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While bathrooms get bigger and more luxurious, they should still keep the simple functionality of an outhouse.
Even though outhouses are more or less an icon of the past, there are a few features that we can learn from their design. They were functional, could be created on a small budget and had good ventilation through the cracks in the wood. They were also inconvenient, poorly lit and frankly, not very luxurious.
Since the time of outhouses, bathrooms have moved inside and multiplied. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the number of homes with multiple bathrooms has increased more than 30 percent since 1973 [source: HUD].
Bathrooms are important to many people in the United States, which is why mistakes in their designs can be frustrating and costly. Bathroom designs vary, and just like with an outhouse, there are advantages and disadvantages to all the designs. In this article, we will discuss 10 common mistakes in bathroom design from layout decisions to design choices and even budgeting.
