Master Bathroom Ideas: Double Vanity, Slab Shower and Stone Tub Plans

A master bathroom, also called a primary bathroom, is the private bathroom attached to the main bedroom. Because it serves one bedroom and often two people, it has room for features a hall bath rarely holds: a double vanity, a walk-in shower apart from the tub, and surfaces in natural stone. The master bathroom ideas below cover layout first, then each part of the room, then spa details, and end with three complete stone plans built from products you can shop.

• Layout: separate shower and tub, a wet room, or a walk-through to the closet
• Vanity: a double vanity of 72 inches or more, or an 84 inch set with a makeup counter
• Shower: marble slab or large tile walls, with a rain shower system or a steam enclosure
• Tub: a freestanding tub carved from marble
• Fixtures: one line and one finish for the shower and the sink faucets

This guide is part of our bathroom series. For the same decisions in a smaller room, see modern bathroom ideas.

The three plans at a glance

Part	White marble spa	Warm cream	Blue and gray
Vanity	Bellshire 84 in set with Silestone top, sinks separate	Myrrin 72 in, mid-century walnut, Eternal Marfil top and sinks	Breckenridge 72 in, Serenity Blue, cabinet only
Shower walls	Calacatta Lincoln slab, polished	Crema Marfil slab, polished	Arabescato Corchia slab, honed
Shower and sink fixtures	Crystal Bay, polished gold	Crystal Bay, champagne bronze	Emerald Bay, chrome
Tub	Statuario, polished	Silver beige travertine, honed	Skyline, honed
Floor	Mood Frost 24x48 in	Mood Sand 24x48 in	Mood Ash 24x48 in
Mirror	Addison 36 in, glossy white	Bristol 44 in, saddle brown wood	Gracyn 28 in, driftwood

Master bathroom layout

Three common layouts for a master bathroom:

Separate shower and tub. The double vanity runs along one wall, a walk-in shower takes a corner, and a freestanding tub stands on its own where it can be seen from every side. This layout needs the most open floor.

Wet room. The shower and the freestanding tub share one glass-enclosed area, and the vanity sits outside it. The tub stays visible through the glass.

Walk-through. The bathroom sits between the bedroom and the closet, with the vanity on one side of the path and the shower and tub on the other. A separate water closet, a small room with its own door for the toilet, keeps the toilet out of the shared space in any of the three.

Clearances shape every layout. The International Residential Code, a model code that US jurisdictions adopt with local changes, sets a minimum of 21 inches of clear space in front of a sink, toilet or tub, 24 inches in front of a shower opening (sections R307.1 and P2708.1), and a shower interior of at least 30 by 30 inches. The National Kitchen and Bath Association recommends 30 inches of clear space in front of each fixture. Local codes set the final numbers for a given project.

The double vanity

A double vanity gives each person a sink and storage. Width sets how much counter sits between the two sinks.

The Bellshire is an 84 inch set of two 30 inch vanities and a 24 inch makeup counter between them, 84 inches wide, 23.5 inches deep and about 36 inches tall, with a 3 cm Silestone countertop; the porcelain undermount sinks are sold separately. The lower makeup counter gives a seated spot for grooming between the two sinks.

For a 72 inch wall: the Myrrin in mid-century walnut, with fluted doors and drawers and champagne brass knobs, measures 72 by 23.5 by 34 inches and comes with a 3 cm Eternal Marfil Silestone top and two white porcelain undermount sinks; the Breckenridge in Serenity Blue, with satin nickel knobs and an open lower shelf, measures 71.9 by 23.5 by 33 inches. The Breckenridge is a cabinet only, designed for a 3 cm eased-edge countertop and two undermount sinks chosen separately. More widths are in our double vanities.

Marble slab shower walls

A slab is a single sheet of stone several feet wide and tall, so a shower wall can be one or two pieces with the veining running from floor to ceiling. Tile gives a different look, a pattern of many smaller pieces, and our marble shower ideas cover that option.

Calacatta Lincoln is a polished white marble with gray veins in long, irregular lines, and its listing rates it for shower walls as well as interior walls and countertops. Our marble slabs are sold as full slabs in the random sizes shown in each slab's batch report, chosen slab by slab, and cut to fit by a fabricator. Browse marble slabs.

Spa bathroom ideas

Spa bathrooms lean on stone, water and warmth: stone on the walls and around the tub, a shower with more than one outlet, and a deep tub.

For a warm spa, Crema Marfil is a polished beige marble with soft cream tones. For a cool one, Arabescato Corchia is a honed white marble with gray veins in long, sweeping lines, matte under light. Both are rated for shower walls.

The Crystal Bay shower system pairs a rain head with a detachable hand sprayer on a slide bar and four built-in body jets, on a thermostatic valve with a solid brass diverter. It comes in several finishes, including polished gold, champagne bronze and chrome, and the Crystal Bay bath faucet comes in the same finishes, so the shower and the sinks can match.

For steam, the Maya Bath Lucca is a complete glass enclosure in black or white with a steam function, six recessed body jets, a rainfall shower, a seat, shelving, thermostatic control and a built-in 12 inch tablet. As a self-contained unit, it brings steam without building a steam room. More are in our steam showers and shower systems.

The tub

Two carved marble tubs for a master bathroom. The Statuario, on the left, is white marble with bold gray veining, 32 by 68 by 20 inches, polished, about 1,200 pounds. The Skyline, on the right, is honed, 34 by 79 by 24 inches and about 1,400 pounds, long enough to recline in. A third option, a honed silver beige travertine tub, appears in the second plan below. Ten carved tubs with their sizes and weights are in our list of marble and stone bathtubs.

The floor

Mood is a limestone-look porcelain in 24 by 48 inch tiles, listed for residential floors and shower walls, so the same tile can appear on the floor and on any shower wall that is not slab. Frost, on the left, is pale and cool; Sand, on the right, is warm. It also comes in Ash, Greige, Taupe and darker shades. More are in our bathroom tiles.

Master bathroom remodel ideas by scope

• Refresh: keep the layout and tile, and change the vanity, mirrors, faucets and shower trim to one new line and finish.
• Surfaces: keep the plumbing locations and replace the floor and shower walls, for example with a 24 by 48 inch porcelain floor and marble slab in the shower.
• Layout: move fixtures to create a wet room, separate the shower and tub, or add a water closet. This is the scope where a carved stone tub and a slab shower come in.

For a warmer, wood-based version of these ideas, see modern farmhouse bathroom ideas.

Three stone master bathrooms

Each plan lists the vanity, shower walls, shower system, sink faucet, tub, floor and mirror. The shower system and the faucets come from one ZLINE line in one finish. Cabinet hardware is part of the vanity: champagne brass on the Bellshire and Myrrin and satin nickel on the Breckenridge sit close to, but not exactly on, the fixture finish in those plans.

Lookbook

White marble spa

Vanity

Shower

System

Faucet

Tub

Floor

Mirror

White marble spa. The 84 inch Bellshire in bright white, Calacatta Lincoln slab walls and a Statuario tub put white marble with gray veining in both the shower and the tub. Crystal Bay in polished gold covers the shower and both sink faucets, and two white-framed mirrors keep the metal to the fixtures. The floor is Mood Frost.

Lookbook

Warm cream

Vanity

Shower

System

Faucet

Tub

Floor

Mirror

Warm cream. A walnut Myrrin with its cream Eternal Marfil top sits beside Crema Marfil slab walls and a squared silver beige travertine tub. Crystal Bay in champagne bronze runs from the shower to the sink faucets, and a saddle brown wood mirror picks up the walnut. Mood Sand keeps the floor in the same cream range.

Lookbook

Blue and gray

Vanity

Shower

System

Faucet

Tub

Floor

Mirror

Blue and gray. A Serenity Blue Breckenridge cabinet is the one color in a room of honed and matte surfaces: Arabescato Corchia slab walls, a honed Skyline tub and a Mood Ash floor. Emerald Bay in chrome covers the shower and sink faucets, and two driftwood mirrors bring in pale wood.

Master Bathroom FAQ

What is the difference between a master and a primary bathroom?

None in function. Both mean the private bathroom attached to the main bedroom. "Primary" and "master" are both in use. This guide uses both.

How are marble slabs for a shower sold?

By the slab, not by the square foot. Two slabs of the same stone name can look quite different, because each is cut from a different part of the block, so the slabs chosen decide how the veining falls on each wall. A shower with two or three walls takes several slabs, and slabs cut from one block in sequence show related veining across walls.

What is a thermostatic shower valve?

A thermostatic valve mixes hot and cold water to hold a set temperature, adjusting when pressure changes elsewhere in the house. A pressure-balancing valve, the other main type, reacts to pressure changes instead of temperature. With a rain head, a hand sprayer and body jets on one system, a thermostatic valve helps hold the set temperature across outlets.

What makes a bathroom feel like a spa?

Mostly materials and water. Natural stone on the walls and tub, a deep soaking tub, a shower with more than one outlet or a steam function, warm and indirect light, and a restrained palette all contribute. A spa bathroom also keeps clutter out of sight, which is where a double vanity with deep drawers, a niche and a separate water closet help.

How wide is a double vanity for a master bathroom?

The double vanities in this guide are 72 inches wide, and the Bellshire set is 84 inches, including a 24 inch makeup counter between its two 30 inch vanities. Our double vanities range from 60 to 120 inches. A wider vanity leaves more counter between the sinks and more drawer space for two people.