15 Modern Bathroom Ideas to Jazz Up Your Renovation
Your bathroom is more than just a functional space; it’s a canvas for modern design and relaxation. Between preparing for the day, personal upkeep, and unwinding after work, you may spend more time in this room than you realize—and it's worth investing in the space to make it stylish and functional.
When redesigning your bathroom, you want to fully utilize the space without overcrowding and making it feel cluttered. Partnering with the right architect is beneficial as they account for the room’s size, space, light, and aesthetic to create a harmonious design.
Selecting the right elements that fit the design of your bathroom is vital; the choices you make for a spacious primary ensuite may overwhelm a humble guest bath. You must account for factors such as room footprint, required and desired fixtures, and plumbing considerations and how these merge to achieve your ideal bathroom. In addition to the bathroom itself, its aesthetic should work within the style of your home to create a cohesive visual flow between spaces.
Whether you’re seeking inspiration for a compact bathroom or envisioning a luxurious primary bathroom, here are some ideas for your next renovation project.
1. Tile Makes a Statement in this Midcentury Oregon Home
Penny Black Interiors updated a Jack-and-Jill bathroom that showed its age in a 1954 Portland, Oregon, home. They turned it into a modern primary ensuite and swapped out outdated finishes for modern gold fixtures that appear even more luxe when offset with handmade white and gray Bubble Hex tile from the Futura collection at Clayhaus Tile.
Heather and Brad transformed a former Minnesota bachelor-style pad into an elegant family home, overhauling the indoor style with California modernism. Their primary ensuite has a picturesque soaker tub positioned by a window with a great view. The built-in fireplace, which they have used as a design feature to anchor other ebony features, makes it feel even more luxurious.
Amy Tangerine worked with Dan Brunn Architecture to turn her home into a quirky, lavish abode in Los Angeles, California. The primary bathroom, in particular, has exquisite balance, creating almost identical dimensions for the soaker tub and shower. This large bathroom fills with natural light thanks to the floor-to-ceiling windows. One of the finer details is the sliding glass door on the shower side, which opens to enable the user the sensation of showering in the fresh outdoor air.
Well-known architect Paul Rudolph redesigned this midcentury-modern home near a Greenwich, Connecticut river. Staying true to the characteristics of the house, Rudolph incorporates structural features as visual artistic elements. One example is the sliding partition doors off the bathroom, which open to the hallway to fill the home with more natural light and views of the forest in the backyard.
Architect Ralph Haver built this Phoenix, Arizona, home back in 1949. The recent remodel stays true to the home’s original style and rustic finishes, even in the bathrooms. This bathroom features dual sinks, floating vanities, leather-finish granite countertops, and a floor-to-ceiling glass shower wall. The combination of white subway tile and earthy green penny tile adds a touch of character and warm color to the bathroom.
Homeowners Nico and Élia recently gave their 17th-century stone home in Begur, Spain, a more modern interior. In this bathroom, they introduced colorful diamond tile in various ocean blue hues along the shower's far wall and the bathtub's outside, giving the room greater dimension. They also added a towel rack modeled after a traditional harvest ladder to tie some history to the bathroom.
Architect Aarne Ervi built the classic Villa Koivikko in 1958 on a lakeside just outside Helsinki. When Studio Petra Majantie and Oopeaa recently restored the building, they had to design the bathroom without the home’s original plans. They used matte-glass mosaic flooring, ceramic tiles matching the living area's hearth, and copper fixtures. High windows let in a lot of natural light, but they added undercabinet lighting and built-in cabinet lighting to create a beautiful balance.
Designed by Charles Gwathmey in 1967, this 1,200-square-foot home in The Hamptons, New York, has minimal space for a sizable lower-level bathroom. While the design makes excellent use of limited space, with a stacked washer and dryer tucked in the corner, there is little area for drastic changes. Along with upgraded fixtures and finishes, the bathroom redesign adds a sunny yellow pocket door for a burst of color.
Larger bathrooms enable more opportunities to be creative with the space. Ralph Spencer Twitchell designed this 1956 Fort Meyers, Florida, home with a large secondary bathroom. In the home’s redesign, this bathroom features a large glass and stone shower complemented by the design choice of the oversized vanity—which also allows users more drawer space to eliminate countertop clutter.
Dallas, Texas, architect Lionel Morrison is known for his modernist designs, and this bathroom stays true to the style. Clean lines, double vanities, a walk-in closet, and a free-standing soaker tub are some of the room’s amenities, but the full-length marble feature wall steals the show.
Jerry Sparkman of Sweet Sparkman Architects led the renovation of this 1960s ranch in Sarasota, Florida, turning it into a modern home. While most of this spacious bathroom remains white or light gray (aside from the bold sinks), the design incorporates coastal blue in the shower and details throughout the bathroom. These hues are picked up beautifully from the natural light through the shower’s tempered glass and the room’s custom lighting.
Julie Dowling is the architect behind the recent renovation of this midcentury-modern San Francisco home. In the primary bathroom, large mirrors above the expansive double vanities reflect the lush greenery out the windows, while the medium hardwood floors add visual warmth to the space. Though the room seems inspired by nature, this bathroom also features a hidden built-in television.
Designed to look like a cluster of barns, this getaway in Portola Valley, California offers more than meets the eye. Walker Warner Architects wanted to create a chic, contemporary annex for the homeowners. The primary bathroom is cloaked in the calming light gray and minimal aesthetic of Scandinavian style, making this large bathroom feel more like a relaxing spa getaway.
San Rafael, California, is home to many Eichler homes. Like many Eichlers, this home is bright and airy, and the bathroom is no exception. The honeycomb tile covers the entire floor, from the walk-in shower, under the double vanity, and to the door. Simplicity gives this bathroom a calm atmosphere, but the pops of color tie the room into the contemporary aesthetic of the rest of the home.
When Drew Mandel Architects expanded and remodeled a 1924 home in Toronto, Ontario, they focused on the details to bring warmth into the home—like the wood beams and gold-finished details in the bathrooms. Whether redoing a primary bathroom or powder room, a sink can add to the aesthetic. The homeowner built this custom stone sink with a white oak base, but you can find many unique sinks and bathroom fixtures through contractors, brick-and-mortar locations, or online.
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