From powder blue and sage to terracotta and deep red, coloured ceramics are replacing default white as bathrooms become more expressive. The all-white basin is losing its grip on the contemporary bathroom. In its place, designers are embracing coloured ceramics, using the basin as a focal point around which an entire palette can be built. It is part of a broader shift away from overly neutral bathrooms towards spaces with more personality, warmth and permanence.
Two Italian brands available in New Zealand through Robertson Bathware, Ceramica Flaminia and Alice Ceramica, make a particularly strong case for the trend. Robertson’s current basin offering includes both labels, with each approaching colour through distinctly sculptural forms.
Ceramica Flaminia has long experimented with colour as part of the design itself. Its App collection pairs softly rounded silhouettes with a broad palette of matt and gloss finishes, allowing shades such as Petrolio or Rosso Rubens to become an architectural element rather than simply an accent.
Alice Ceramica brings a similarly design-led sensibility. Its Nur basin, created by Massimiliano Braconi, is defined by an unusual curved profile and is offered in a range of colours, giving the ceramic the presence of a designed object rather than conventional sanitary ware.
The appeal lies in that sense of intention. Whether set against travertine, timber, saturated tile or tonal plaster, a coloured basin can establish the mood of the entire room. In 2026, the bathroom’s most functional object is becoming one of its most expressive.
