Trendwatch | Tactile textures
This month's trend moodboard looks at the use of tactile textures within the bathroom. Moving beyond the modern rustic style we've seen a lot of in recent years, here things are mixed up a little with the introduction of bold tribal patterns and a darker colour palette.
Images (clockwise from top left): 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
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What makes a great bathroom?
According to Leonard Koren in Undesigning the Bath
A holistic approach to bathing is an idea that is deeply rooted in many cultures - from hammams to Native American sweat lodges. The bathroom is a profoundly personal space, one in which we long to be able to luxuriate and guiltlessly linger over our daily cleansing rituals. Yet all too often our bathrooms are functional spaces in which the more sensual and emotional aspects of design are neglected. Smooth hard, shiny surfaces tend to dominate and textural contrast is easily neglected.
This moodboard offers up some visual inspiration for redressing that balance.
Above: Rough textures and handcrafted accessories help to evoke the idea of a more rustic, fundamental or even primordial bathing experience.
- Textured accents like a rustic handwoven basket or a string of beads help bring a space to life.
- Driftwood introduces sensual organic shapes with a smooth, worn, tactile finish.
- A 'wooden' concrete wall effect is achieved by setting concrete in a wooden mould. As the concrete dries it takes on the grain and characteristics of wood.
- Contemporary luxury is all about fulfilling sensual as well as functional needs. With its cross hatch weave effect surface pattern and uncomplicated form this glass washbowl comfortingly hints at a simpler way of life.
Images (clockwise from top left): 1 | 2 | 3
Above: Tactile surfaces offer up an antidote to an increasingly digital landscape in which we experience the world via our screens rather than by directly touching and feeling.
- Textured stonework in contrasting colours and shapes will add depth and interest to a space.
- Artwork with a relief or textured surface directs our attention towards touch and feel.
- This geometric embroidered blanket handwoven by Berber artisans in Moroccan would be perfect for adding a textured, tribal accent.
Images (clockwise from top left): 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
Above:
- Tribal patterns represent the idea of travel, nomadic lifestyles and our interest in exploring alternative cultures. A reaction against modernity perhaps and the idea of the bathroom as a white, functional, modernist space that lacks 'soul'?
- Tiles can be decorative as well as functional. Inspired by the nature of cement, Patricia Urquiola's Déchirer tiles in unglazed porcelain stoneware have a distinct, yet delicate texture. The surface of the tiles is imprinted with snatches of different patterns, evoking the presence of a timeworn material.
The wash bowls and tiles featured in this post can be sourced at C.P. Hart. Visit their website for a full list of showrooms as well as trade information. For more inspiration head over to Design Hunter's Tactile Textures Pinterest board.
In collaboration with CP Hart.
