As a rule, the position of the vanity unit is dictated by the pre-existing water connections and drain. When there are no such limiting factors, the planner has a free hand to choose the optimal location. Because it’s used so often, the vanity should be positioned as centrally as possible and be accessible without having to make any major detours. Its location in relation to the window is also important: while innovative lighting systems for the mirror cabinet can provide functional and emotional light at any time of day, natural daylight can have a negative effect if it hits the bathroom “workstation” at an unfavourable angle, resulting in shadows or direct sunlight.

The wall the vanity unit is mounted on plays a special role – not only because the bathroom users spend a long time looking at it, but also because the ensemble consisting of washbasin, cabinet, mirror and possibly side cabinets is a dominant element in the overall design of the space. Whereas tiling the walls all the way up to the ceiling was standard practice in the 1980s and 1990s, open wall coverings are common nowadays as well: wallpaper or stucco walls create a totally seamless surface and emphasise the cosy look of the modern lifestyle bathroom. For fans of patterned tiles, small-format tiles with decorative, often floral designs are another popular alternative. Patterns, eye-catching colours or an expressive laying pattern are often limited to this one wall. In most cases, a monochrome palette and neutral colours like grey or modern shades of brown are chosen for the rest of the bathroom. The advantage: after a few years, it’s easy to give the bathroom a makeover and totally change the way it looks without having to replace the sanitaryware.

The bathroom products used and the design of the wall should add up to a harmonious overall picture. The bathroom furniture and washbasin form a single unit. The fittings and accessories are coordinated as well – in both shape and surface. Various innovative finishes have recently been added to the wide range of different designs and effects already available. Besides choosing the vanity unit to suit the existing architectural setting, it’s also increasingly possible to select an option that reflects the bathroom users’ tastes and preferences: some brand-name manufacturers offer certain collections in customised colours, for instance. And bathroom furniture is increasingly being made and sized to order as well.

The customising principle even extends to the actual basin, which is either purchased to sit on top of the countertop or as a complete unit integrated with the furniture. Nowadays even ceramic basins can be factory cut with millimetre accuracy – in some cases the cut edges are even rounded and glazed. And colour, material or wood inlays can turn a tap into a work of art. When it comes to setting the stage for their clients, bathroom planners have a multitude of options.

As a rule, the design elements defined by the vanity solution are transferred to the rest of the bathroom design as well. That means using certain aspects of the fittings and vanity ensemble – like the finish selected for the tap or the type of surface chosen for the furniture – as recurring design elements that are echoed in the shower, furniture and textiles. Or in the windowsill, chair, shelf or rug – the possibilities are endless.

Storyboard: the vanity decides what kind of story the bathroom tells

In addition to the individual elements, the wall covering and the sanitaryware, there’s something else that’s playing an increasingly important part in bathroom planning: the story behind the overall design. If you want to convey the idea of a bathroom that deliberately sets out to be sustainable, for instance, wallpaper with a floral motif is a far more compelling choice for the vanity unit wall than a concrete look. And if a dominant colour plays a leading role in the bathroom design, it’s used and emphasised on the wall behind the washbasin. This way, the vanity wall becomes a storyboard, a screen on which to project the narrative behind the design.