Japandi Bathroom Ideas: 7 Ways to Make a Small UK Bathroom Feel Like a Spa

Most UK bathrooms are small, often windowless and full of white plastic. The Japandi approach, a mix of Japanese calm and Scandinavian practicality, works unusually well in them, because it is built on fewer things, natural materials and a clear floor. You do not need a renovation to get there. These seven changes are the ones that make the biggest difference for the least disruption.

1. Clear every surface you can

The single fastest way to make a bathroom feel calm is to take things off the basin, the bath edge and the cistern. Keep out only what you use every day, and give it a tray so it reads as one object instead of ten. Everything else goes behind a door. A wall cabinet with louvred doors, like the Shimanto bamboo wall cabinet, hides the clutter without making the wall feel heavy, and the open shelf underneath is the place for the one or two things you want on show.

2. Swap plastic for wood, bamboo and stone

Plastic is what makes a bathroom feel temporary. Replace the pieces you touch most with natural materials: a ceramic or stone soap dispenser, a tumbler, a soap dish. Real marble, like the Narai marble tumbler, soap dish and lidded jar, has a weight and coolness that nothing else does. If you would rather have a matching set at a lower price, the Furano stone look set gives the same quiet look in five coordinated pieces.

3. Put wood underfoot

A slatted bamboo mat feels warm to step on, dries quickly and looks far better than a fluffy mat that stays damp. The Noboribetsu bamboo bath mat is 40 x 60 cm and rolls up, so it can be lifted and stood on end to dry after a bath. In a very small room it also shows more of the floor, which makes the space look bigger.

4. Make the bath an occasion

Japanese bathing is about slowing down, and a bath tray is the simplest way to bring that home. It holds a book, a drink and a candle, and it stops you balancing things on the edge. Measure across your bath from outer rim to outer rim before you buy. The Kusatsu bamboo bath tray extends from 75 to 110 cm, which covers most standard UK baths, and has a book stand and a glass holder built in.

5. Choose waffle cotton for towels and robes

Waffle weave cotton is lighter than thick terry towelling, dries faster in a small humid room and has a flat, textured look that suits a pared back space. Pick one colour for everything and the room immediately looks considered. The Matsue waffle towel set comes as two bath towels and two hand towels, and the Ibusuki waffle robe has a kimono style shawl collar.

6. Upgrade the small things nobody notices until they are gone

The toilet brush and the toilet roll holder are the pieces most people never think about, and they are usually the ugliest things in the room. A wall mounted brush keeps the floor clear, which matters in a small bathroom. The Yufuin wooden toilet brush sits in a ceramic cup on the wall, and the Kiyosato toilet roll holder has a small shelf on top for your phone.

7. Warm the light

Bathrooms are often lit with one cold ceiling light. If you can, choose a warm white bulb, around 2700K, which is far kinder to skin and makes the room feel like the end of the day rather than an operating theatre. Our guide to LED colour temperature explains the numbers. Any fixed bathroom lighting in the UK must have the right IP rating for its zone and should be fitted by a qualified electrician.

Where to start

If you only do one thing this weekend, clear the surfaces and put what is left on a single tray. If you do two, add a wooden mat. Everything in this guide is in our bathroom collection, with free UK delivery on every order, and any two pieces take 5 percent off automatically in the basket.