It's easy to get extravagant in the bathroom. The status kitchen has now been established--granite counters, handcrafted cabinets, Viking ranges and Sub-Zero refrigerators. Meanwhile, "marble" has been the simple shorthand for luxury in the bath. You don't have to be Dennis Kozlowski to know that there's much, much more. The disgraced (and now convicted) former chief executive of Tyco (nyse: TYC - news - people ) looted tens of millions of dollars from his company but may be most notorious for his custom-made, gold-threaded shower curtain, which carried a $6,000 price tag.
The kinds of super-expensive objects that grace the very best bathrooms probably aren't available at the local Home Depot (nyse: HD - news - people ) or Bed, Bath & Beyond (nasdaq: BBBY - news - people ). For one, they are often made of rare materials--take the master bath of a $33 million apartment in New York's Trump International Hotel and Tower, which is paved in brilliant lapis lazuli. They are frequently custom-created to fit the environment. And having products handmade in (and imported from) Europe always adds substantial sums to the final tab. "We do believe that bathrooms are the next kitchens," says Milton Pedraza, chief executive of the Luxury Institute, a research firm based in New York. Even people who don't cook much have multiple stoves and chef-quality cookware, he points out.
Now wealthy home owners are transforming their bathrooms into spas--and for practical, as well as indulgent, reasons. "A lot more people are beginning to say, 'I'm not moving away from my kids or from the central city,'" he says. "Instead, they are exploring ways to remain in their homes after retirement, while being looked after. Baby boomers are opting more for in-home care as opposed to managed care. I think expanding the bathroom into a home spa is not just for indulgence but also for therapy." Even without creating space for the masseuse, a well-heeled home owner can attend to any number of details in the luxury bath. Sometimes spending a lot of money is about convenience--like having a flat-screen television behind your mirror, so you can catch the news while getting prepped in the morning. High-tech appliances, such as a self-cleaning toilet that can be controlled with a wireless remote, don't come cheap. Then of course, there are pure aesthetics. Hand-cast fixtures in jewel-like designs can make a bathroom a thing of beauty--even if you're simply turning on the tap.
(Pictured Above)Villeroy & Boch, Price: $85 to $105 per tile Villeroy & Boch, better known for place settings, has created tiles that can light up your life--or at least your bath. The stone and ceramic tiles are embedded with tiny LED fixtures that last for about 100,000 hours and can be used on any surface. They come in a variety of colors and styles, to provide ambient lighting, highlight pathways or illuminate anything else you might imagine. Prices vary according to style. For more information, visit www.villeroy-boch.com.
Article by Sara Clemence, Forbes.com
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