points – particularly in skinny, space-starved bathrooms. It frees up space around the basin and creates the streamlined, modern feel of a boutique hotel.
Up the design ante further with high-tech, 21st century digital and sensor taps that are handle-free and hygienic.
WN Store
Jargon bust No 7: Back-to-wall and wall-hung toilets
A toilet is just a toilet right? Well, not when it’s a sleek and streamlined back-to-wall and wall-hung design.
Rather than the older-style options – close-coupled (visible cistern behind the pan) or Victorian style with a high-level visible cistern – back-to-wall toilets hide all the unsightly plumbing, cistern and pipework from view (either boxed off in cabinetry or behind the wall) and the result is a sleek, chic and incredibly hygienic fixture which is easy to clean under and around.
Perfect for cloakrooms and small bathrooms, these toilets equally look the part in a spacious, super-modern scheme.
Janey Butler Interiors
Jargon bust No 8: Rain shower
For starters, a rain shower is a lot larger than a standard shower head and can be fitted flush with the ceiling for a sleek, discreet finish.
Add steam functions, coloured lighting, aromatherapy and even mist and fog features and who needs to step outside the house for an all-round spa experience? Bliss!
Discover more luxurious rain shower ideas
Sarah Fortescue
Jargon bust No 9: Flush plate
If you’re going for something as modern and cutting edge as a back-to-wall toilet then you need to consider every last detail – and that includes the flush.
Replace a standard lever with a built-in flush plate (shown here in an on-trend gold finish) which has two flush settings to add water-saving, eco credentials to your little piece of bathroom technology.
Chantel Elshout Studio
Jargon bust No 10: Composite bath
This is a buzz word for the bathroom these days, but what does composite actually mean?
Well, in layman’s terms composite is a bit like a man-made, beefed-up version of stone with added ingredients to make it tougher and more practical than the real thing – and there are advantages to choosing it for your bath.
Because composites use a mix of resins and natural ground materials such as limestone or quartz, they offer the possibility to create baths that are warmer, lighter and more flexible than cast iron and stronger than acrylic.
Design opportunities are virtually endless too, from sleek, modern rectangles to sinuous, contoured deep baths for a long, luxurious soak…
TELL US…
Are there any bathroom buzzwords you aren’t sure about? Share your questions or tips in the Comments below.
