With bathroom renovations, colour choices are everything. Even a minor and unassuming bathroom reno can benefit immensely from attention to detail in colour. When you’re putting together a prospective colour palette for your bathroom, don’t forget about a colour so common it’s often forgotten about.. the all-important bathroom colour gloss white.. which is found in almost all bathrooms via fixtures such as basins, toilets and bathtubs. In this article, we’re going to look at creating contrast with gloss white in your bathroom renovation – how you can leverage this existing colour create an optimal result in your new bathroom colour scheme – Read on to learn more. If you’re on the Gold Coast, please contact our team to arrange a free consultation and quote for your bathroom renovation project:
What is Gloss White?
The colour ‘white’ comes in a massive range of variants. On simplicable.com, they list 52 different types of white – that is a lot! So when you are considering using white with your interior design, the next question may be, “which one?”
Gloss white is one of many possible different variations of white. What makes a white a “gloss white“? Gloss white combines two key aspects; a pure, bright white aesthetic – and a glossy finish. This creates a shiny, reflective impression.
What is The Difference Between Gloss White & Matt White?
The difference between gloss and matt whites is in how shiny the finished surface appears. Another word for this shine, in terms of paints, is ‘sheen’ (just mentioning this so you can sound like an expert discussing these matters with your friends). Glossy surfaces are very shiny (they have a high level of sheen) and reflect a lot of light. Matt finishes are dull, and absorb, rather than reflect light. Using them judiciously is the key to creating an ideal outcome. Matt and gloss finishes can also be used together to create delightful, minimal contrasts that add visual interest to your bathroom design.
Creating Contrast with Gloss White in your Bathroom Renovation
Why be concerned with gloss white when you’re thinking about a bathroom renovation? Gloss white is highly likely to have a presence in your bathroom due to the fact that so many common porcelain fixtures for bathrooms come in this colour as a default. It’s not in all bathrooms – I’ve seen all-black bathroom with no gloss white in sight! But it’s in the majority. A glossy white finish is practically a standard for basins, bathtubs, tiles and toilets – it’s an extremely popular finish for bathroom assets.
Why are Bathroom Fixtures Often Gloss White?
The reasons why gloss white is so prevalent in bathroom fixtures are pretty interesting. First of all, gloss white creates a clean, bright appearance, which is basically the goal of 90% of bathroom designs. In bathrooms, hygiene is important, and it’s easy to show that yes, thank you, you have cleaned the bathroom, when white is the background colour.
Some colours make it easier to show how clean something is, and gloss white is the queen of ’em all, especially with its smooth, non-porous nature. On the topic of cleanliness, gloss white is also easy to clean. Its smooth surface is a cinch to wipe down.. would it be going too far to say it actually makes cleaning fun? On reflection, probably, yes.
Gloss white looks the part, does the job, and is easy to maintain – no wonder it’s so popular in bathrooms all around the world!
Utilising Gloss White in Your Bathroom
The whole point of this article is to ensure you make the most of the inclusion of gloss white in standard bathroom fixtures. It’s already there, so it can be leveraged, and the overall impression optimised accordingly. Let’s look at some of the key ways you can utilise your gloss white fixtures to make a great impression in your bathroom design.
Minimal Contrast Integrity
In this Gold Coast bathroom renovation, we designed, built and installed a custom vanity unit which features a gloss-white mounted basin. By the way, did you know that we specialise in custom bathroom vanities? They’re often a highlight of our renovations. You can read more about them here if you’re interested. Anyway! What’s fabulous about this solution is the low-key soft-grey background tiled feature wall behind the vanity. This enables the whites to pop, without being overwhelming; so everything subtly integrates into a lovely functional whole.
By virtue of its gloss-white demeanour and elevated position against this backdrop, the basin becomes a featured pinnacle within the room. Anchored by the laminated timber-style bench top, the vanity and basin contrive to create an impression of emergence within the room. Not a bad result – and all because the gloss white was integrated, and not included as an afterthought.
High Contrast with Colour
High contrast solutions are also common using opposing colours to set up a strong relationship with gloss white fixtures. This generally creates a more striking, sophisticated, exciting and confident look. Just the thing for a penthouse! In this Gold Coast high-rise renovation, we used a black laminated benchtop for powerful contrast with not just the basins but the entire bathroom and suite. This is enhanced by LED backlit circular mirrors. Creating contrast with gloss white in your bathroom renovation doesn’t require a high-contrast solution like this – but this is the most striking contrast that you can achieve.
Creating Contrast with Gloss White in your Bathroom Renovation – Contrasting with Texture
While contrasting with colour is an effective way to make a statement, textural contrasts are also a wonderful way to enhance your bathroom style. In the above image, we produced a colonial style bathroom renovation for an all-white solution. In such cases, the gloss whites which can be found in the bathtub, basins and vanity unit, enjoy a minimal and mainly textural contrast with other elements such as the wrap-around wall tiling and marble-tiled floors.
Rolling Highlight Contrast
In this example, which is a more classical approach, the gloss white elements (bathtub, basins) have a high degree of contrast against the muted white tiles and especially the timber-style vanity. Notice how the back-lit LED mirrors light up the basins for visual impact. The great thing about gloss white in a bathroom situation is its versatility. It can go with similar, or different elements and easily build sustainable relationships with them.
Make the Most of Your Gloss White Fixtures
Gloss white is in most bathrooms and it makes sense to capitalise on this fact. Whether you’re going for a low, medium or high-contrast bathroom solution, you can leverage your gloss white fixtures to really make the most of the possibilities on offer.
Some Good Questions to Ask:
- Do I want my bathroom to be striking, or low key? A high-contrast result is more striking, and if you’re using gloss-white fixtures, this will mean pairing them with high-contrast fixtures.
- Do I want my bathroom to have subtle nuances? Investigate using textures that subtly contrast with your gloss white elements.
- How can I bring it all together? Think about how your bathroom elements are anchored in the room. Use colours and textures to position them so that they look as if they belong.