A handy glossary of bathroom taps

‘You learn something new every day’ is one of those typical sayings that you unfortunately tend to hear every day. I suppose cliché is cliché because it’s popular and because it contains at least a pinch of truth.

When myself and my boyfriend redesigned our bathrooms last year I definitely learnt something new, and that was about the endless types of taps there are to choose from out there! 

You might think that taps are just a useful thing in order to get access to running water… wrong! When designing a bathroom it is essential that the taps are stylish enough, and that they go with the rest of the interior. I have put together a rough glossary on just taps. Have a read…

Monobloc

Those of you who’ve nailed those ancient languages will be able to figure the meaning of this tap design. Monobloc means ‘of one piece’ and refer to taps that consist of one solid pillar, not two separate handles or knobs. These are good for minimalist designs or rooms where space is at a premium.

Waterfall

These are one of my favourite taps, as I think they’re extremely stylish. With something as straightforward as a tap, it can be hard to put a fresh twist on things, but these manage to achieve it. The water is delivered as a beautiful waterfall, which is a great feature for a bathroom. It feels kind of luxury, somehow.

Pull Out

A pull out tap features a separate hose that – you guessed it – pulls out. These are most popular in the kitchen, as they give extra scope for cleaning both pots and pans and the surrounding area itself, but can of course be used in a bathroom as well. 

Swivel Spout

At the risk of being patronising here, the title is again very much explanatory. Come on, we’re not talking about a towel radiator or shower here, taps are pretty unfussy! A swivel spout is, like the above, most suited to kitchens, where you can move the spout between separate sinks or drains. These tend to have high drooping heads, and look quite elegant and modern.

Mixer

Mixer taps combine the two streams of water to produce one flow of the correct temperature. These have two separate adjustment handles so you can balance your competing flows. These are very much the go-to bathroom taps, as they come in a wide range of attractive styles.

I realised I actually never featured my new bathrooms after we designed them, but don’t worry – I promise you can have a sneak peek at them soon.

Small but essential bathroom items

Nothing is too small to ever make a difference. This principle applies in terms of design too, and especially in the bathroom. It is one of the main rooms in the home where practicality and looks clash forcefully, demanding a delicate balancing act with respect to design.

Below are three things which, though understated, I feel are essential to the proper operation of a quality bathroom. 

 Wastes

No, not great swathes of open ground, but the items fitted to your baths and showers. They have an unglamorous but important role; a proper waste will ensure your power shower doesn’t drown your bathroom floor, while the models fitted with a special basket can catch not only hair but also rings and other expensive bits and pieces that you’d rather not see disappear off down into public plumbing. 

Taps

Yes, I’m well aware that taps, such as they are, are not necessarily given a low billing. The extra point I’m trying to make here about taps is how much of an impact they can have on the overlook aspect of a room once installed in place. For example, buying a sink of a contemporary design is great for your modern bathroom, but not if you team it with clunky traditional taps. Try a waterfall tap for something truly cutting edge instead. 

Radiator Valves

Utility and aesthetics also need to meet when it comes to radiator valves. These come in two different types; standard and thermostatic radiator valves, and they differ in terms of how they operate and look. Put simply, a thermostatic radiator valve will maintain your temperature for you, activating and deactivating the unit as needed. A standard valve will merely act as a tap, and will ensure the radiator pumps out the same heat regardless of temperature. Standard valves are also much smaller than thermo models, making them ideal for clutter-free minimalist bathroom designs. 

Colour coordination

Everyone obviously has different tastes when it comes to furnishing and decorating their homes, but one thing I think we've all got in common is that we like to colour coordinate. It doesn't matter whether it's just a light version of it - a matching cushion and a table cloth - or if you go all out and match all decorations in a room.

I absolutely love colour coordinating! My own livingroom has orange and green decorations it it, with a beige base.
The on trend colour this year is a dusky kind of purple or almost pink, so I've chosen to compile a little example of how you can decorate your livingroom with this particular colour, with a white base.

What I've used in this example:

Sultan glass canisters from zgallerie.com 

Sheer curtains from target.com

Dreamy Eiffel Tower Paris photography from Etsy

Decorative books from Etsy 

Round pouf pillow from lampsplus.com

White Isala Coffee table from IKEA

3 seat Chesterfield sofa from Sylvester Oxford

Narrow Belgravia bookcase with drawers from Sylvester Oxford

What do you think of my dusky purple and white fantasy livingroom? I feel as if I want to rip out my own livingroom right now and start redecorating! It's a good thing we're still to build our new diningroom - at least I'll have that to decorate from scratch. Sometime in the future...

Do you tend to colour coordinate your home decorations and furniture?

Autumn decorations from nature

 

Don't you just love the colours of Autumn?

All the natural hues of red, brown and burnt amber.

Take advantage of all the pretty things from nature, and use them for your Autumn home decorations.

There are several ways of being creative with apples, pumpkins, leaves and cones.

Have a look at my collage above - I hope you too will get inspired! 

Recycle old doors as decoration

My latest décor inspiration is antique doors.

I’ve come across so many pretty DIY posts about them lately that I thought I’d show you my favourite ones.

Enjoy, and be prepared to get inspired!

 I think it's absolutely brilliant to recycle a door as a livingroom table. It gives the room a more interesting feeling. Just watch out for where you put your glass on an uneven surface!

In this case, the table reminds me of a bar table. It looks amazing paired with those metal bar stools.

This beautiful white door is being used as a dinner table. To avoid accidents, the owner has chosen to add a piece of glass on top, to even out the surface.

 Spice up your bedroom with a door headboard!

 You don't have to be creative with an old door. You can simply use it as decoration as it is, and just hang it up on the wall, or alternatively lean it against it.

Have you gotten your hands on an antique window door? Why not make it into a quirky bookcase? 

 ... or perhaps stick a mirror in it and place it in your hallway?

 A great way of making the best use of an old door with a window in it is to make it into a giant photoframe. In this case, it's also being used as a coat hanger.

Do you like the idea of recycling old doors? Which idea is your favourite?