Bathroom product supplier HiB has unveiled the Fold mirror, showcasing a new illumination feature that allows users to angle the mirror.
The new Fold mirror features distinctive illuminated edges that can be angled to a desired position, focusing the LED lighting on the subject or outwards to brighten the space.
The moveable feature offers users the flexibility of a more direct task light, ideal for everyday activities or an appealing ambient light for creating an atmosphere. As well as the unique illumination position, the mirror also features dimming capabilities and colour temperature changing technology, so the user can alter the light’s brightness and tone to suit their particular needs.
Operated using a handy touch switch, the mirror also benefits from a heated pad which reduces condensation on the surface of the mirror after a hot bath or shower.
Talking about the new Fold mirror, Sales Director Ash Chilver said: “Fold takes the flexibility and practical use of precise LED illumination to new heights, making it an adaptable and practical focal point in the bathroom. Its sleek, understated style with the adjustable lighting is perfect for a wide range of bathrooms and it really offers something different which customers can enjoy using.”
The Fold mirror is available in H80 x W50cm, H80 x W60cm and H60 x W80cm options.
For more information about the Fold mirror and other products that have recently been launched by HiB visit https://www.hib.co.uk/
The D-Neo series from Bertrand Lejoly helps articulate a contemporary lifestyle within the bathroom. The Pop world of style as envisioned by Duravit focuses on the lifestyle of both young and young at heart.
Bright colours, geometric shapes, and Instagrammable accessories serve as style elements. This is a colourful mix of different styles that come together to form a harmonious whole.
The D-Neo furniture washbasin (800 mm) impresses with its striking all-round rim and has a high recognition value. The D-Neo faucet sets a special accent, and the flat, vertically positioned handle is consistently referenced through the whole faucet line – from the washbasin mixers through the bidet mixer right up to shower and bath mixers.
For those that like to be organised – the vanity unit with two drawers is available with an optional divider, providing a place for all bathroom utensils.
Stylish and practical: The mirror (pictured top) with LED edging lighting creates a sense of space even in the smallest of rooms.
Hansgrohe presented its latest ranges, including Pulsify, RainDrain, Finoris, Vivenis, AddStoris and AXOR One. For some of these products, HIX represented the first time they were available for viewing at an event in the UK.
Hansgrohe comprised its brands AXOR and hansgrohe, to showcase its latest innovations in bathroom design. With working water displays and its latest products on show, visitors were welcomed to the stand. As one of the founding sponsors of HIX 2021, Hansgrohe sponsored the talk, ‘Quietness with Attitude’, in partnership with Hotel Designs at the event.
Jay Phillips, Managing Director at Hansgrohe UK comments: ‘Designing for wellness has never been more important. The mental and physical health impact of the last 18 months has opened up important conversations around personal and corporate wellbeing, so much so that designers and architects need to work increasingly harder to create spaces that calm, rejuvenate and cocoon its users.
“Whether through applying biophilic principles, using clever lighting and layouts, or simply harnessing the restorative power of water when it comes to bathroom planning, good design has the power to transform the guest experience. Hansgrohe, with its brands AXOR and hansgrohe, is delighted to be sponsoring this event where such an important topic is top of the agenda.’
VitrA showcased Liquid, the new bathroom range created in collaboration with acclaimed British designer, Tom Dixon, at the newly launched Hotel Design Interiors (HIX) show.
The Liquid collection, a full bathroom range, is ideally suited to hospitality settings and is the latest addition to VitrA’s portfolio of designer collaborations.
The comprehensive range includes sanitaryware, furniture, taps, tiles, shower systems, and accessories. All of the products are designed to be able to work together or as stand-alone pieces.
Tom Dixon drew inspiration from a variety of sources. From the “big chunky taps and fat tubes” of Victorian bathrooms to the round-edged aesthetics of his recent work, which is reminiscent of the work of Claes Oldenburg and Jeff Koons’ Balloon Dog.
The functionality of the range is designed to be intuitive so that users instinctively understand how to operate the products, a facet of the collection which is particularly suited to hotel and hospitality environments.
Speaking about the need for this Tom commented “I wanted the collection to look like a kid’s sketch of a bathroom basin or a tap, displaying a clear logic and simplicity in looks and usage”.
Consciously choosing to offer only white ceramics, the range combines different materials including fluted glass and metal mesh for the furniture units. Taps and showers are available in chrome or for contrast, a new gloss black finish that is atypical in modern bathrooms. The range also includes distinctive wall tiles, available in five designs with colour options of white, black, grey, sage green and ecru.
The collection is perfectly suited for commercial projects where longevity is an important consideration. The collection can be combined in multiple styles to suit various purposes and environments, ensuring flexibility in a wide range of hotel and hospitality settings.
Levent Giray, Managing Director of VitrA UK, comments: “We are delighted to take part in the first ever HIX event. It is the ideal setting for us to introduce the Liquid range to a commercial and hospitality focused audience.
“Our extensive manufacturing, design and innovation capabilities have ensured that there is a unity to the breadth of the Liquid collection. At a time when there is a greater emphasis placed on the role of the bathroom in hotel and hospitality settings, this cohesive range has a generosity of design that will sit comfortably in many different environments.”
Bathrooms and shower rooms are increasingly being designed as extensions of our living spaces, a space to retreat, relax and rejuvenate rather than just for practicalities. CRL shower hardware taps into this movement, with colours and styles to suit all décor schemes.
Frameless solutions, such as Cambridge (pictured top) and Serenity sliding shower doors, offer the ultimate in wet-room style luxury that also maximises accessibility in the modern bathroom.
A further highlight is the CRL Geneva hinge, available in a wide choice of finishes and suitable for bespoke applications, enabling the shower area to be tailored to fit any space, ideal when working with awkward shapes and sizes in rooms such as in corners and under eaves.
Integrating smart features into our homes is becoming part of the new normal as more of us work from home.The smart homes market was valued at around $80 billion in 2020, and it is expected to exceed $300 billion by 2026.
With UK householders dramatically increasing the number of smart devices they own, it makes sense for us to integrate smart living into the bathroom. For housebuilders, incorporating connected technology at build level might be a smart move in more ways than one, as demonstrated this year by Plant Prefab. The US prefab construction company announced its highest profit ever in 2020.
Mike Simpson, product & marketing director at Aqualisa agrees “There are currently 15 million households that own a smart home device, with predictions suggesting growth to 24 million by 2025. Smart technology is making homes more efficient and cheaper to run: reducing energy consumption, saving money, decreasing environmental impact and delivering a more personalised experience. “
All systems go
Alexa is now a familiar feature in our kitchen and living areas, however, Scavolini has gone one step further and updated its popular Dandy bathroom furniture range with a smart built-in Amazon Alexa. Not only can you now talk to your home, but your virtual assistant is seamlessly integrated into its design via the Task Bar, an aluminium profile that incorporates smart technology.
Appropiate behaviour
According to UWLA, bathroom products are at the heart of water consumption in the home, with over 60% of water being used in the bathroom (20% accounted for by showers), and 25% of energy used heating hot water.
Helping to conserve water use in the bathroom, Aqualisa’s next-generation Quartz Touch™ smart shower includes an intuitive, easy-to-use mobile app. Families can use the Aqualisa app to control shower duration and monitor individual usage, therefore limiting water consumption and costs. Furthermore, a proximity sensor reduces water flow if the user steps away from the shower.
“With more than 2 billion litres of water used each day in the UK and an expected increase in demand of 30% over the next 20 years, sustainability has become a key priority in the bathroom industry. Combined with the rapid adoption of technology, this is resulting in the emergence of smart home devices that can both enhance consumers’ wellbeing and contribute to a more eco-friendly lifestyle.” continues Mike Simpson, product & marketing director, Aqualisa.
Keep it clean
Smart technology is dovetailing with a new focus on hygiene as manufacturers integrate touch-free features for frequently used bathroom areas such as guest bathrooms. Sensor-activated products that you don’t have to touch with your hands help us feel more comfortable and enhance hygiene levels.
TOTO is one such company and is offering more touch-free functionalities for its shower toilets (WASHLET™), taps, soap dispenser and automatic hand dryers.
Mirror image
The bathroom is no longer simply a functional space, but a place to rejuvenate and refresh. Light and sound are key design elements when it comes to creating a safe haven, however smart technology also ensures that all-important connectivity. The latest technology means every aspect can be smartly integrated so there is no need to compromise on any single element.
Ash Chilver, HiB Sales Director agrees “As bathrooms become more of a multipurpose space, somewhere that we go to relax and unwind as well as for our hygiene needs, having access to technology is becoming more important. By using and interacting with products featuring technology such as integrated speakers, Bluetooth and charging ports, we can stay connected and enhance our experience and overall enjoyment of the bathroom.”
Teeming with useful technology, the Dimension LED Bluetooth Speaker cabinet (pictured top and below) offers a number of features that enhance the user experience in the bathroom. The cabinet’s dual aspect LED illumination is operated via a handy touch sensor that highlights the design on the mirrored sides and doors. Hidden discreetly within the mirror surface is a heated pad that helps to reduce condensation, and inside the cabinet, the two handy USB ports and a 2 pin socket allows users to charge their devices, toothbrushes and shavers.
Delivering greater hygiene and cleanliness, TOTO has new touch-free solutions designed especially for the bathroom.
It is now understood the fewer things that you need to touch by hand, the better. Touch-free taps and hand dryers were once reserved for public washrooms yet are now becoming more common in peoples homes.
TOTO has designed a variety of solutions for the bathroom that will elevate your standards of hygiene: In addition to several WASHLET models with automatic flush options, the Japanese sanitaryware company offers touch-free taps, soap dispensers, hand dryers and washbasins with especially dirt-resistant ceramic surfaces.
Touch-free features are especially welcome in frequently used guest bathrooms. Sensor-activated products that you don’t have to touch with your hands help you feel cleaner and more comfortable.
WASHLETTM with sensor-activated lid and automatic flush
Guest bathrooms are trending more towards shower toilets with integrated intimate cleansing features that minimise the need for toilet paper. The latest model from TOTO is WASHLET™ RW auto flush with automatic flush functionality. Once you approach WASHLET, the sensor-activated lid raises – and the toilet flushes automatically when you walk away. WASHLET will determine how much water to use for the flush based on the amount of time you spend sitting on the toilet.
LINEARCERAM Washbasin
For extra peace of mind TOTO’s washbasins are made from its notably slim ceramic which is, dirt-resistant and easy-to-clean (LINEARCERAM). It is used in many washbasins, including TOTO’s eye-catching asymmetrical TA vessel. It has a dirt-resistant, easy-to-clean ceramic surface, which essentially prevents waste and bacteria from accumulating. This robust surface can even be cleaned using microfibre cloth and will still keep its brilliant shine after years of constant use.
TOTO’s sensor-based faucets, soap dispenser and hand dryers
Automatic taps equipped with sensors bring even more hygiene to the bathroom, including TOTO’s elegant, wall-mounted Autofaucet with concealed installation. The hidden sensor in the faucet can register every hand movement and dispense the exact amount of water needed. The tap even generates its own electricity from the flow of water – no power socket required.
If you’re trying to maximise hygiene, the move from the touch-free tap to automatic hand dryer is an obvious one. TOTO’s powerful model is an ideal solution for guest bathrooms in the home, drying hands with warm air in no time. According to a company statement, “Our Research Department has also managed to reduce the noise of our hand dryer to a minimum – making it a great option for home bathrooms.”
Scavolini has updated its popular Dandy furniture range with a smart built-in Amazon Alexa. Not only can you now talk to your home, but your virtual assistant is seamlessly integrated into its design via the Task Bar, an aluminium profile that incorporates smart technology.
For the bathroom, the Task Bar is located above the vanity top (as shown in the image above). A smart speaker is also integrated within so whether you want to listen to your favourite tunes while dressing, catch up on current affairs in the shower or ask Alexa to dim the lights at bath time, your wish is her command.
The Task Bar can also be fitted with a series of accessories, including shelves, towel rails and soap holders, as well as LED lights recessed along its length. The bathroom pictured features an aluminium Task Bar and Oak veneer vanity unit with Prestige White handles.
The concept brings together the best of old and new. Fabiana Scavolini, CEO of Scavolini, says: “Our Made in Italy tradition, teamed with cutting-edge technological research, led to this extraordinary project, which looks to the near future while reinventing our past. The shapes of Dandy Plus bring to mind our best-selling model from the 1980s, Dandy, in a clear tribute to Italian design and a solution to the needs of consumers who are increasingly connected.
“In partnership with celebrated architect Fabio Novembre of Novembre Studio, we started by thinking about the increasing presence of technology in our everyday activities and in our homes. Dandy Plus is a smart, innovative and comprehensive project, designed for everyone who wants an all-over digital experience at home.”
PJH has launched a luxurious new modular furniture range, aptly named “Statement”.The range is part of its new Autumn/Winter Bathrooms to Love Collection and is available in three super matt soft shades – Matt Antique Rose, Matt Latte and Matt White.
Statement consists of a range of basin units and tall units (also available in a wall-hung option) and can be complemented with a choice of handles in three on-trend finishes – Brushed Brass, Matt Black or Polished Chrome. The basin unit drawers feature luxurious smoked glass sides and anti-slip drawer liners.
The basin units with tops come in two widths (590mm & 1180mm) and can be teamed with choices of handle and washbowl as well as a worktop – including an Urban Black 10mm HPL (High-Pressure Laminate), a White Slate 12mm HPL and a Matt Latte 18mm laminate design. A third basin unit option, at 610mm in width, comes with a 1-tap hole inset ceramic white basin.
Sitting at the top-end of the Bathrooms to Love furniture collection Statement is a perfect showroom display piece when teamed with coordinating Bathrooms to Love products, such as brassware, washbowls, mirrors, lighting, wall-hung ceramics and accessories, as shown above.
A five-year quality guarantee accompanies the Statement range, which is featured on the front cover of the brand new PJH Bathrooms to Love consumer brochure.
Stockist support includes new point-of-sale material, furniture colour swatch samples and display deals – and the new range is now available for ordering via PJH’s e-commerce platform, the Partners Portal™.
D-Neo Minimal is a new bathroom range by designer Bertrand Lejoly for Duravit. With a pared-down aesthetic designed to counter-balance the current fast pace of life, the range includes bathroom furniture, taps, a washbasin, bathtub and mirrors.
The clear, minimalist and geometric forms are complemented by muted brown and subdued beige colour tones. tones that work equally well In all bathroom schemes, from Scandinavian to urban.
Duravit considers the design elements to suit urban individualists whose lifestyles are defined by jettisoning anything superfluous. for this demographic, the bathroom is a haven of peace with clear forms and minimalistic design that make the daily rituals a regenerative experience.
Taps & washbasin
The D-Neo faucets feature a clear-cut design that holds its own in any room. they pare beautifully with the 800 mm asymmetric washbasin, a highlight of the D-Neo range. The vanity unit with open racks and a drawer provides plenty of storage space. With four glass shelves, the semi-tall cabinet also offers ample storage in a compact space.
BathroomFurniture
The new Oak Black finish furniture is calming to the eye and designed to open up the room.
Bathtub
The 1600 x 750 mm free-standing D-Neo bath has the velvety look and feel of the DuraSolid® material, which was developed by Duravit, making the piece an eye-catching choice for bathrooms of any size.
Mirrors
Circular mirrors from the Universal Light & Mirror range provide indirect lighting to pleasantly illuminate the washing area.
About Duravit
Founded in 1817 in Hornberg in the Black Forest, Duravit AG is today a leading international manufacturer of designer bathrooms. The company is active in more than 130 countries worldwide and stands for innovation in the fields of signature design, comfort-enhancing technology and premium quality. In cooperation with an international network of high-profile designers such as Philippe Starck, sieger design, Christian Werner, Cecilie Manz and young talents such as Bertrand Lejoly and Kurt Merki Jr., the company develops unique bathrooms that enhance quality of life for users on a sustained basis. Duravit’s product portfolio comprises sanitary ceramics, bathroom furniture, bathtubs and shower trays, wellness systems, shower-toilets, tap fittings and accessories as well as installation systems.