Bathroom Vanity Ideas: How to Pick a Bathroom Vanity

The vanity is an integral part of any bathroom. A bathroom vanity designed to meet your needs can clear up space and simplify your morning routine, all while adding beauty to your space. These tips from us Pottery Barn will help you find the ideal vanity to meet your needs. When you’re selecting a vanity, factors to keep in mind are the size of your bathroom, functionality, ease of care and style.

If you’re redesigning your bathroom or updating additional finishes, selecting your vanity before you choose the finishes can be helpful. It’s much easier to select tile and accessories to complement your vanity rather than selecting your vanity based on your tile and finishes.

Powder Room Vanities 

Space is often at a premium in powder rooms or half baths. Single vanities are usually between 36" and 48" wide. A single vanity with one sink and a small countertop to hold soap and hand lotion is often large enough to meet you and your guests’ needs. 

If space is tight, a towel rack that accommodates just one towel saves wall space and makes the bathroom appear more spacious. While powder rooms typically require minimal storage, selecting a vanity with storage underneath allows you to use this spot to tuck away cleaning supplies or other necessities you want to easily access.

Central Bathroom Vanities

Central bathrooms that are used often require substantial storage. The more storage you have, the easier it is to keep the bathroom free of clutter. However, it’s best to scale your vanity to the size of your bathroom. This ensures an attractive look and keeps the room comfortable to move around in. If you need additional storage, consider adding hanging bath cabinets on the wall. This frees up valuable floor space, while meeting your storage needs.

Double vanities are usually between 60 and 72 inches wide and offer added convenience for multiple people. Vanities that feature drawers and shelf space are attractive and offer optimal versatility. Consider storing small items in the drawers and larger items like towels on the shelves.

Master Bathroom Vanities 

If there are two people using the master bathroom, a vanity that incorporates dual sinks and either one large mirror or two smaller mirrors ensures plenty of space. When determining the size of your ideal vanity, we recommend taking inventory of what you store in your current vanity and adding 20% more space than you think you need, just to be safe. Also, consider height. Vanities are traditionally 32” high; however, you may want your vanity to be taller.

If you’re looking for maximum efficiency, consider customizing your vanity. Adding a deeper sink reduces water splashing onto countertops. Installing electrical outlets in the vanity cabinet allows you to easily plug in hair dryers, flat irons, electric shavers and beard trimmers.

Vanity Tops 

When evaluating bathroom vanity ideas, the top is key. Vanity tops need to provide sufficient countertop space to meet your needs and should be durable enough to endure water, soaps and cosmetics. If you select granite, ensure that it’s protectively sealed. Solid surfaces like quartzite are extremely durable and easy to care for. It can also tolerate high heat from flat irons and curling irons. While tile is beautiful and available in vibrant colors, it requires more maintenance, as grout lines need to be cleaned regularly. A wood top offers a warm and organic look, but is naturally porous. You’ll want to ensure that it’s sealed well.

Style

Whether your vanity blends in with your home’s architecture or stands out as a one of a kind piece of furniture, it can be a stunning focal point. Vanities built with iron tubing and chrome finishes offer a modern and minimalist feel. Faucets that include sleek lines and polished finishes complement this look beautifully. A heavy-duty vanity console crafted with distressed wood and iron drawer handles offers an old-world feel that’s rich and luxurious. Faucets that are crafted from cast brass add to the time-honored look. 

Free standing vanities with legs stand out as an individual piece of furniture and offer additional architectural interest, while floating vanities make the room look more spacious and modern. No matter what direction you go with your bathroom vanity, this new addition is sure to add both style and function to your bath.