Have you ever walked into a bathroom and felt overwhelmed by towels, ornaments, cleaning products, baskets, brushes and toiletries all fighting for your attention? Yeah, me too. In my defence I did grow up in a house with an ensuite the size of a cupboard so it took me a while to realise less really is more when it comes to bathroom clutter.
It wasn’t until I was packing up my bathroom essentials ready to move house three years ago that I discovered the art of minimalist bathroom design. Determined to get the house empty before the removal men came, I emptied everything into boxes ready to decorate (clearly moving home didn’t stress me out at all). I ended up living with only the necessities – a bathmat, one towel, one candle and the bare minimum when it came to toiletries – while I waited for my furniture to arrive.
Expecting life to feel super Spartan, I soon realised I didn’t miss any of the items I had boxed up and felt happier leaving the bathroom barely decorated at all. Here’s what I learned about creating a minimalist bathroom: Try Marie Kondo’s theory of editing before you buy.
If it doesn’t spark joy or have a specific purpose, leave it!
Trust me, I used to own half a drawer of ‘fun’ soap dispensers that didn’t match the sink, dusty little decorative bowls I found ‘pretty’ and couldn’t resist buying, along with litres of my favourite reed diffuser. I quickly realised that if I was going to maintain a simplistic bathroom vibe I needed to ask myself three questions every time I wanted to bring something home. Does it solve a problem?
Do I love it? Can I easily clean it? Invest in clever storage.
To begin with, I got rid of a bulky bathroom cabinet and replaced it with a wall hung vanity with concealed storage. Not only did I instantly have the same amount of storage without sacrificing surface space but having the illusion of floor space also made the room feel bigger. It cost me about £50 more than your standard bathroom cabinet but trust me when I say it was worth the splurge.
Only keep one towel out. When I lived in Australia I never understood why people had towel racks with only one towel hanging. How would you dry yourself?
I’m pretty sure I had four towels on display at any one time in my tiny bathroom. Now I only have one luxe cloud-like towel* hung on my heated towel rail and keep the rest stored away in a cupboard in the hallway. Fill it with colour.
One thing I love about living in London is that our apartment has HUGE windows which means lots of natural light. I painted my bathroom walls Farrow & Ball’s Borrowed Light, which is a beautiful pale blue-grey hue. It brightens up the room without being too bold and adds texture that makes the room feel cosy. *Update*_paint shade is Portofino btw.
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Only display two plants on the bathroom shelf. Annoyingly I’ve killed every plant I’ve ever owned so I needed to choose ones that were pretty hard to kill. I love how a trailing plant like pothos looks in the bathroom – it looks lush and green without trying too hard.
I keep mine on the top shelf where it gets lots of humidity from the shower. My other plant is a Snake Plant which is also super resilient and lives on the windowsill. Sometimes I see people with three plants in the bathroom and it’s instantly overcrowded.
Remember: less is more. Add simple, flattering lighting. Under cabinet lighting may be a big kitchen trend but overhead bathroom lights can feel super harsh.
I loved the idea of having wall lights mounted either side of the mirror – it’s way more flattering than a central light and creates that mood lighting vibe we all crave. Opt for two smaller lights instead of replacing your big brass number – you’ll never look anything less than Instagram ready. Opt for a simple mirror.
For the longest time I lived with a big, brassy looking mirror in my bathroom which I thought would make the space feel bigger. Looking back it overpowered the room and I avoided spending time in there at all costs.
I replaced it with this simple circle mirror with a thin brass frame* and it completely changed the mood.
You want your mirror to reflect light – not steal the show. Keep your surfaces clear at all times. Like I mentioned earlier I only have three items permanently on display on my bathroom basin: hand soap, a succulent and this scallop tray.
It holds everything I need within easy reach (face cream, toothbrush, cotton buds, hand sanitiser) while still giving the illusion of having tons of space. I often get complimented on how clean and organised our bathroom looks when friends visit but truth is I can’t put stuff on the surfaces because there is literally nowhere to put stuff! Focus on adding texture.
A cosy cotton bathmat, some natural woven baskets and wooden toothbrush holders are just a few ways you can add texture to your bathroom without taking away from counter space. *update_add in links below The moral of this story? Treat your bathroom like a piece of jewellery you wear every day. You only wear one ring at a time, one necklace, one bracelet and one pair of earrings.
Why fill your bathroom with thousands of pieces of clutter when you can have less, but beautiful? Minimalism is actually the new maximalism.
