Here are a few interesting shower ideas I’ve run across recently in my speccing adventures. Porcelanosa has a bunch of elegant looking shower pans if you want to go the prefabricated route. They start at around $1200, more than twice the cost of something more generic, but so much nicer.

RAS shower pan from Porcelanosa

If you’re going the mortar & tile rout, there’s nothing cooler than a linear drain. Not only because the drain itself is so attractive; it allows for a much cleaner tile installation. It doesn’t have to be cut up into 4 triangles like with a common round drain. Just a clean, unbroken tile floor slanting toward one wall.

A linear drain from Quick Drain:

There are some other good options out there as well, like the “invisible” slot drain. I really like some of these solutions, because they can really add some interest, and make for a very clean installation. Sure these products are a little more expensive on their own, but in many cases are cheaper to install than a conventional round drain tile & mortar shower pan, and they look a helluva lot cooler.

So the next time you find yourself “standing in the shower thinkin’” about all the things you’d change in life, just think about how you could change your shower instead. And if you’re someone that prefers a nice hot bath and a cup o’ tea, lemme know and I’ll give you some options for that too.

-Sven Lavine, San Francisco architect.