- The bathroom is no longer a place to pass through, but has become one of the spaces with the most personality in the home and where we spend more and more time: a year and a half in our lifetime.
- If the kitchen has established itself as the social epicenter, the bathroom has emerged as a space for self-care and wellness. The Silestone Institute analyzes the most popular bathrooms: en suite, courtesy, spa, dressing room, XXL, etc
Barcelona, February 23, 2022 – The state of alarm decreed in March 2020 was a challenge for all households. The impossibility of going outside, except for essential activities, put every corner and element to the test, revealing strengths and weaknesses. After 99 days, the bathroom was one of the rooms that took on the most significance: a space for personal care and, for many, a new point of escape. A refuge from the hustle and bustle of the living room, kitchen, terrace or balcony to go to when you need a breather.
A relaxing bath, a beauty routine, a moment of reading, a massage or simply a bit of silence. The bathroom has emerged as a key room, as highlighted by the experts of the Silestone Institute, the platform for knowledge and dissemination of the home space promoted by Cosentino. After the pandemic, requests for renovation have skyrocketed, going from being a functional element to an essential ‘object of desire’ for the well-being of all family members, especially if we take into account that throughout our lives we can spend up to a year and a half in it.
Its design and distribution goes beyond the square meters available and directly appeals to users, adapting to their preferences and lifestyle. In fact, the uses that have been derived after periods of confinement have modified the needs to be covered, making it more versatile than ever. If the kitchen has established itself as the social epicenter, the bathroom has done so as a space for self-care and personal well-being and, as highlighted by the Silestone Institute, a room increasingly connected with the rest of the home, which gives it its own character.
These are the types of bathrooms most in demand in the aftermath of the pandemic:
- Kids friendly – More than just bath time
A bathroom that brings together the needs of those who, in addition, grow at a rapid pace. There are many parents who choose to assign a bathroom to the little ones in the house. Some gain peace of mind while others gain autonomy. A space to reactivate in the morning and relax at the end of the day, in which order and safety, storage spaces at their height and easy-to-clean and resistant materials and surfaces should prevail. To avoid arguments, doubling the toilet areas is always a good option.
- In suite – Where the bedroom begins and the bathroom ends
Integrating the master bathroom in the suite is a formula that provides intimacy to the couple inside the house, general spaciousness and a world of possibilities depending on the level of connection desired with the rest of the room dedicated to rest. From totally isolated bathrooms, to totally open or separate formulas with partitions and translucent heads for those who prioritize light.
- Courtesy – ‘Your space, my space’.
One of the trends that has re-emerged strongly after the pandemic is the courtesy bathroom, relegated for years. A space specially designed for visitors to feel at home – without having to invade private areas of the family by going to the suite or the master bathroom – and where they can have toiletries and hygiene items just for them.
- The spa – In the footsteps of Gwyneth Paltrow
From whim to necessity. Having a spa at home is not at odds with space and more and more people are discovering their wellness side in their bathroom. The range is wide: from adding a hydromassage column to exploring aromatherapy and chromotherapy. In this bathroom the atmosphere is the most important thing and all the elements (including towels, candles, oils), colors and textures must be arranged to generate the maximum sensation of well-being.
- Dressing room – The logical order of things
A natural step: making the bathroom a space that coexists directly with the dressing room. Both elements can be combined with more or less integrated formulas according to the user’s taste. If after the shower we get dressed and before entering the shower we undress, the bathroom – dressing room seems a logical evolution and a practical way to gain storage space and free up the rest area.
- XXL – Here I stay
No more looking at the bathroom as a minor room in the home in which to box elements in the minimum space to add to the rest. The bathroom claims its space and demands not only to be considered as a functional place to go in and out. The more time, the more space, and that’s what the XXL trend is all about, to create new ways of ‘staying’ in it: a reading, a little music while preparing the bath or even a nap.
- The art collection – The jewel in the Crown
Turning the bathroom into a small gallery is a trend among those who have seen clearly that it is a better showcase for art than the walls of a corridor through which, as the name suggests, one only passes. Photographs, illustrations, sculptures, busts, lithographs, frames, among other objects of not necessarily economic value, find in the bathroom a blank canvas in which to make the room more interesting and look better.
- Eden – An oasis within an oasis
A bathroom cannot replace a garden or outdoor space, but it can become an oasis. The confinement has led to a boom of indoor plants, becoming great allies to add positive energy in the rooms of the home. Also and especially in the bathroom. In addition to regulating humidity and purifying the atmosphere, they refresh in summer and provide warmth in winter.
