Designing a modern master bathroom is all about keeping your materials simple, your color palette sleek and up-to-date, and ensuring the space is bright and airy, and matched with clean lines. When it comes to modern bathroom design, you can choose to renovate features like the bathtub, countertop, and shower area - budget allowing, or instead, tackle smaller but eye-catching features such as the decor, backsplash, or any other budget-friendly updates that are available.
Since theirs was outdated, our sample homeowners wanted to perform some guest bathroom renos.
Fortunately, all of the main functional plumbing fixtures and faucets were already installed around about where they needed to be for the modern bathroom remodel, which saved them the cost of having to move plumbing, something which is usually a large expense.
However, there were many other bathroom designs that needed updating in order to optimize the space and match that modern bathroom design aesthetic they were in search of.

The Process

Once our sample homeowners had explored a number of modern bathroom ideas, they were ready to tackle their bathroom remodel. The guest bathroom design was extremely dated, dark, and dank - a far cry from the high-end bathroom design they were after. The guest bathroom contained many outdated features such as an all-in-one tub surround, a half-wall separation between the countertop and toilet, and a dark green wallpaper.

To begin, they first removed the doors that allowed the adjoining guest bedroom to have access into the bathroom so that there was no door-swing interference.

Next, the small bathroom was made bigger and more spacious by removing the half-wall that separated the vanity and toilet.

When it was time to choose materials for the space, our homeowners knew they wanted to go with an ultra-modern high-contrast black-and-white theme that reminded them of the modern bathrooms that they had seen on their travels to Europe.
For the floor, they used a sleek matte black porcelain tiles that looked like marble. These on-trend tiles ran not only the length of the floors but also all the way up the entry and walk-in shower wall. The black floor tiles were just under $5 per sq. ft., and the 2-inch hexagonal tiles on the shower floor were $12 per sq. ft.

On the countertop and countertop-facing walls, they chose to go with an all-white 4ʺ x 16ʺ subway tile. One of the unique ideas these homeowners decided try to create a modern bathroom was wrap all of the bath walls in tile. This white wall tile was $6 per sq. ft. helped to create the “wet room” effect that you tend to see in contemporary European bathrooms.
Another upgrade that ensured a modern bathroom feel was the selection of sleek and luxurious plumbing fixtures with clean profiles. For the countertop and sink, they went with a console vanity that was open so that you could see the exposed plumbing, and used an of-the-moment vessel sink on top to create a more elegant and modern take on the wash area. The console and vanity combo retails at $3,000.

These homeowners installed a floating, wall-mounted toilet instead of the traditional floor-mounted option to create more negative space to make the room feel bigger. This toilet option with all of the rough plumbing pieces retails at about $600.

The homeowners used similar tile for the shower floor and wall to create a smooth transition with the rest of the bathroom. They also installed matte black metal fixtures to complement the modern bathroom design. This shower faucet set with all of the rough pieces retails at $1,500.

Finally, instead of using a shower curtain and rod to separate the shower from the rest of the room, they chose to use a seamlessly installed glass-walled panel to keep the space from being visually broken up. Installing this glass-enclosed feature cost just under $2,000.

If you are trying to design a modern master bathroom in your home, remember to think about the layout of the space, the materials you want to incorporate into the space, and fixtures with clean profiles.

Award-winning, Baton Rouge-based interior designer and content creator Arianne Bellizaire has been named a High Point Market Authority Style Spotter (2015), Perlick Ambassador of Cool (2017), Villeroy & Boch Color Challenge Winner (2017), Modenus Blog Tour invitee (2016 & 2019), and Modenus DesignHound (Spain and London 2016, Surfaces 2018). She was also selected as an Ambassador for NYDC 2020 What's New What's Next. Her work and expertise have been featured in Forbes, Rue Daily, House Beautiful, Good Housekeeping, Business Of Home, and USA Today.