Small loos are the perfect place to have a bit of fun with your decoration: many of the most stylish examples in our archive are charming jewel boxes, making use of bold colours and extravagant wallpapers. After all, you (hopefully) don’t have to be in there all the time, so there’s no reason not to be exuberant.

Before you get to the fun part, there are some space-saving considerations to be made and plenty of downstairs toilet ideas to consider. Jo Sangster, Senior Designer at Ripples Bathrooms is quite the expert: her key tip? Where floor space is tight, do not neglect the walls. ‘Concealed fittings are the perfect choice. Wall mounted taps not only look sleek but are also great space savers, and can be more practical than basin mounted versions. Opt for a wall-hung WC which reduces the need for clunky boxing. Add shelves above it for valuable storage space’.

The team at Retrouvius, who specialise in the use of salvage and recycled materials in interior design, suggest that these rooms are also brilliant places to start using salvage, because their small footprint allows for the use of one-off pieces and small remnants of material.

Maria Speake and her team are fond of using old pieces of furniture to create washstands. “Loos and bathrooms can often feel bland or impersonal,” they explain, “and modern sanitary ware doesn’t help. An old piece of furniture adds loads of character and hides unsightly waste pipes.” Mirrors are another easy way to make use of vintage pieces; they’re cheap and come in a wide variety of designs, and will effortlessly add a sense of originality to the room. Mirrored panels can also help bounce light around in a room – particularly useful if you have a windowless bathroom.