How to Design a Modern & Welcoming Guest Bathroom
June 13, 2019When you have the opportunity to design and build your own custom home, you get to have a say in every detail. A custom home is built to suit your tastes, lifestyle, needs, and specifications. The only time you may need to consider someone else is when it comes to your family and, perhaps, your guests. This is especially true if your custom home layout will include a guest bedroom and guest bathroom. Here’s how to design a modern & welcoming guest bathroom:
1. Consider Function and Use
The biggest thing to decide when planning guest bathrooms in your custom home is what the bathroom’s primary use will be. If it’s beside a guest bedroom, then a full bathroom is probably a good idea. If you have muddy feet tromping through the house, or paws, then a ¾ bath is likely more suitable.
It will give you the shower space necessary to keep the rest of your home clean, after all. If you’re just looking for a powder room for guests, then a ½ bath will do just fine. Putting thought into your specific situation will benefit the planning process greatly.
2. Determine the Right Location
Placement of your guest bathroom is paramount. After examining its primary uses, deciding where to put it will be natural. For example, in a sports-playing home, your little athletes would most benefit from having a bathroom closest to the entrance – especially if you don’t have a mudroom. The whole family will thank you when the carpets – and kids – stay clean.
If you have guests over often, it’s generally a good idea to keep the guest bathroom in a more remote area. After all, certain business should remain private. So putting a bathroom in the living room or kitchen may not be entirely comfortable for guests, or for your family.
3. Think About What You Would Want as a Guest
Before you jump into working with your custom home designer on the guest bathroom, take a moment and think about what you would want as a guest. Consider the experiences you have had as a guest yourself in other people’s homes and in hotels.
What elements made your stay more comfortable? Was there anything missing or uncomfortable? Thinking about these experiences can help you design a guest bathroom that avoids obvious pitfalls and is built for someone else’s comfort.
4. Cover the Basics
It may be tempting to have a half bath or powder room as your guest bathroom. This can be a fine solution for houseguests who are just visiting and not staying overnight. But. if you often have overnight guests that stay a little longer, then you’ll want to make sure there is a full bathroom available for them where they can shower and clean up comfortably.
5. Make Sure There is Enough Space
No one likes to feel cramped. Although you don’t need to sacrifice a ton of square footage to your guest bathroom, you should make sure it is big enough for someone to move around comfortably. This will help make your guests’ stays far smoother and more comfortable. Plus, it will reduce the chance of painful trips, falls, toe stubs, and more.
6. Include Plenty of Storage
Depending on how often you use the guest bathroom, you may not need as much storage. However, you still want to make sure there is plenty of storage available for your needs. You don’t need deep closets and sprawling cabinets for a bathroom that isn’t used often, but you should have enough space for a few sets of towels, extra toilet paper, some toiletries, and cleaning supplies.
7. Add Welcoming Touches
Once you have the layout down, think about the overall look and feel you want your guest bathroom to have. It should be light, warm, inviting, and welcoming for your guests. There are plenty of ways to spruce up a guest bathroom to create a truly welcoming experience for your guests.
And, oftentimes, it’s the small little details and personal touches that make a difference. Something as simple as an extra toothbrush or a handwritten welcome note can go a long way in making your guest feel a little more at home.
There are a lot of details that come with designing and building a custom home. Figuring out how to design a modern & welcoming guest bathroom is just one of them. Instead of getting overwhelmed by all of the details, partner with an experienced custom home builder, especially one that has an in-house design/build process.
They’ll walk you through the entire process and help you handle the details so you can enjoy the journey to your custom home stress-free. If you’re ready to start moving towards your custom home, contact Custom Home Group at 717-284-4090 and make your dream home a reality!