by Kate Schwartz

The best thing about the shower used to be its tub. But leisurely bubble baths have given way to a new luxury that perfectly suits the hustle and bustle of everyday life: the spa-like shower.

“As the bathroom has grown from a smaller functional space to a larger indulgent space, the shower has followed,” explains Michael Wandschneider, senior product manager of Kohler performance showering. “Home­owners are recognizing that no matter what changes in their lives, time constraints remain the same. Showering is a part of the daily routine and, with a little foresight, you can make your shower a time-efficient luxury.”

The first step is to separate the shower from the tub, allowing the shower to become the bathroom’s focal point. “If there is a tub it’s usually separate or adjoining,” says Rob Altschuler, owner and general manager of Boulder’s A-Ability Glass Co. Inc., a full-service glass company that specializes in custom shower doors and mirrors.

For the shower to become a focal point, one of the first things to go should be the standard metal-frame enclosure. While that basic shower type remains the most cost-effective (frameless showers generally cost two to two-and-a-half times more than their framed counterpart), Altschuler is installing more frameless, or European-style, enclosures as demand for framed enclosures shrinks.

Euro-style “heavy-glass” doors and enclosures remove the hefty mitered frame and instead mount hinges and pulls on glass that’s typically 3/8- or 1/2-inch thick (as opposed to the 3/16-inch thickness of framed showers) to keep the spotlight on the glass.

Plain glass does have its benefits. “It’s very clean looking and highlights the tile work and fixtures,” Altschuler explains. “Three-eighths or half-inch-thick glass with polished edges produces an immediate feeling of luxury and elegance.” Have a small bathroom? Euro-style enclosures impart an expansive appearance, even in modest spaces.

Shower-glass options don’t stop there. Though Altschuler cites plain glass as his most requested product by far, some homeowners opt for colored glass in bronze or gray. “Beveled and etched glass, when used as accents, add interesting and unique features,” he says, though he cautions that cleaning them can be more difficult. Plus, the look of this type of glass is one you’ll need to be happy with for years to come.

To keep your shower glass streak-free, consider “Shower Guard” glass, a new introduction by leading manufacturer Guardian Industries. The product’s special coating is fused to the glass during the manufacturing process. The resulting material “repels water, thus requiring minimal maintenance,” Altschuler says.

Join Me for a Shower?

As glass evolves, so does the shower size. The two-person shower is “a trend that has grown significantly,” Wandschneider says. “If a husband and wife keep roughly the same schedule, who gets to sleep in and who has to shower first? His-and-her showers eliminate that as a concern.”

But it’s not just the exterior that’s getting dressed up. Body sprays with multiple jets, multiple showerheads and benches are just the start of the interior options. Moen offers massaging showerheads that spin each oversized drop of water, as well as fixtures with Immersion Rainshower Technology, designed to mimic the rain-soaked feel.

If you really want to elevate your shower experience, consider steaming things up. Steam generators provide a “good sweat cleansing,” Altschuler says. They require a special enclosure in which the glass extends to the ceiling to trap steam, as well as a transom that can be opened to release it.

Today’s hydrotherapy is also as much about fashion as function. Kohler’s Water Tiles—tile-like sprays that can be positioned on the walls or ceiling for an enveloping stream—come in polished and brushed chrome and nickel, as well as brushed bronze and French gold finishes.

All these bells and whistles can get complicated, however, which makes Kohler’s DTV Custom Showering Experience a unique introduction. “As we’ve continued to push the envelope with additional showerheads and body sprays, each one of those requires some sort of a control,” Wandschneider notes. “We wanted to simplify, moving valves and controls from the walls and replacing them with an intuitive, easy-to-use interface.”

DTV’s small panel controls temperature and up to eight shower components with the touch of a button. It can also customize and save showering programs. “In essence, your shower knows you instead of you getting to know your shower,” Wandschneider says.

But such luxury comes with a price tag. “Costs for a highly customized, intricate, large, curved-glass enclosure with oil-rubbed bronze hardware and artistic etching can easily exceed $25,000,” Altschuler says.

Always work with a professional during the installation and specification processes “to make sure that what you’re designing will work in the real world,” Wandschneider says.

Altschuler agrees. “The shower enclosure is very dominant and helps tie everything together. Ill-fitting glass, misaligned spacing and sloppy caulking take away from the open and clean look.”

Kate Schwartz is a Chicago-based freelance writer who has twice showered under a Rainshower showerhead. All bathing experiences since have paled in comparison.

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