A multi-billion dollar industry, home improvement has been a shot in the arm for the housing market. People are spending more and more to ‘improve’ their homes.
Whatever might be the reason — modernizing an old design, extracting more utility out of the available resources, or even bumping the resale value — home improvement has earned its acknowledgment as a legitimate industry.
And a big chunk of those multi-billion dollars is spent on remodeling the bathroom. Every year we see trends emerge in this industry, some of them bizarre while others potent enough to redefine our expectations.
Bathroom remodeling is not something you can do every year. It is a capital as well as a labor-intensive project (at least most of the time). So naturally, homeowners expect the design to hold its ground for at least a decade if not more; which makes defining trends tricky. Nevertheless, there are always buzzworthy things going on in the remodeling space which deserve a mention.
If you’re planning to renovate your bathroom, you definitely want to be aware of what’s hot and what’s not. Whether it is going green or having bathrooms with a single overarching theme; here are a few noteworthy trends that are expected to take over the remodeling space in 2024.
1. Create a Biophilic Design
Research shows that we are all calmer, happier, and more efficient when exposed to nature. Eco-friendly and sustainability have been the buzzwords to emulate all throughout 2021. And the principle has seeped into the world of remodeling. More and more homeowners are choosing greener materials and are being environmentally conscious.
A biophilic design simply implies your affinity towards nature. It’s not just about introducing the color green into your design; choosing reclaimed wood, recycled materials, efficient lighting, water-saving techniques, etc. are all elements of biophilic design.
Apart from the subtle design elements, you can have an entire wall dedicated to greenery. Potted plants, moss foot mats, natural lighting are evergreen elements that will always be in trend.
2. Invest in Space Saving Solutions
With the exponentially growing urbanization, space has become a luxury, at least in the major cities. Such an unprecedented crunch in available space has emerged as a challenge for designers everywhere.
Smaller utilitarian bathrooms have become the norm over the past few years, and the space is poised to see some brand new innovation in terms of products and design over the next few years.
Ditching the bathtub by embracing open showers, compact furniture, console vanities, etc. are a few ways by which homeowners have been gaining back the space inch by inch. Expect this miserliness to be cranked all the way up in 2024 and subsequent years.
3. Get Creative with Woodwork
Wood has been the dark horse material for bathroom decor for a very long time. Internationally, we have been seeing an uptick in wood being used as a luxury element in bathroom designing.
Be it wooden vanities, or walls lined with wood panels — bathrooms that sport this natural element tend to feel more open, welcoming, and warm. The cold, minimalism of ceramics is being replaced with wood and we are all up for it.
On top of that, you can also use reclaimed wood to contribute to the ever-growing “save our planet” movement. In any case, one thing to make sure is that the wood is impervious to water damage, whether on the surface or seeping in through cracks.
4. The Comeback of a Classic White Bathroom
Trends may come and trends may go, but the classic white bathroom stays forever.
It is surreal to watch the tug of war between the classic designs and their more modern iterations. As soon as one of them starts getting the upper hand, the other one swoops in and balances the scale all over again. In that sense, going with a classic white bathroom is one of the safest design choices, as it will be trendy no matter what happens.
What’s new this time around is the addition of marble and a more minimalist approach to the classic job. Heavy industrial-style fixtures that provide a raw feel to the design are great examples of the juxtaposition of the classic decor with bold new designs.
5. Try Standalone Tubs
The trend of having a standalone tub is something, like many others, that has spilled over from the luxury section into our lives.
A standalone tub used to be reserved for huge bathrooms, while everyone else had to be content with the shower-tub hybrid. Not anymore though. The design element has gained traction over the past few months and is expected to make it big next year.
A style statement in itself, standalone tubs can also be paired with other design choices to get the most out of your investment. They work perfectly well in biophilic bathrooms for instance.
The tub itself is no longer limited to being white and plain, with several different colors and shapes available in the market. You can even make the tub the center of attraction by placing it in the middle of the room. Truly the only limit is your imagination.
6. Create a Spa-Room
Ah! Spas. We all love them, don’t we? Imagine having a private spa to yourself where you can unwind and relax after a long day. That’s what our next trend is all about.
There has been a growing trend of turning the humble bathroom into a spa-like experience if you have the space and the resources to do it. We are very excited about this direction the bathroom is taking, and are (obviously) calling it the SpaRoom.
The standard design elements will include wood, especially bamboo. But you can choose anything as long as you find the space relaxing. Scented candles, mood lighting, clutter-free storage and floor plan, etc. are some of the common elements that go into making a SpaRoom.
7. Brighten Things Up
This trend works on a few different levels, but all of them point to the same core objective — making your bathroom pop out immediately.
One of the ways you can do it is by introducing color to your bathroom. Yes, it sounds odd, but trust us, we have seen some really colorful tubs & vanities and we love them. Bright colors like yellow, aqua blue, orange, etc. are all fair game.
Another way of brightening things up is the lighting. Light fixtures are probably the single most underrated developments in home improvement over the past few years. LED strips, pendant lights, etc. are leading the charge — and gone are the days with single-source lighting.
To make things even brighter, you can let the natural light flood in, Though it will depend on whether your bathroom has windows or not.
8. Open Showers
Lately, people have been ditching the tub completely and instead opting for an open shower. Something this simple has made way for bold, design choices which are expected to trend throughout 2024.
The ‘tub ditching’ movement started out as a necessity for smaller bathrooms. The tubs were seldom used, took up extra space, and were even dangerously slippery a lot of the times. So, naturally, people started getting rid of the tubs.
As a result, showers stepped into the limelight and we got a look at open showers in all their glory. Providing an open and spacious feel to your bathroom, open showers are here to stay. Just make sure that the drainage is upto the mark and the rest of the bathroom is not overly exposed to water damage.
