The Sensual Bathroom: Create a Healthy, Relaxing Retreat
You don’t have to spend a fortune to create a delicious, decadent room that goes way beyond bathing.
September/October 2002
By Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer
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Photo courtesy The Japanese Bath, by Bruce Smith and Yoshiko Yamamoto (Gibbs Smith, 2001)
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Sometimes, in the words of William Wordsworth, “the world is too much with us.” There’s so much happening, so much to do. How do we stay sane?
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Take a bath.
“Frequently people look at the bathroom as a refuge or day spa for themselves,” says Jules Lambert, a kitchen and bath designer for DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen in Bellingham, Washington. “It’s a place they can escape from the kids, the television, the phone, their work.”
Ask people what their ideal bathroom would look like, and the details are delicious. “It would have a stone tile floor and a pebble composite-type sink with lots of natural light,” says Heather Pike, owner of PikeWorks Design Studios in Walls, Mississippi. “Balance that with a deeply textured rug for crawling out of the big tub, thick Egyptian cotton towels and, of course, candles. Lots of candles. And some fantastic smell, like rosemary, and a tray of gorgeous perfumes and soaps that I would use for only me. And lace somewhere.”
Sounds yummy, doesn’t it?
The biggest difference between the closet-size bath and the Cleopatra-like opulence is cost—to your pocketbook and to the environment. A full bathroom remodel might range anywhere from $3,000 to more than $20,000, depending on architectural changes, finish materials, and fixtures, and it will involve a hefty amount of natural resources and energy. But with some minor, earth-friendly modifications that introduce inviting colors, textures, and the right accessories, even a basic bathroom can become a personal sanctuary, a sensual space that nurtures the body and soothes the spirit. The key to a sensual bathroom is to remember all the senses.
Make it warm
“Warmth, warmth, more warmth!” wrote Spanish philosopher Miguel de Unamuno. “It is not the night that kills but the frost.” While a chilly bathroom probably won’t kill you, it doesn’t make for a pleasant bath.
“You’re getting undressed in this room; you want it to be warm,” says Lambert, who frowns on forced-air heating because it “increases the wind chill. Plus, forced-air systems that turn off and on can’t keep surfaces warm.” Ideally, he says, the bathroom should have radiant heat. “That will keep everything in the room at a constant temperature, and the room’s heat will radiate back into your body.”
Towel warmers are another way to achieve radiant heat in the bathroom. Some models, such as Runtal’s Omnipanel, will work as the sole heat source in a bathroom up to 110 square feet. Larger rooms can be heated with two towel-warming units. Cost ranges from $600 to $1,000, depending on size.
Studies show that color can profoundly affect one’s mood, making it an important consideration in any interior design. For a soothing bathroom, consider the color spectrum’s cooler end. Blues generate feelings of tranquility. Greens are associated with calm and healing. Both colors can wax warmer by adding yellow or red undertones.
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