Bathroom Accessories

When you first move in to a new home or apartment, it seems the bathroom is the first room you want to “personalize”, perhaps because it's the smallest room and most easily redecorated. If you're one of those who enjoys a long, relaxing bath, you understand the need to have your bathroom be a little oasis of luxury where you can soak your cares away in beautiful surroundings. Even on a modest budget, you can make your bathroom attractive and inviting.

A coat of paint, window coverings and a nice shower curtain is a good starting point. However, it's your bathroom accessories, the little touches, which make all the difference. Bathroom accessories run the gamut from art work to toothbrush holders. Many of these individual items are inexpensive, so you can take the add-as-you-go approach if need be. Sometimes this method works best, because you'll take your time to find the perfect bathroom accessories.

Once you've established your basic color scheme, work from here to fill out your decorating scheme. It's best to begin with the larger bathroom accessories, in order to achieve a unified look.

Some of the larger bathroom accessories include items like toiletry cabinets, waste baskets, bath mats and towel bars. Naturally, these will be noticed first as part of your color scheme and style of decorating. Choose colors, textures and materials that fit into your overall scheme.

For example, if your walls are painted in an eggshell color, with a rust colored shower curtain, you have two avenues to explore in filling out your selection of bathroom accessories. You may choose similar tones or go for contrasting colors for your bathroom accessories.

If your choice is similar tones, a natural rattan toiletry cabinet will fit in nicely, as will a wicker waste basket and warm tones for bath mats and towels. Slight variations in the colors of these bath accessories will give you a better result than colors which are exactly the same. Oak or brass towel racks will also go well in this scenario.

If you'd like a more lively look, consider colors that are on the opposite side of the color wheel. For example, a rust-colored shower curtain will contrast nicely with teal blue tones in your bath mats. Shades between teal blue and forest green will look good in this grouping. Following through on the contrasting approach, you'll find brightly colored plastic towels racks in shades that are just right for your scheme. Oak and brass towel racks will also work.

Now it's time to look for the accent bath accessories, such as soap dishes, toothbrush holders and the like. Small glass vases with dried flowers can add a homey touch, as will live plants. Ferns and many vining plants do very well in bathrooms and add a lot of charm. If you're the one who looks forward to the long soak in the bath, be sure to have an attractive candle holder to finish off your bathroom accessories shopping list!