Because homes are more frequently open plan in design, small, restful, intimate spaces are becoming increasingly rare, and that’s possibly one reason why bathrooms have taken on the role of a sanctuary as well as fulfilling their everyday practical and traditional roles.

Today, these rooms are much, much, more than merely bathrooms. They can also be an intimate lounge complete with an open fire, somewhere to view movies and television without interruption, provide a private view to a courtyard or garden, and even offer a peek of the stars through a skylight. 

These exciting bathroom possibilities were once unheard of but over the past 30 years bathroom design has changed drastically with the new developments seen as miraculous and extremely welcome.

We’ve gone from having one loo in a house, which was common up to 35 years ago, to three loos now being the norm. Most people over a certain age look back and wonder how they ever got by and those too young to remember the good old days can’t possibly comprehend the sacrifice involved when minimal plumbing was the norm in typical family homes. 

While some look back nostalgically to simpler days, most would agree that having a loo and shower available when required is the kind of progress the world needs.

And it’s the same with bathrooms. One seemed perfectly sufficient several decades ago. Sure, there were queues and shouting matches as household members jostled for position to be next “in,” but we didn’t know anything different at the time.

There’s a well-founded suspicion today that an average household sharing one bathroom would implode. A collection of people, all with varying demands, busy schedules and high expectations would be on a collision towards major dysfunction and disharmony.

Shower design has changed out of sight too. Once a very humble cubicle comprising a stainless steel floor tray and hardboard walls, old showers usually had a floppy old shower curtain screening the occupant from public view. They were frequently cramped and unwelcoming spaces complete with spiders and cobwebs, and stuck in a dark corner.

<!--page--> It goes without saying that contemporary showers are a far cry from their predecessors. The introduction of safety glass meant dark, dingy corners could be opened up and any privacy concerns were solved when the glass became steamed up. 

The transparency of glass requires that it’s kept that way but the first glass shower doors were generally labour-intensive. But before too long, wonder glass cleaning products, designed to keep glass showers pristine with a minimum of elbow grease, were delivered onto the market relieving people from cleaning drudgery.

As well as glass showers, came tile shower rooms – simple structures incorporated into the overall design of a bathroom – with not a glass door or floppy curtain in sight.

In fact, many bathrooms are tiled from floor to ceiling, with separate tiled shower rooms incorporated in the design, their walls forming the only divisions within the bathroom space.

Bathrooms have become larger and so have showers and baths especially where homeowners have the luxury of space.

First we saw double basins, now we have dual showers. And it’s commonplace in large, contemporary homes for most bedrooms to have access to their own bathrooms. It seems people just don’t want to wait when it comes to the essential and sensual activities of cleansing and grooming. They want instant access to the room which refreshes and revives them, and why not?

For the perfect bathroom you can’t go wrong with: As many natural, quality materials as you can afford Functional, atmospheric lighting Sanity-saving features such as demisting mirrors Functional and atmospheric lighting Provision for ambience, such as shelves for candles and artwork Treated glass shower doors requiring minimal scrubbing Clever, concealed and built-in shelving for essential and decorative items Tiles create the perfect bathroom ambience Constrain the fantasy a little – bathrooms should be restful Sculptural pieces such as tapware offer contrast in materials and shapes Stand-alone furniture assists in creating a theme