When it comes to our home, we want our surroundings, and in this case, our bathroom, to match our personality and style. You may just want to introduce some new accessories, change the color scheme or theme or do a massive bathroom remodel that coincides with your lifestyle. One thing that is a constant for any degree of decorating plan is functionality. Pair functionality with beauty and you have not only a delightful, practical space, but a bathroom you would be proud to allow your guests to use. To begin, let’s start with the basics.
Let’s talk about color. If you are wanting to change the color of your bathroom and not sure what color you want, start with asking yourself a few questions. What is your favorite color? What color combinations make you take pause and sigh? Would colors in nature appeal to you? What are your hobbies? If you are a hunter, consider camouflage; ok, perhaps not the whole bathroom, but aspects of it such as hunter greens, deep musky browns or natural fiber colors. Are you a scrap-booker? What colors are your “go-to” colors? Is your job tedious and monotonous? Don’t make your bathroom that way; go big, with bold, bright colors that add excitement to your life.
Blues and greens have a calming effect, whereas bold red, orange and purple are more intense, thereby making your heart race a bit. Think about how color makes you feel and start being aware of those colors. Take pictures with your cell phone of colors you find in the grocery store, patterns in clothing, floral arrangements or upholstery patterns. Color is everywhere and it can change our mood, excite us, calm us, inspire us and motivate us.
If, however, color intimidates you, go neutral! White, cream, taupe and browns can be spectacular when accessorized with bold and bright towels, pictures, shower curtain, tile, lighting, mirrors, medicine cabinet, window treatments, etc.
Digressing just a bit here, I took a long weekend to chill, regroup and unwind at a gorgeous log cabin at Rough River, Kentucky. The owner of the cabin decorated with such simplicity, and yet followed the “log cabin” theme of river, water, boating, fishing and hunting. This was a departure from my normal life and therefore, a relaxing experience. The walls and floors in the bathrooms were all wood, so in order to work with this theme, hunter green and “river water” blue colors were introduced. Simple and yet so effective because she worked with the neutral wood colors and created a pleasing, “woodsy” atmosphere.
Consequently, when choosing your colors, make sure they work with the features that you are not changing, such as the wall tile or flooring. Choosing a blue/green color scheme may be nice, however, pairing it with pink wall tile may be aesthetically disturbing. (Speaking of disturbing, you may want to entertain the idea of changing the pink tile!)
So color will start you thinking about which direction you want to go. Just make sure your style is reflected in whatever color scheme you choose. After that, think about changing your fixtures; but that is for another day and another blog.
Maeser Services / Joni Crume
