A Bathroom Vanity Challenge

Many homeowners are forced to find creative solutions to their needs for increased living space. Budget restrictions and limited existing space requires some unique answers. For example, when an additional bathroom, washroom, or guest bathroom is needed, some homeowners will look to unused closets, pantries, or even spaces located beneath staircases to create a new bathroom.

While such decisions are smart choices for budgets, requiring no expansion of an existing structure, they can present some major challenges when trying to outfit them with traditional fixtures such as a bathroom vanity, sink, or toilet. A minimum floor space will be required for the correct placement of a toilet, and a professional plumber should be consulted. A bathroom vanity may be the most difficult item to find during a construction project like this. Again, creative thinking may be required.

A new concept in modern bathroom vanity design is for the sink basin itself to be directly mounted to the wall, with the faucet set mounted above it. This very modern concept is being transformed already by sinks taking on less of a contemporary feel and being made to appear more handcrafted, such as blown-glass sinks and hand-turned pottery sinks.

Salvage yards will also frequently have tiny hand basins, once housed in a vintage bathroom vanity, available for custom mounting. There are even reproduction companies casting new wall-mounted sinks and hand basins taken from designs originally housed in the cupboards and closets of trains and train sleeping cars.

Items like this are ideal for closet spaces that have been converted to a toilet and sink guest or visitor bath. Wall-mounted sinks and basins will require additional plumbing and perhaps will require a wall treatment suitable for the splashing that occurs on a bathroom vanity. Choosing to use a unique space for a bathroom installation can add a bit of fun and character to your home, as well as to provide much needed space.