The job of a spa interior designer is fairly unique. As well as an intrinsic awareness of style, materials and aesthetics, designers need a deep understanding of how the look, layout and finish of the space will impact the health, wellbeing and mood of the people who use it.
To help give you a better idea of exactly what a spa interior designer does, we’re taking a look at a day in the life of Katy, one of the expert members of the Spa Creators team.
Becoming A Spa Creator
Because designing spas needs specialist knowhow, it requires specialist training. Katy studied interior architecture at university, focusing on the wellness side of interior design. As her final project, Katy actually designed a spa, showing that her interest in the healing and restorative powers of architecture and design was there from the start.
Katy went on to gain a Master’s Degree in Health and Wellbeing and Sustainability for Interior Design. This taught her to push the boundaries of design and opened more doors for her as she took the next step in her career. As spa interior design combines health, wellbeing and architecture, it’s a dream job for Katy and allows her to bring her passions together to create truly sensational designs.
The Day-To-Day
On a day-to-day basis, Katy’s job involves working with the 2D architect floor plans created by Alistair’s team. Using software called VectorWorks, Katy works with a digital blueprint of the work-in-progress spa layout and then applies virtual finishes to see which looks work best.
When doing these initial design drawings, Katy and the team might discover spacing problems such as low ceiling height and walls being smaller than first thought, which can impact the final design and the overall cost of the budget. This is why those digital blueprints are so crucial in the spa design process.
Part of Katy’s job is to decide on dimensions and designs for joinery and other bespoke features. She’ll also create a small power layout for plug sockets and switches as well as important features like lighting and sound.
Katy also works with other members of the team to produce mood boards and come up with ideas for materials, textures, colour schemes and lighting. All of these elements play an invaluable role in setting the scene and creating the right mood for the spa, so getting them spot on is essential.
Once complete, Katy’s work will form a whole package ready to be built by the contractor.
Inspiration
Working on interior spa design requires a lot of imagination and inspiration. Colour schemes are incredibly important, and Katy uses a lot of calming, natural tones like blues and greens.
Using a colour palette that reflects and compliments the surrounding area can create harmony with the outside world and help the spa to sit comfortably in its environment. For example, if a spa is by the beach, Katy may use wallpaper whose design is inspired by water, or incorporate a sand-like appearance into the flooring. Including artwork from local artists can also help a spa to feel at one with its surroundings.
Seeing how materials, textures and finishes look in the space is very important. The light that floods in through a particular window can transform the feel of a room, so it’s essential to take all elements into account when designing the space. After all, it’s not just about how textures feel on the skin, but also how they look that determines the success of the overall aesthetic.
Creating focal points, or points of interest, in a room can make a spa design feel more complete. Layering textures, accessories and lighting around the space will prevent it from feeling stark. Every single piece of furniture or decoration in a spa has been placed there for a reason.
Lighting
A big part of Katy’s job involves lighting. Planning the lighting design of a spa is crucial as illumination has a huge impact on the look and feel of the finished space. Adding wall lights and dimmer balls, especially in treatment rooms, allows you to adjust the mood for each space. Massage rooms generally need darker lighting, while nail treatment areas require brighter illumination, and Katy considers the purpose of each space within the spa when planning the lighting for that space.
Flexible Design
Katy often uses modular buildings constructed off-site to add deep relax lounges, treatment rooms or other bespoke areas to the spa that may not fit inside the premises or otherwise are better suited to be added on the outside. These eco-pods can be installed in gardens or close to outdoor pools, and are ideal for premises where big changes can’t be made to the existing building.
Get In Touch With Us
Katy’s typical days at Spa Creators are jam-packed, as she has to be involved at every stage of the spa creation process, and she’d love to work on your project, too! To learn more about spa design, and find out how our team can help you achieve a fantastic result, get in touch today.
Image Source: Canva
