Bathrooms That Rock!

The Latest Line of Products Equip Bathrooms to Entertainment While Performing the Essentials.

Showers that sing, toilets that play original music, and bathtubs that vibrate with light shows are all aimed at keeping you entertained while engaging in the essentials. With the latest line of products, the bathroom is becoming the most entertaining room in the home. Do we dare say that the bathroom is the modern media room?



Over the years, we’ve witness the evolution of the bathroom from a practical, utilitarian space into a spa retreat.  This latest trend takes the loo to another level… Want a bathroom that you can boogie in?

Here’s a look at bathroom three fixtures built to entertain:

The  MoxieTM Showerhead:

The Moxie showerhead by KOHLER® takes singing in the shower to a new level. Remember those shower radios that stick to the shower wall? Well, imagine a whole dance club experience with a showerhead that is both DJ and Disco Ball. The Moxie showerhead has a wireless speaker with Bluetooth®  technology that streams music from your smart device. Not only can you dance and sing your heart out in the shower, you are the DJ streaming your own playlist or songs from IHart Radio, Pandora, or any MP3 player. Now, if you want shower time to be an intellectual pursuit, you can even stream audio books through the Moxie.

Last month, I met with the Kohler folks at the 2013 International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas and experienced the Moxie showerhead firsthand. Leslie Bronson, Kohler Product Manger, says the Moxie showerhead integrates technology and the need for music in all areas of someone’s life….and I do mean ALL areas.

It’s a concept Kohler takes literally with a rollout of other products that keep that music flowing seamlessly in all areas of the bathroom. Priced at $199, the Moxie showerhead is selling well, Kohler reports.

 

VibrAcoustic®   Bathtub:

If you prefer a bath to the shower, no problem, the bathtub can transform into your personal boombox complete with massaging sound vibrations. The VibrAcoustic bathtub by Kohler plays music in sync with vibrations while you relax in tub.  “Because your body is primarily water, you feel those vibrations moving through you to give you a deep sense of relaxation, massaging you inside from the inside, out,” explains Jen Bryan, Senior Market Analyst in charge of Kohler Bathing Products.

 

The VibrAcoustic tub has six preprogrammed music experiences or you can stream your own music wirelessly or with an AUX cable.

Kohler had a sound therapist design the six preprogrammed music experiences to help the user relax and lower the heart rate for a Zen-like, spa experience. In addition to the music and massage, the VibrAcoustic throws in a little mood lighting to complete the sensory experience.

Kohler calls it chromatherapy lighting and the VibrAcoustic has eight color options that are choreographed to work with the sound and vibration experience. The user can cycle through all 8 colors or pick a color for mood lighting and ambiance.

NuMi® Touchless Toilet:

You can take the music to your toilet too with NuMi, a smart toilet with every technological bell and whistle you could image. The NuMi plays your favorite tunes from two speakers in the back. You can connect your MP3 player to the remote to play your own songs, listen to the radio or the NuMi’s own original composition designed to evoke a relaxing, spa-like ambiance.



Nick Grant, Senior Market Analyst for Toilets and Bidets at the Kohler, calls it the “touchless toilet.” Upon entering the room, the NuMi seat sensor lifts the lid. A blue light on the right side of the toilet allows males to tap their foot over the light to lift the seat up. NuMi also flushes itself after it senses 90 seconds of no motion. For the complete experience, the NuMi features a front and rear bidet wand, remote-controlled by the touchscreen and a dryer for what Kohler calls a “gracious user experience.”



For additional comfort, the NuMi has a heated seat, a foot heater and even deodorizes itself. The NuMi has its own night lite that makes the toilet bowl glow in the dark. Did I mention that the NuMi speaks 12 different languages? The NuMi retails for $6,390 and despite it’s luxurious price tag, Kohler says it’s doing very well in the marketplace.

Kohler says these new products “embrace the demand for constant connectivity.” So it seems the “bathroom break” has become more like a multimedia continuum of our daily lives.

5 Design Trends To Update Your Home in 2013

Recently, I attended a seminar entitled “90 Design Ideas in 90 Minutes,” at the 2013 International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas. Fifteen architects and interior designers took to the podium to share what’s trending in architecture and decor.  I’ve distilled the information down to 5 ideas that can easily update your home on a budget.

Monolithic Surfaces:

Monolithic Design Ideas

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Solid surfaces wrapped in singular materials are the main attractions in many modern homes this year. Envision a kitchen island wrapped in concrete or white carrera marble from the base to countertop. Marc Thee, Co-CEO of Marc-Michaeals Interior Design Inc., says the new trend is clean, structured material- monolithic sweeps of material especially natural or living edge materials such as wood. “Ornate or overdone design is out of favor. No longer do homeowners want heavy moldings, fabrics and furniture. The trend is light, clean, natural, simple,” says Thee.

The monolithic look can be affordable when wrapping a feature with cost-effective materials such as porcelain tiles.  “A wood clad wall creates a lot of interest,” says Thee, who cites an example of monolithic design. “Wood plank walls with random heights and thickness create texture in a room.”

[caption id="attachment_471" align="aligncenter" width="560"] Monolithic wood plank walls and ceiling in New American Home 2013[/caption]

Concrete is gaining a lot of attention with this monolithic aesthetic. “Concrete is trending because it’s always recyclable 50 percent made of ash from coal factories and it’s very cost-effective,” says Suzanne Felber of Life Stylist.

[caption id="attachment_446" align="aligncenter" width="560"] concrete countertop seamlessly blends with wood into a monolithic kitchen island.[/caption]

Concrete countertops and sink bowls are showing up in kitchen and baths. One reason, says Felber, is that concrete allows more personalization of a space by mixing with fills.

 

High Contrast Spaces:

From the kitchen to the master suite, living space that contrasts is the dominant aesthetic in 2013. Architects, Builders and Designers are combining materials in stark contrast. Envision a white kitchen with dark floors or perhaps white Calcutta marble with espresso cabinetry in the bathroom. The two-toned kitchen is the best illustration of this design trend.

Two-Toned Kitchens on Trend

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Many kitchen designers are integrating two-toned styles with a white island surrounded by dark brown wall cabinetry or a dark brown island with white gloss cabinets for a clean, on-trend look. At the International Builders’ Show this year, Mei Kitchens showcased its new contemporary line of two-toned kitchen and bath designs including its industrial look in stainless steel and gray. Mei calls its new line clean and modern with more than 40 color options.

 

Collection Cases instead of Bookcases:

[caption id="attachment_463" align="aligncenter" width="560"] a collection case embedded in stone fireplace mantle in New American Home, Las Vegas for 2013 International Builders' Show[/caption]

 

The growing popularity of eBooks and electronic readers has rendered the traditional library and bookshelves obsolete. Instead, designers are transforming the bookcase into a “collection case” to show off personal collectables. Envision a collection case with cantilever shelves and you get the effect.

 

Shared Spaces:

[caption id="attachment_458" align="aligncenter" width="560"] peek-a-boo bathtub in master suite from New American Home in Las Vegas[/caption]

To maximize the function of square footage, many newer home layouts making use of shared space. Envision a master bath with alcoves for exercise equipment or a coffee bar. Another example is the “wet environment” or Euro shower that  has the tub next to shower in one single space so essentially there is a tub in the shower. Architects, Builders and Designers are incorporating visual “peek-a-boo” spaces that look into the adjoining space. One example is in the master suite where the tub is in a “peek-a-boo” space visible from the bed.

[caption id="attachment_451" align="aligncenter" width="954"] peek-a-boo tub in master suite from Marc Thee of Marc Michaels Interior Design, Inc.,[/caption]

 

Indirect Lighting:

More attention focuses on lighting in 2013 for both function and design aesthetic. Indirect LED lighting underneath cabinets, in alcoves and embedded in trim and mouldings adds ambiance and an edge to any room. LED strings of light are affordable and easy to install in just about any area of the home with minimal electrical work required.

The concept of chromotherapy is gaining a lot of traction in home products where the user can change the color of backlighting or ambient lighting.



Now, even the mundane bathroom fixture is getting personality with products such as the Moxie showerhead and Numi toilet by Kohler that both feature chromotherapy lighting. The user can change the color scheme to fit his or her mood.

[caption id="attachment_450" align="aligncenter" width="230"] Moxie Showerhead with chromotherapy color options from Kohler[/caption]

 

Products that cast a pattern of light such as a door with a light grid or mesh that allows light to come through in beautiful pattern are also popular, notes Felber.