Burning Question: Glass or Fabric?
When it comes to your shower or tub… do you prefer a shower curtain or a glass door? Do you love the easy and inexpensive function that a crisp cloth shower curtain can bring? Or do you long for the modern and open look of a seamless glass door? Does something else entirely tickle your fancy?
We’re excited to hear where you stand on the issue. In fact, we whipped up this handy little poll to keep everything tabulated:
[poll id="19"]
We’d love to hear more about why you voted the way you did, so feel free to comment away with more details.
Image courtesy of Restoration Hardware.
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Hubby and I have always lived in old houses (as in 90+ years – currently 150 years old), so we’ve had to deal with small bathrooms. Without a major renovation budget for a tub/shower stall that would work with glass doors, and no desire to constantly have to clean them, I’ve come up with another solution that works for us. We use a sheer fabric curtain on the outside of the tub and a clear plastic curtain on the inside. It definitely opens things up and it makes things not as claustrophobic and much brighter while showering. The one we’re currently using, I made and then embellished a bit at the top, middle, and bottom for some much needed color and to join 2 pieces of the sheer fabric (sewed all the fabric together with french seams, hemmed bottom, tops, and sides, then made large button holes for the rings). It’s hung at about 100″ to maximize our 11′ ceilings.
If I could I would have a walk-in. No doors, no curtains- easy peasy.
I hate, hate, hate our glass doors. They overlap, which means they are SO difficult to clean because the water gets in between both. My husband did the fancy tile work before we moved in together and I secretly think he did glass just to show off his mad tiling skills.
Practically speaking…fabric is the best. I put the plastic liner inside and wash it every couple of weeks! If the fabric gets old or I’m tired of it, it’s easier to change out and change up the look!
Shower curtain, all the way. It is just another chance to add some character to the room!
I use a heavy duty shower liner behind my decorative s.c. The heavy duty curtain doesn’t seem to billow in and touch you while you are showering like the lighter weight ones. Then, frequently, i throw it in the wash with a few towels to scrub. Presto! No soap residue any more. Let it dry naturally, of course.
My husband and I removed the sliding doors to our shower/tub because the mildew/hard water was just too much to try and keep up with despite my best efforts. It’s much easier for me to put up a pretty fabric curtain with a plastic liner and throw the liner in the washing machine when it needs a cleaning. When it wears out, I use it as a dropcloth.
If I had to have a shower/bath combo, I would go for the shower curtain, but if I had my dream bathroom, it would have a walk-in shower with a glass door and a gigantic tub separate from the shower. :)
I currently have a clear plastic curtain on my shower, but if I had my way, I wouldnt have anything. I would love to have a bathroom that I could just go to the shower head and take a shower and not be enclosed at all. :)
My new apartment has these sliding plastic faux-glass doors for the shower/tub. Blah. Sure, they’re easy to deal with, but they’re so boring! The whole shower enclosure area is just… boring.
There’s clearly not a lot of love for plastic shower curtains in this poll but they’re actually my favorite. You can find some really pretty or fun ones if you look around, and you change them eventually so you can switch it up and not get bored. Not as elegant and classy as fabric or real glass, it’s true, but more fun and interesting!
I like a shower curtain because if I ever want a fast easy and inexpensive way to freshen up or change around the bathroom decor, the shower curtain is my way to go!
CLR Kitchen & Bath spray is the only product that’s gotten all the hard water residue off my glass shower surround. I squeegee every time, but the mister is less reliable in that regard. Vinegar works for intermediate cleanings, but every month I end up using the CLR to get absolutely all the marks off the glass.
I have a gorgeous shower curtain in the 2nd bath, and in general they’re my preferred option.
I’ve got a little bathroom, but I still like the look of a curtain the best. As many others have said, I layer the lovely fabric one with the inner plastic one and just toss the liner in the wash when it starts to get icky. You can change up the look so easily by getting a new curtain and you never have to deal with the nasty gunk buildup in the tracks of the door. My parents have doors on their tub/shower and one side is a mirror while the other is clear. Looks nice and clean in the room, but man is it DARK in there when you’re showering! No window near the tub so it just feels like you’re showering in a cave. No thank you!
I think it totally depends. I prefer a glass surround in a shower-only bathroom, but like a curtain best if it’s a tub with a shower. We have glass doors on our tub, and I HATE them – cleaning them is a pain, but more than that bathing my boys is difficult when I’m contending with wiggly kids and the doors. I thought about removing the doors, but then there are the tracks. Wonder if it would mess up the tub if the tracks were removed…?
We had sliding glass doors on our tub/shower combo and I absolutely hated them. So I took them out one day. It was very easy to do. I filled in the few holes that remained from where the screws were with caulking that was the same color as our tub. Ta-da…love it now! They were a nightmare to try to maneuver around when our kids were babies, and I hated having to scrub them all the time. It even made our tub area feel bigger…I installed one of those curved curtain rods. Much more pleasant experience while bathing, and a much more inviting look in our wee little cottage bathroom.
It depends… The shower in our Master is a stall shower. technically we don’t ‘need’ a door or a curtain because the shower is deep, however it is all tile so I have to have something to enclose the steam to keep it warm inside [the shower]. We currently have just a long window curtain hanging [with the shower liner on the inside]. I would prefer a nice glass shower door for that area.
For the tub/shower in our guest bath, shower curtain all the way.
I think it depends.
Fabric shower curtains work best in my kiddos bathroom just for ease of getting them in and out. The glass doors make it hard to reach in and wash them up. On the other hand I hate, hate, hate mildewy {is that even a word?} shower curtains, yuck! I’m one of the few that voted for *gasp* no curtains or glass doors. I think it would be sweet to have a walk in shower for a master bath like this: http://www.houzz.com/photos/5993/Roman-tub-shower-modern-bathroom-san-francisco
Not for everyone but I love it : )
We live in an older rental home, everything was re-done except the bathroom and it has a glass door. I hate it – because it is a pain to keep clean, there are so many little nooks and crannies that get hard water deposits that it never looks as good as a curtain would – and if your feeling a like changing things up a bit the curtain can change and add a whole new feel to the room, not so with a glass door.
I prefer curtains for many reasons, the biggest being that they are a fabulous way to introduce color and pattern on a large scale in a room that can be tough to add style to. They are simple to clean (unlike all the shower doors I’ve used) and easy to change out. I have been known to add a fabric curtain outside the tub-style glass doors (not the stall kind), basically using the doors as the “liner.” It adds color and while it doesn’t make the glass easier to clean, at least it hides it when I want to :) I also am a fan of the new rounded shower curtain rods that curve out from the edge of the tub. That way your curtain hangs further from the tub, giving you more elbow room and less chance of your liner sticking to you like saran wrap :) I would only use them in bathrooms with plenty of space across from the tub, however, or they can make it feel crowded. Happy showering!!
The doors get in the way. They’re hard to keep clean with the tracks, the hinges or the overlapping. It’s extremely hard to get to a baby in the tub if you have doors. And, everyone can see the hot pink or green or purple bottles you have in there! With a curtain, you can easily and cheaply replace it if it gets moldy or you need a change of scenery.
My dream bathroom would have a steam shower with glass doors. The reality is a 1960s 3 feet x 3 feet shower area with a faux glass door. It’s not so bad. It’s easy to clean and lets lots of light in.
I hate, hate, hate our glass doors. They overlap, which means they are SO difficult to clean because the water gets in between both. My husband did the fancy tile work before we moved in together and I secretly think he did glass just to show off his mad tiling skills.
I don’t understand why everyone complains about having to use plastic liners. I use fabric curtains, without liners, not even a drop of floor on the water. I like this better because I can wash my curtain on a weekly basis. I little bit of oxyclean in the wash keeps it mold free and looking nice for months. I typically change my curtain twice a year. Once in winter (go warmer and darker) and once in spring (light and bright) and I always go with fabric.
Plastic is a big hassle and not nearly as easy to clean. Plus I love the dramatic of simple look variations you can achieve with the colorful and muted arrangements on fabric.
i hate both glass doors and curtains. ever since i first used the walk-in, stone-tiled shower at my uncle’s house, i knew that that was what my dream home would have.
my place now has a shower curtain. as much as i don’t like them, they’re FAR superior to glass doors, which are always covered in mold, mildew, and hard water spots no matter how often you clean them.
I voted for the texture-rich curtain. I like the way they look, and also gives you the option to change the color and style in your bathroom pretty much on a whim. :) I also like the fact that you can get the arched shower rod and therefore increase the amount of space you have in your shower very inexpensively.
We rent and the owners redid the bathroom, and put in a spa tub with shower head. So there are no doors or curtains which was kinda weird at first but we’re used to it now! The only problem is they put a small glass divider on one side so water doesn’t splash the vanity…which means that I can’t clean the whole thing, just the top to the start of the vanity, so you can see about 4 years of scum on the bottom half…baaaaad design!
We just got rid of glass doors in our girls’ bathroom. Thank God!! It was so difficult to keep clean and it never looked good. Now, an entirely new world is open to me in terms of decor!
Our bathroom is themed black and white. I love playing with colors with the accessories, shower curtains included. Depending on my mood, I change the curtain every two weeks.
Glass only. It is easy to clean in one step with this:
http://www.hauser-clean.com/images/product_images/popup_images/62_0.jpg
Using this (it takes minute after showering) shower glass will be in a minute – dry and clean, no need for extra weekly cleaning.
“It’s extremely hard to get to a baby in the tub if you have doors.”
Glass doors today are fixed only at one part (if you want that version) and if you want you have bathtube completely free like this:
http://www.holidaycheck.de/data/urlaubsbilder/mittel/18/1156542736.jpg
You just move the glass to the wall and whole bathtube is free. Old folding system is outdated and I don’t see it any more in newer homes
http://www.kermi.de/res/Media/neu.kermi.de/DW/de/Produktuebersicht/Beschlag/Gia_XP/Medien/Galerie/BadewanneBadew.jpg16754.jpg
http://www.skonto.net/images/A2K.jpg
Why not curtains for me? I hate really hate this cold wet feeling of curtains touching my body during taking a shower. My curtains were fixed very high and I would need a lot of effort to remove them and wash.
My cats wanted to “play” with them.
I love the sleek look of glass doors! However, I once had a glass door shatter just as I was done with my shower. It was very very scary. Think hyperventilating naked girl! It was tempered glass, so didn’t break into big chunks, just little tiny ones. I was covered with little nicks and cuts like you would get shaving. Only needed a couple of stitches though. Needless to say, every shower I have taken since then has been behind a curtain!
I have one of each and after 10 years, the glass doesn’t look so good—well actually, it was here when we moved in and the shower curtain in my kids bathroom just looks cleaner and more welcoming. I’d definitely get rid of the glass if I could!
plastic curtains actually leech a lot of chemicals!
I love me some fabric curtains. They’re just nicer to look at, and, in my opinion, easier to wash. It’s funny that you guys are talking about this now because I just did a post about this exact same topic the other day (http://lamaisoncharmante.com/2010/07/new-apartment-plans-clean-and-shiny/)! I guess showers are a hot issues these days :)
I grew up with glass doors and not only were they a constant battle to keep clean but it wasn’t so cozy. I always felt a little over-exposed. As an adult I have a layered, fabric curtain and not only does it feel snug and private but when I don’t have time to clean the shower I can just close the curtain and my secret is safe!
Just say no to glass doors, but a full shower with a glass partition would be devine. :) For a tub, I prefer a simple fabric curtain that can be washed and a textured decorative curtain for the outside.
We have a handpainted custom shower curtain that we love love love. No one else will ever have the same one. We got it from http://www.showercurtainart.com – great stuff!
I just replaced my plastic shower curtain liner with a fabric one. The package said that the liner is mildew resistant, but I’m assuming I should wash it every once in a while. How often?
We toss ours in the wash once every few months. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
This is off topic, but I was wondering if you use something special for your poll/voting? I can’t seem to find one for my other blog. =/
Thanks!
Hey Ashley,
We use the WordPress’s “WP-Polls” plug in. Hope it helps!
xo,
s