The bathroom might not be your favorite room in the house, but it gets a lot of use on a daily basis. Whether you are remodeling or designing your home from scratch, designing a functional bathroom that reflects your style makes it a useful and inviting room. Keep your budget in mind throughout the design process to keep the project on track financially.

Find Inspiration

Inspiration for bathroom designs comes from many places. A home improvement store with bathroom displays offers a real-life form of bathroom inspiration. Wander through the bathroom displays to find designs and bathroom elements that appeal to you. Take pictures for later reference so you don’t have to travel back to the store. You will also find plenty of design and home improvement magazines and books to get inspiration for your bathroom. Browse through these sources of inspiration to find layouts similar to yours, as well as general designs and styles that you like.

Create Functional Areas

Bathrooms receive high traffic in the morning when the entire family is trying to get ready. When designing a bathroom, the layout determines how functional the room will be. Think about your family’s normal bathroom activities and schedule. For example, consider who takes showers or baths and at what time of day. As you sketch out the bathroom layout, make sure the design accommodates all the bathroom activities.

Match It Up

Choosing an overall style or decorating theme helps create a cohesive, matched look in the bathroom. The metal finishes in the bathroom are an essential element that should be matched to avoid any of the fixtures standing out in a negative way. Make sure all the details in the bathroom, such as the vanity, walls and floor covering, work together.

Consider the View

The bathroom design doesn’t stop at the door. Because the bathroom is visible from other rooms in the home, you should consider how well the bathroom design fits the adjoining rooms. While the bathroom doesn’t have to match, it should complement and work with the rest of the home. When designing the layout, consider what people will see when they look straight in from the door. Placing the toilet opposite the door leaves an unpleasant view as you pass the bathroom. Create a focal point, such as a tiled shower stall, on the wall opposite the door to great your guests in a visually pleasing way.