Bathroom Colour Schemes: Trending Combinations for Every Style

How Colour Affects the Feel and Function of a Bathroom

You know when you walk into your bathroom and, suddenly, it's not quite so small? It's the lighting hitting in the perfect places and, suddenly, it doesn't seem quite so compact as it once did. It's the power of colour. You'll have probably heard the phrase 'colour theory' being used in relation to home decorating, but that's not a bit of magic; when you're in the know with how colour can work with the room you have, you can transform how your bathroom looks and feels.

Light Reflectance Value (or LRV for short) is probably the first thing you'll need to know when choosing bathroom colour schemes. The LRV scale ranges from 0 (absolute black) to 100 (pure white). For the average sized bathroom and certainly if you have a windowless bathroom, you'll want to find a paint with a higher LRV, above 60. These will reflect and distribute light across your room and will make your bathroom feel bigger and more open. Low LRV colours, anything with an LRV below 40, will absorb light and make your bathroom feel cosier. They're better suited for a spacious bathroom; a bathroom of this size can take the darkness better and the space wouldn't feel as 'boxed in' as you might expect in a compact bathroom.

Another key aspect of choosing a colour for your bathroom is the finish. Semi-gloss and satin are the two finishes that most often make an appearance when you're painting your bathroom. They're more water-resistant than the rest and, as such, a much safer choice than a matte finish. A matte paint finish can look beautiful on your bathroom walls, but it's not always a good choice to be using in a bathroom, especially one where the walls are likely to get wet; it'll just be harder to clean. With no windows to let moisture out, your bathroom will also need a mechanical ventilation system of at least 25 L/s (NCC 2022, ABCB Housing Provisions, Part 10.8) to remove the condensation. This is all relevant to your LRV choice and paint finish. Once you know all you need to know about how LRV and finish work, you can start to see why neutral and grey colours are the go-to for bathroom renovations here in Australia.

Neutral and Grey Bathroom Colour Schemes

It's the time of the colour palette of warm greys, cool greys and greige (it's grey, it's beige, it's both, it's greige, obviously) as we walk into display homes today. Cool greys — they have a blue tone with an LRV anywhere from 55 to 65 — work best in your bathroom with white fixtures and chrome tapware. Warm greys are the ones that you'd see with an undertone of taupe or blush and that'd suit a bathroom with less daylight as they feel warmer under artificial lighting. Greige, generally falling in the LRV 60 and 70 range, is probably the safest option. It can adapt and transform as the light changes, and is the least likely to cause a clash with any other elements in the bathroom.

For grey bathroom ideas that look like a professional has worked on them, balance is the key. When choosing wall colours in the greyscale, ensure you complement that with the finish of your tapware. A clean, graphic contrast is established with matt black tapware sitting up against a warm grey wall, whereas the increasingly popular Gunmetal Grey — which, for reference, has over 850 product options in the Australian market — provides a more tonal, layered look against cool grey. Large-format 600×1200mm porcelain tiles in a concrete or stone look will seamlessly carry these palette options across floor and wall.

It's safe to say neutrals and greys are reliable, but for people who wish to create a bit more impact, contrast, and bold combinations of colour, the outcome can be striking and not at the cost of function.

Bold and Contrast Colour Combinations

Bold bathroom colour schemes are not for the faint-hearted, and this is what makes them alluring. Navy teamed with stark white, deep forest green with warm brass tapware, or charcoal walls teamed with terracotta accents — these are colour combinations that have a sense of being designed rather than just decorated when done well.

Use the 60-30-10 rule as your guide here. The dominant colour (think navy or forest green) should be used on about 60 per cent of the visual field — typically the walls. The secondary colour, think white or off-white for your vanity and fixtures, takes on 30 per cent. The final 10 per cent should be your accent colour — think Brushed Gold towel rail, terracotta vessel basin, or a suite of coordinating Brushed Copper bathroom accessories. When bold colours are used correctly, there is a balance and sense of calm about it, even in a small space.

With a space as moisture-prone as a bathroom, the quality of the paint needs to be considered. A high-quality paint in satin or semi-gloss, specifically labelled for use in wet areas, should not be skipped on walls that are not directly inside the shower. Shower areas should have waterproofing membranes installed to a height of no less than 1,800mm (AS 3740:2021) above the floor substrate, as per NCC 2022 and AS 3740:2021. This is because even though these spaces are contained, they still experience a great deal of steam, heat, and water splashing, and quality finish is critical in these instances.

Warm and Earthy Bathroom Colour Schemes

A warm bathroom can become a very grounding place. From walls bathed in soft, sandy beige and terracotta, to the warmth of a wood grain on your wood bath vanity, it becomes less about the function of the room, but the idea of it as a place you escape to.

Warm whites, sandy beige, soft sage green, and earthy terracotta tones pair well with warm timber finishes. These hues fall into the warm-to-neutral range, so they won't clash with the yellow and honey nuances of the timber-look vanity finishes. Wooden bathroom vanities work well with any warm-coloured palette. Whether it's a luxurious solid wood vanity, plywood build or even a more affordable timber-look MDF, the grain and colour tones add a sense of warmth to a palette that's impossible with paint alone. Brands such as Aulic and Lukka offer natural woodgrain vanities that sit nicely with sage or warm white walls for a less stark contrast. A timber vanity with hardware in brushed gold or dusk bronze will continue this warm theme and can be found across a wide range of Australian products. One thing to remember when matching colours is warmth: if your vanity wood grain leans red or honey, you will need to pair with warm walls, such as a pale terracotta or creamy white, as a stark cool white wall will appear more orange than golden.

Choosing Bathroom Paint Colours: Practical Tips and Common Mistakes

Okay, so you have picked your bathroom colour schemes. Don't paint just yet. Perhaps the biggest error made is choosing colour from a small paint sample under the fluorescent lights in the hardware store. Colours appear quite different when comparing 5×5cm colour swatches against an entire wall, plus it can be challenging to control the lighting conditions within the bathroom. Instead, paint a 300×300mm area of colour directly onto the wall and view it at different times of the day: first thing in the morning with natural daylight, last thing in the evening with artificial light and any times in between. If your bathroom does not have a window, test the colour you have selected under the globe you will use, as warm LED globes may shift a cooler grey towards green. Avoid any bathroom colour ideas that rely on ceiling colour dips below an LRV of 50, as the effect becomes cave-like rather than dramatic. Be sure to select moisture-resistant paint for your wet areas; it is formulated to deal with high humidity and regular interior wall paint will begin to bubble or peel in a few months. Here in Australia, the price of bathroom-grade paint ranges between $60 to $120 per 4-litre tin. It is a very small part of the overall bathroom renovation cost, too. When choosing a wood bath vanity, ask first for the cabinet undertone so that you can be confident the wall colour will work with it. Remember, waterproofing is not a design issue, but rather a construction requirement. Waterproofing membranes must be applied to wet areas before tiling or painting. They must be performed by a licensed plumber or tradie, and all waterproofing membrane products should cure for 24 to 48 hours before tiles or paint are applied (some two-part membranes require 72 hours). Your bathroom paint colours will only be achievable with a well-prepared surface.

References

National Construction Code 2022, ABCB Housing Provisions, Part 10.8 Condensation Management

AS 3740:2021 Waterproofing of Domestic Wet Areas, Standards Australia

National Construction Code 2022, ABCB Housing Provisions, Part 10.2 Wet Areas