I suffer from a serious case of Italian bathtub desire when I see these bathing beauties.
I suffer from a serious case of Italian bathtub desire when I see these bathing beauties.Italian bathtub designs make me want to remodel the house. They are ultra modern and my home is traditional but I do love their sculptural qualities and unique features. Conventional tubs are great but this collection of tubs has a distinct point of view: special features that, along with great design, really add to bathroom chic. Every tub on the list is Italian-designed. I fell hard for the tub-in-the-round luxury of the il bagno alessi-one freestanding acrylic whirlpool tub the moment I saw this photo in a German magazine. The oval shape feels snug and I adore freestanding tubs. The filler spout is floor mounted and easy to clean. Bathroom TVs aren’t a new idea but what genius to locate a small screen so that taking a long post-workout whirlpool soak can be entertaining, too.
Perhaps even more spectacular are two tubs from Agape, an Italian bathroom fixture purveyor that’s a darling of high-end architects for a willingness to customize and for the use of interesting materials. The rectangular Cartesio comes with storage shelves in one panel. Made of cristalplant, a nonporous, recyclable and restorable solid surface (I like to learn something new while I drool), it stands free or fits in corners or niches. Faucets can be mounted on the tub deck, the wall or floor.
Bathing in Agape’s enamel and stainless steel ufo must be like slipping into a mixing bowl made for Gulliver. An enamel shelf provides a lounging surface on one side. The tub exterior has a black enamel coating but another version features polished stainless steel outside – durable enough to survive a tornado, no doubt.
Think “roman baths” and the allure of this tub – with it glamorous Hollywood pool lighting – is clear. The Kos geo 180, which looks like a large pudding basin when it’s freestanding, also can be sunken. Filled, it weighs nearly 1000 pounds. Getting in requires a maneuver: sit down, swing legs over the side and slide in. Getting out? Let’s see. At 70 cm or 27.5 inches deep, that’s a two-foot span with no internal step. In Roman times, of course, there were servants to work out such pesky details.
(Sources: il bagno alessi, Agape, Kos)
You also might like Freestanding Bathtub Style
Copy and Paste the Shortlink to Quick Share this Post: http://bit.ly/IFLmmZ
I had such a hard time getting a comfortable bath here in the US – they were either shallow condo horse troughs or all ‘show’. I finally bought a good, deep Canadian bath, with a sloping back so I could lie back in comfort, not too long as I prefer my head to stay above the level of the water. Not too much to ask.
In our apartment we have an original tub from 1924, fireclay. It’s long and deep. A definite spoiler. In the house I used a Canadian Bain Ultra tub with airjets and it’s a dream, especially when my “tech arm” is hurting.
wow, I wish I had this bath, the one with the light in it!
By the way, I love your blog!