Wood bathroom accessories help create a Zen-like feeling. For durability, elegance and luxury, consider going with teak and bamboo accessories!
By using natural wood accessories in the bathroom—especially teak and bamboo—you can replicate the peace and calm of bathing at the onsen in Japan.
Teak is considered one of the most elegant and durable woods. Growing up to 150 feet, the teak tree will bend but not break in high winds. This tree isn’t harvested for wood until it’s mature—at least 80 years old. So what you are getting when you buy teak bathroom accessories are gorgeous pieces made to last for the long haul.
As for bamboo, you might immediately think of China and its panda bears in the bamboo forests. But Japan has plenty of bamboo, too, and modern Japanese furniture is often made out of this extremely strong wood. In fact, Japanese are often told that in case of earthquake, take refuge in a bamboo forest. Not only is it believed that bamboo will ward off evil (in this case, the earthquake), but also it can withstand the fiercest forces of nature, remaining graceful and standing tall.
You will pay more for teak and bamboo bathroom accessories, but you’re buying the aesthetic and the quality. Now that we’re talking about teak and bamboo, the next time you go into a spa or high-end hotel bathroom, be on the lookout for teak and bamboo accents. You’ll start to see them everywhere.
3 Natural Wood Accessories to Create a Zen Bathroom
If you want to recreate a Zen, spa-like atmosphere in your own bathroom, we recommend a teak bath mat, teak shower bench and a bamboo bath caddy.
Teak Bath Mat
So sure, you can get a fluffy cotton mat to step onto each time you get out of the tub. But those bathmats get so matted and dirty. I used to throw mine in the wash every few weeks, but what a pain!
A wood bath mat made of teak, though, just won’t get dirty. It absolutely brings the aesthetic of Japan into your home. Plus, stepping onto this mat is an altogether different sensation: now you’ll feel more connected to the earth by stepping onto warm wood, rather than a cold, damp bathmat. Japanese Buddhism talks about the 5 elements: earth, fire, water, wind, and sky. When you step onto a teak mat, you feel grounded by the stability of the earth element.
We highly recommend the Bare Decor Giza Shower, Spa, Door Mat. It’s flawlessly constructed so well with stainless steel screws holding the perfectly measured wood pieces in place. You won’t find any rough edges either
There are only two caveats to mention: 1) If you need to be able to open and close a bathroom door over the surface of this bath mat, it may be too high off the floor. 2) To retain the awesome look of the teak, you may want to give it a quick wipe it with teak oil a few times a year.
And by the way, teak products are naturally mildew and mold-resistant.
Dimensions: 35.5″W x 19.75″L x 1.2″H
Teak Shower Bench
A Japanese bath is meant to work all kinds of wonders on your body, mind and soul, but the objective of getting in the Japanese bath has nothing to do with getting clean.
You take care of soaping up and rinsing off before you get into an onsen (communal mineral bath), sento (communal public bath) or ofuro (family bath). In the communal bathhouses, you’ll often find a row of shower stations. In the more upscale onsens, you’ll find a teak shower bench in each shower station.
When I was in Japan, I stayed a ryokan (traditional guest house), and I used the beautiful mineral bath there. The teak shower benches in the onsen that I visited looked exactly like this sustainably harvested 100% teak shower bench from AquaTeak. This bench is so beautiful that I’m not at all surprised to find out it’s been featured in Architectural Digest magazine.
I recently visited a Hyatt Spa in Seattle and they had these AquaTeak benches in the locker room. Here’s what I can tell you: Aside from being just exquisite works of art, these benches are super comfortable—way more comfortable than your average wooden chairs.
These teak shower benches are also durable and strong and can easily support 250 pounds or more. When you order the Original 18″ Asia Teak Shower Bench from AquaTeak, it comes in 6 pieces with screws. You should be able to easily assemble it in less than 10 minutes.
Also, there are rubber pieces on the bottom of the feet to prevent your bathroom floor from getting scratched.
Dimensions are 18″ high x 18″ wide x 12″ deep and weighs 20 pounds.
Bamboo Bath Caddy
If you’re serious about your bathtime, you definitely want a bath caddy. It’s a gamechanger. Why? Because now you can easily take your glass of wine into the tub with you. But that’s not all, with the right caddy, you’ll also have a place for your Kindle, cell phone or book, as well as bath scrubs and other bath enhancers.
And if you like to canoodle your lover in the tub, then with the exact right caddy you’ll have room for two glasses of wine plus a candle! (Awesome wedding gift, right?)
Whether bathing solo or duo, we recommend the Luxury Bathtub Caddy Tray from Royal Craft Wood.
What’s so awesome about this is that it can hold a lot more than other caddies and it fits most bathtubs. Closed up it’s 29.5 inches, but you can extend it to 43 inches. And with silicone pads underneath, it won’t slip at all.
You can fit an iPad or a Kindle into the reading slats, or you can get cozy and relaxed with an old fashioned book. There are also two removable trays, so you can customize it to what you want it to hold.
This caddy adds a finished look to any bathroom, even when it’s not in use. That’s because you can use it to store and display your most beautiful bath accessories from a gorgeous bath scrub to a shower gel that came in a pretty bottle.
If you’ve never owned a bath caddy before, watch out because this one will spoil you fast!
Why We Love Wood Bathroom Accessories
Any time you use wood bathroom accessories, you are bringing nature inside. And nature is naturally calming to most of us humans. It signals our brains to leave our stressful, harried lives and relax. Along with your wood accessories, consider using other natural materials like stone.