Basins come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, styles and materials so it really can be a hard task to decide what to go for.
When it comes to having a bespoke bathroom vanity unit made by Vanity Flair, some clients already have a very specific type of basin in mind, while others will let the piece of furniture determine the type of basin that will work best. It really is down to personal taste and priorities.
For this post, I’m going to concentrate on basin style as this is the main factor that influences our search for suitable piece of furniture.
In terms of material; classic white porcelain, hammered copper, brass, stone, glass, concrete or hand-painted ceramic, where do you start? The more certain you are of an overall design style for your bathroom renovation, the easier it will be to choose a material. We can help you with pull this all together, should you wish.
Here is a brief overview of the most typical basin styles we work with:
Countertop basins
Also known as ‘Vessel’ basins, countertop basins sit on top of a piece of furniture and require only a small hole in the furniture for the waste water pipe. Usually countertop basins are around 10cm - 20cm tall.
Countertop basins come in round, oval, square and rectangular as well as an array of other quirky shapes, such as donut and seashells.
Due to the height of countertop basins, they usually require a taller than standard tap, or work well with wall-mounted taps.
HAND-PAINTED ROUND CERAMIC COUNTERTOP BASIN
BUTLER-STYLE RECTANGULAR COUNTERTOP BASIN WITH ONE TAP HOLE
Countertop basins with built-in tap hole(s)
It is also possible to source countertop basins which already have a tap hole built in, so that a regular height tap will work. This kind of basin is also useful when the furniture piece we find isn’t quite deep enough to mount a separate tap behind the basin. That said, if you’re having a quartz, marble or granite top, we can often add additional depth to the furniture to give ourselves more choice over basin style.
Semi-inset basins
Semi-inset basins extend both above and below the vanity unit countertop. It could be described as half way between a countertop basin and a drop-in style basin.
As with countertop basins, a semi-inset basin often requires a slightly taller than average tap, or wall-mounted taps.
HAND-PAINTED CERAMIC OVAL SEMI-INSET BASIN
RECTANGULAR WHITE CERAMIC DROP-IN BASIN
Drop-in basins
Drop-in basins, also known as self-rimming or inset basins, are quite literally ‘dropped in’ through a hole in the top of a piece of furniture/countertop. They usually have a 2-3cm 'lip’ all around the top which allows them to take their own weight. The lip will sit just above the countertop although they are always sealed with silicone to stop any water from getting under the lip.
This kind of basin is ideal if you would like to keep a natural wood top as it will cover the edges of the hole nicely and avoids possible water ingress into cut wood.
Under-mounted basins
Under-mounted basins are fixed to the underside of a stone top with brackets or some kind of structure to take the weight of the basin. This gives a completely flush surface with no visible ‘lip’.
This type of basin is only suitable with a quartz, granite or marble top.
RECTANGULAR UNDER-MOUNTED BASIN
900 WIDE TROUGH BASIN
Trough-style basins
Trough-style basins are generally quite large and wide and can often serve as one double basin with two sets of taps. Similar to butler sink style basins.
The example shown here is a 900mm x 400mm trough basin that has been semi-inset and will be installed with wall mounted taps.