Building With Style: Big Ideas for Small Bathrooms

The world has seen too many bathrooms of the same mold. I refer to what has become the standard for small to medium-sized bathrooms: a tub along a 5-foot wall, a toilet, and a 30- to 48-inch vanity topped with a small, recessed, mirrored medicine cabinet illuminated by a strip of round theatrical lights. It’s the epitome of blandness—all function, no inspiration. But are there alternatives when all these elements are necessary and space inhibits a more imaginative design? I will describe some options I have found in trying to design bathrooms that are functional yet stylistically responsive and interesting, while accepting the condition of limited space. A primary problem in the standard bathroom I’ve described is the lavatory/ vanity unit, or