Sourcing all bathroom fittings and fixtures - quality brands?

[mysteryfairy]

I've got a bathroom fitter lined up but I've told him I'll be sourcing everything myself. Ideally I want to source higher end products as cheaply as possible but I don't know what brands to look at. This is to replace tatty bathrooms which don't live up to the finish/quality a house in this price bracket should have.

I'm doing two bathrooms. One will have an over bath mixer shower running off a normal boiler and the other a quadrant shower enclosure with shower running off combi boiler.

I need everything for both bathrooms. Can anyone tell me what brands I should look at:

Tiles
Taps
Radiators
Fixtures like rails etc
suites (but local furniture maker lined up to do vanity units with sinks)
Showers
Shower enclosure and tray
Flooring (looking at Harvey Maria lvt, currently have karndean and appreciate the warmth)
Lighting
Extractors

For bathroom suite, Victoria plum.
Radiators, Geyser designer radiators.

We have re entry done our bathroom and I sourced everything myself. Had the same view as you that I would rather get good quality brands at byrne prices. In general I looked for brands I liked and then narrowed it down to a style and then just searched Google for the best price. Remember to compare the delivery cost too as sometimes for large items it can be very high, the price for the item might be slightly higher elsewhere but with free shipping.

I got our floortiles form Harvey Maria, I love them but they've only been down a week and already have a few little scratches! So time will tell how well they last.

Got our wall tiles from Tile Mountain who were AMAZING. I got so many samples from so many places and theirs were by far the nicest and best prices by a long shot. Customer service excellent too.

Shower and taps for sink and bath are Grohe. Hansgrohe v good too but were over budget. Crosswater, bristan and another which is escaping me right now!

We got a simpsons shower enclosure as we needed quite a specific size/shape that is less common so had to get quite a pricey one. It was from CP Hart who's customer service was Shocking. I would never use them again.

We got the bath, towel rail, shower tray from Victorian Plumbing. I avoided them at first but they were actuall very good, and have loads of lovely brands like Burlington etc.

I got a lovely mirror from Soak that I was v happy with.

We had our vanity unit made by Harvey George. They have a website but I originally found them on eBay as they have a shop there. They were very good, good price and very patient with my endless questions.

Toilets - we picked a generic one from Victorian plumbing but we are doing our en suite soon and I will be getting a branded one for that I think. Looking at Duravit, v&b, Bauhaus, etc but looking at extra display on Ebay or previous styles for a bit cheaper. If you need a concealed cistern the plumber said he would only ever fit gerberit as they're the best and most reliable.

Good luck! you'll realise as soon as you start researching that it's a bit of a minefield. But it's worth it in the end!!

For tiles, I just go to a discount tiles store and get quality ones from there.

Aargh autocorrect.

Re entry = recently
Byrne = internet!

Don't rule out a plumbers merchant. Practicality is all in a bathroom - you do want bowl sinks that trap dirt, flashy baths that are uncomfortable ( recent thread) or toilets with silly features that again trap dirt. Push button flushes are supposed to be prone to failure, ditto pop up waste.

That will be 'do not want..' Which I typed and the site deleted!

Don't be afraid to hit eBay for particular brands. We got all our Hansgrohe taps off eBay for well below RRP.

We used Victoria Plum for bath, glass panel & towel rail radiators. All look very good - just don't buy the cheapest ones.

Duravit would be one of my first choices for upmarket furniture & sanitaryware. Look for bathrooms seconds outlets as again, you may be able to pick up previous seasons' styles cheaply.

Leave some smaller items for when you do not qualify for free delivery. Especially if you intend to use many sources. We used tile mountain, plumber asked for a tile to show other customers. I wasted money on pipes and valves for sinks and toilets as he preferred his own.