Bathrooms are becoming warmer, more expressive and increasingly personal. While recent years have focused heavily on creating a spa-like look, the biggest bathroom trends for 2027 go further, considering not only how a bathroom looks but how it makes us feel and how comfortably it supports everyday life.
From immersive materials and carefully layered lighting to vintage character and more flexible layouts, these are the bathroom ideas we expect to influence how we design our spaces in 2027.
1. Designing for emotional restoration
Wellbeing has influenced bathroom design for several years, but in 2027 we expect the focus to shift from creating bathrooms that simply look relaxing to designing spaces that actively support emotional restoration.
It’s a natural evolution for one of the most restorative rooms in the home. According to our latest research, more than a quarter of Brits say that soaking in the bath provides their most effective mental reset from the pressures of phones, emails and social media. That places bathing ahead of playing with pets, gardening, exercising and meditating.
Colour will play an important part in creating these emotionally supportive spaces. Dulux’s Colour of the Year 2027, Soulful Sage, is a soft, silvery green designed to bring a sense of calm and clarity to the home. At the other end of the spectrum, WGSN and Coloro have selected Luminous Blue - an electric, vibrant cobalt - as their Colour of the Year.
Although these colours appear very different, they reflect the same underlying shift: we’re choosing colour according to how we want a room to make us feel. Earthy greens can create calm and a connection with nature, while vibrant blues introduce joy and energy.
Emotional restoration will mean something different in every home. For one person, it might be a deep bath surrounded by warm, natural tones; for another, an invigorating shower in a bold, uplifting space. The important change is that bathrooms are increasingly being designed around the experience we want from them, rather than appearance alone.
Texture drenching is set to be one of the biggest interior trends for 2027. Elsewhere in the home, the appetite for tactile comfort might translate into rooms enveloped in soft fabrics. In the bathroom, it’s expressed through natural stone, timber effects, fluted surfaces and other richly textured materials that create the same cocooning, sanctuary-like feeling.
The easiest way to embrace the trend is to choose one dominant material or texture and repeat it throughout the room. Everything doesn’t need to match perfectly. The aim is to establish a continuous material thread that connects the different areas of the space.
A stone-effect tile might travel from the floor onto the walls and around the bath, for example, or a timber finish could be repeated across wall panelling, bathroom furniture and smaller accessories. Rather than layering lots of competing surfaces, texture drenching allows one material to take the starring role.
This is a particularly effective approach for anyone who prefers a more minimal bathroom but still wants the room to have impact. Surrounding yourself with one material creates an immersive sensory experience without relying on lots of colour or decorative detail.
Naturally, the chosen material will have a significant effect on both the finished look and the budget. Completely covering a bathroom in marble won’t be realistic for most households, but porcelain tiles, stone-effect surfaces and wood-effect wall panels can create a similar sense of continuity at a more accessible price.
3. Lightscaping
Lighting is becoming an increasingly important part of bathroom design, and we expect lightscaping to come into its own in 2027.
Rather than relying on one central ceiling fitting or a uniform row of downlights, bathrooms are being designed with several layers of illumination. Each serves a different purpose, from brighter task lighting around the mirror to softer feature lighting that changes the atmosphere of the room.
Wall lights and sconces are particularly effective for introducing warmer, more ambient pools of light around key areas. Concealed LED strips can also highlight architectural features, bathroom furniture or textured surfaces without visually cluttering the room.
The aim is to treat lighting as both an architectural and emotional element, rather than simply something we need to see by.
Ideally, a bathroom lighting scheme should adapt throughout the day. Bright, functional lighting can help with getting ready in the morning, while softer and warmer illumination can transform the same bathroom into somewhere calm and restorative in the evening.
Dimmable fittings, separate lighting circuits and illuminated mirrors can all make the scheme more flexible.
Find out more about lighting options in our complete guide to bathroom lighting.
4. Modern nostalgia
A slower approach to decorating, combined with the popularity of eclectic interiors and a continued affection for nostalgia, is encouraging the return of vintage and antique design.
In bathrooms, however, incorporating genuine antique fittings isn’t always practical or affordable. Instead, homeowners are looking for ways to introduce the warmth and character of older interiors while maintaining the reliability and convenience of a modern bathroom.
Dark woods, particularly rich tones reminiscent of walnut and mahogany, are beginning to reappear. Antique brass and aged bronze finishes are also continuing to grow in popularity. Both were rising stars during 2026, and we expect that momentum to continue into 2027.
One of the most effective ways to achieve the look is to combine modern sanitaryware with vintage or second-hand furniture. An old chest or sideboard can potentially be adapted into a bespoke vanity unit, creating a focal point with a story behind it.
Traditional silhouettes can also be introduced through smaller details, including crosshead taps, framed mirrors, globe wall lights and tongue-and-groove panelling. These can bring character to the room without compromising its everyday functionality.
This isn’t about recreating a bathroom from a particular era. Modern nostalgia works best when old and new elements are brought together naturally, creating a room that feels collected and meaningful rather than overly styled.
5. Bathrooms become living spaces
Bathrooms have traditionally been private, functional and transitory spaces: somewhere we pass through primarily to wash and get ready. In 2027, we expect more bathrooms to be treated as destination rooms in their own right.
That doesn’t necessarily mean making them larger. Instead, it means borrowing some of the warmth and personality we associate with living spaces and bringing it into the bathroom.
Depending on the room available, that could include an occasional chair, a small side table, curtains, freestanding storage or decorative lighting. Artwork, books and objects collected over time can also prevent the space from feeling overly clinical.
The trend reflects how people are already using their bathrooms. Our research found that a quarter of Brits have caught up on emails while in the tub, while almost a third of keen bathers have enjoyed a snack there. For more than one in ten, a soak has even become an opportunity to sit back and enjoy a full meal!
We wouldn’t necessarily recommend turning the bathtub into a permanent desk or dining table, but the figures show that bathrooms are no longer used exclusively for hygiene. They’re also places where people retreat, unwind and spend time away from the busier parts of the home.
Any furniture or soft furnishings introduced into the bathroom must be suitable for a humid environment. Upholstered pieces are best reserved for larger, well-ventilated bathrooms and kept away from direct splashes.
6. Functional zoning
While bathrooms are becoming more atmospheric and expressive, they still need to work exceptionally hard. That makes functional zoning another important bathroom trend for 2027.
Our bathroom designers are finding that many customers still want separate bathing and showering areas, creating a need for intelligent layouts that accommodate both without making the room feel cramped. Successful zoning starts with understanding how the household will use the space and designing around those everyday routines.
A shared bathroom might benefit from separating the vanity unit from the wet zone so more than one person can use the room comfortably. In a smaller bathroom, a tiled change of material, partial screen or lighting feature can establish different zones without introducing solid walls.
Furniture can help too. Double vanity units create individual getting-ready spaces, while tall storage keeps everyday items close to where they’re used. In larger bathrooms, freestanding baths can be positioned as visual focal points without interrupting the practical route between the entrance, basin and shower.
This is where visual planning tools can be particularly useful. The Drench 3D bathroom design service allows customers to explore different layouts within their own dimensions before committing to a design, supported by the human understanding needed to make a bathroom work in real life.
The goal isn’t to divide the room into as many areas as possible. It’s to give every part of the bathroom a clear purpose, making daily routines feel easier and the overall space more considered.
The defining bathroom trends of 2027 aren’t about following one particular look. They reflect a wider desire for bathrooms that feel warmer, work harder and offer something more personal than the identikit spa aesthetic.
Whether that means repeating one beautifully tactile material, introducing softer lighting, choosing colour according to the mood it creates or adding a piece of furniture with history, the most successful bathrooms will be designed around how their owners genuinely want to use and experience them.
