Tile floors, porcelain everywhere, chrome, granite – bathrooms are naturally cold. As temperatures begin to tumble in the Southern hemisphere we offer Bespoke Bathrooms’ top tips to warm up your space for the winter.

1. Find some big, warm towels
Think thick, fluffy and oversized towels in bright sunny colours such as yellow, gold, red and orange. Splurge a little and get the fancy organic cotton set or the ones with the luxurious silk or bamboo blend that caught your eye. Towels with a strong pattern can also add a feeling of light-heartedness. After Rosita Missoni’s visit to Cape Town for the Design Indaba we are in love with the Missoni homeware range available from their online shop. Their towels are pictured above.

2. Add a cozy rug
A bath mat does not have to be a shaggy little rectangle. Add an Oriental rug to enjoy underfoot during fall and winter. The rich colors will warm up the look of the room as well. Not only do rugs pamper your bare feet, they add a nice texture to your space. Be sure to add a rug pad or rug tape that will grip the floor underneath any bathroom rug to prevent slips.

3. Get a new plush bath mat
The reason we wear slippers when it’s cold is to keep our feet cozy. Introduce that same concept into your bathroom during the winter months with a plusher bath mat. Look for plush, oversized rugs with a thick pile – like the one pictured above in a Bespoke Bathrooms designed space in Constantia. Place one next to your shower, near the sink and in front of the toilet to retain heat in your bathroom. At least you won’t have to walk on ice cold floors!

4. Consider heated floors
One of the most luxurious things you can do to make your bathroom toasty in chilly weather is invest in radiant-heat flooring. If you are planning any renovations, contact Bespoke Bathrooms to find out what this entails and what the benefits are. If you don’t have room in the budget for such a large investment, talk to your electrician about installing a bathroom-safe heater you can turn on before your bath or shower.

5. Change the colour of the wall
Whether working with paint or tiles, think outside the usual bathroom colour palette. Giving your bathroom a fresh coat of paint will not only make it look better but you can also keep it warmer by using high-quality heat reflecting, insulating paints. And rather than traditional white or cream, consider a warm colour for your bathroom walls.

6. Invest in a bathtub that helps retain heat
Materials like copper, brass, volcanic limestone and soapstone retain heat and will help to keep that hot bathwater warm while you enjoy your magazine or book! The pewter tub pictured above in a bathroom in Durbanville designed by Bespoke Bathrooms is available from us.