Bath Products Review: Pride & VanityManufacturers show off with furniture-style pieces.

Long relegated to the living room and bedroom, designer furniture is making a splashy appearance in an unexpected place: the bathroom. Leading the charge are eye-catching vanity-and-sink combinations that bespeak luxury and offer design appeal for homeowners looking to make their bathroom stand out from the crowd.

These fashion-savvy homeowners take their inspiration from spa resorts or chic boutique hotels, says Tristan McManaman, marketing director for Walker Zanger. "People spend a lot of time in these very luxurious bathrooms," he says. "They go home and say, 'Why can't I have all those luxurious amenities at home?' The answer is, they can."

Essential to that experience is a customized look, carried out with classy furniture and a unifying design. In many homes, the master bath vanity is becoming an extension of the bedroom. "The furnishing of the master bedroom is really starting to migrate into the master bath, so they can coordinate the designing of the master suite," says Michael Terrill, senior product manager for lavatories and furniture at Kohler.

Convenient Combinations
While some manufacturers offer only pre-fabricated vanity sets, many allow customers to pick and choose their desired combination of vanity and top. Vanity-and-sink combinations come with a top that matches and fits properly, even if the vanity isn't a standard size. "They give you some unique looks and some unique sizes and shapes that are designed to go with the vanity," says Marc Nover, general manager at Villeroy & Boch.

The company's Viva line, for example, features a unique basin that a customer couldn't find in a store. Using the basin with an existing vanity would require extensive custom work, Nover says.

Vanity-and-sink combinations crafted by a manufacturer also offer customers confidence that they were intended for use in the bathroom. "The reason we design them together is so we know everything works well together," says Gray Uhl, director of design for American Standard and its luxury line Porcher. The vanities are speced for maximum storage space while allowing the water to flow properly to the faucet, he says.

American Standard's Cascada vanity, for example, has drawers that work around the plumbing. "When you pull them open, they're channeled and partitioned to let the supply line come up," he says. With existing furniture the customer must either spend a lot of time and work modifying it or screw the drawers in place and just have the look without the storage.

Another hazard of modifying antique or store-bought vanities is that they may not be finished to hold up in the bathroom. "[Customers] want to make sure it ... can survive in a warm, moist environment," Uhl notes.

If a client craves a vessel sink, it's important to take the material of the vanity top into account. Stone or tile work best, says designer Patricia Gaylor, owner of Patricia Gaylor Interiors in Little Falls, N.J., but wood can be used with the proper finish, such as a marine varnish. Or consider using the vessel sink in the powder room. Uhl recommends asking your clients, "Is it something you want to live with every day?"

Proper Toppers
A splashy sink can set the tone for a well-designed vanity. Vessel sinks, for instance, are an increasingly popular way to provide a unique design element. Meanwhile, stone or glass basins offer a clean, modern look that lends "an Asian or Zen sort of approach" to the bathroom, Gaylor says. She says that with modern fixtures designed to come out of the wall or rise higher from the vanity top, above-counter basins provide an extra detail that customers love.

Modern vanities with simple lines, natural materials, and harmonious details also fit in well with the spa-inspired motif, she says.

To support these trends, many manufacturers offer collections of bathroom furniture that stick with a single design theme. A tub with a wood frame, for example, will match the vanity, the mirror, and even the toilet. "It saves time," Terrill says. "You don't have to scour the globe for a piece that matches."

Designer collections also can offer homeowners peace of mind. "It's a safer decision for them to take the lead from the manufacturer," he says.

--BUILDING PRODUCTS