Bathroom Blend-in
2
Dec
Poster from : Â blimpcat on Etsy
As the owner of this Etsy shop who sells this poster, stated there and I agree : ” I think Inayat Khan was more talking about keeping the proper perspective on life than meditating on the role of interior designers in society, but it’s a lovely sentiment even if your interpretation leans toward picking paint swatches and mid-century furniture.”
Yes, it is a lovely thought and let that inspire us today to make the world around us beautiful.
And for a moment pretend that that also applies to the rooms in our houses. That is really the reason why I love to decorate my house. It feels like you try to put some beauty into something which would otherwise remain brick and mortar – all in an attempt to lift your spirit when you are in that room or to create a feeling of well-ness, especially in an expat world where you have to turn a house into a home so many times over.
So, today’s post is a build-onto the post on the Guest Room which, if you have not read it, you can find here.
And I think you have guessed it already….the bottomline of what I am about to tell you…
If you have an en-suite bathroom, that is directly related to a specific room in the house, then try your best to blend that bathroom in with the color scheme and “look-and-feel” of the adjacent room. This is not only for the  guest room, but same goes for a Master Bedroom, which are usually the rooms lucky enough to have a bathroom right next door.
My guest bathroom is in completely neutral colours (thank you, mr Landlord). That means you have a clean palette to start with, but it also means that you have no walls to paint or any other color elements and need to create all that with what you put into the room.
Obviously nr 1 colour fixer is your towels and bath and shower mats. I put towels on the rails out (otherwise you strip your bathroom from colour), but when I have guests, I take these extra towels (on the bidet in the picture), fold them nicely, put a nice brown ribbon (maybe a chocolate brown one with polka dots?) and leave it out on the bed on arrival.
This way, the guests already have a second set of towels, should they need it during a long stay. I don’t like going in to the bathrooms during their stay to go change towels….and leave it up to them to throw it in the wash and use a fresh one if that is before I perhaps felt the need.
I painted and re-covered an old piano chair to have a type of seat as I find it quite handy in a bathroom – even to just throw your clothes down while in bath.
I once wanted a scale that measures BMI – thinking cap on – I decided to buy it in the color of the guest bath, so I could have the second scale down here instead of 2 in my bathroom. But it helps when you constantly think about your colour schemes and rooms so that you furnish them as you go along.
I had a chocolate brown silk gown which I don’t use often, so again – instead of leaving it in my closet, I hang it out here behind the door for the guest. No need to buy one. A robe is another item I think comes in handy in a guest bath as I never take mine when travelling – but you get one in a hotel, right?
Need to make the point once again – this is not a must-have list….. but if you have it, go pull it out and put it here !
Thinking HOTEL again, I try to provide guests with any possible thing I can think of that they might need. You don’t have to rush out and go buy all that – nobody can afford that anyway. But many times I get gift bags, promotional items, a big source is airline toiletry bags you used to get, gift bags from gala dinners that sponsors throw in and I buy over time – sometimes many years (after all – a guest only uses so much hairspray in one visit)….but I try to keep in the back of my mind the main idea …so, that it all comes together when you throw them together.
As I said … my blank canvas was handy, but I used various things to re-iterate the color scheme….. a napkin in a basket in the color of the walls of the guest room…. I buy products – purely to match the colors… you will not find a pink shampoo bottle in this room – why ? It costs the same, it makes a huge difference on the eye.
On to a next point – guests are sometimes reluctant to use items stored away in cupboards. Maybe it is just there for storage and not for use – so, you feel uncertain pulling things out and start using them.
But, at the same time – I feel awkward using a shampoo that looks like it is out there in use by somebody….and then happily start use it as my own.
So – I make it VERY obvious that they can feel free to use anything. One thing is to make it all look like a collection – in the color scheme (we don’t live this way, right – in my own bathroom I don’t choose products by color, but by preference). So the whole colour coding helps people understand that it is specially there for them and as a ‘guest collection’ .
Have it OUT and right there where they can USE it for eg on the bathtub, on the countertop etc.
But only put those things out that can be considered “pretties”.
Do you like my little “TOOTH-brush holder? I did  specially buy the set for the lotion and toothbrushes, because I thought the little “TOOTH”  was too cute…and as it happened to be in my color scheme, it was waving wildly to me from the shop shelves !
Those things that you want your guests to use, but they don’t really adhance the look and feel of the room, rather tuck them away in drawers….open them up as you welcome your guests in their room and tell them – “Please help yourself to anything in here, it is for your use”. That’s enough encouragement for them to stock and supply themselves from your drawers for items they might want but won’t ask.
This goes without saying – but remember to always use only wastebins with lids. No open bins in bathrooms !
Just a little trivia – the hairdryer in the photo a little up, is actually one that my friend lent me one day and said I could keep it ! ALmost 9 years ago while I was a guest in her house and she did not need it. I kept it and now it perfectly matches. THis is the same friend who is coming to visit me this week ! How fun. And to re-cap on this rule of what is IN and what is OUT. Â If the hairdryer was purple, I would have tucked it into the drawer, but now it is out.
So, don’t buy now – just discreetly decide where to place things – IN or OUT.
Well – that goes as far as things of use.
After this, there is no limits to adding fun elements to add personality to your bathroom.
I love candles in a bathroom and found these votives with paper glued onto the glass, they make a beautiful shine-through effect when all lit up.
ps – if you are one of those super analytical people – don’t kill yourself trying to orientate the room – it has doors leading into it from two sides!! Hence the doors are both sides of some pictures. You are not crazy, in case you noticed.
I had fun sharing my Guest room and Blend-in Bathroom with you.
Now I can close the door on these two rooms and wait for my guests to arrive and leave them peacefully in this space during their stay.
If you feel inspired to go glam up your bathroom a bit, don’t despair.
Leave a comment here today and you will be in the run for my blog giveaway that is coming up to kick-start a new bathroom for you !!
Ilze
Comments
7 responses to Bathroom Blend-inLeave a Response
Comments that do not contribute constructively to the conversation at hand, contain profanity, personal attacks or seek to promote a personal or unrelated business, will not be published.
My name is 
Hi Ilze, I am so happy to know that you had a power to update your blog after what happened to you with the workers. Thank you for brightening my day with your wonderful writing and pictures 🙂 take care. Have a wonderful weekend!
Loving the blue ducky! 🙂
I would love to stay in your HOTEL, Ilze. You are so detail! Wish, I could be like you, someday!
Can I be your guest? I would love to have a day off and just hide in your guestroom and enjoy your bathroom!
Yvonne
Can I be your guest? I would love to have a day off and just hide in your guest room and enjoy your bathroom!
Yvonne
hello ilze, i love the quote – “some people look for a beautiful place, others make a place beautiful” – and want to add, “and some bring beauty just be being”. you bring beauty to others through your blog. i have no time for decorating, but the care and detail you put into your work here is wonderful. joy to you!
Thank you Noreen – that is such kind words. Beautiful comment !