Outdoor Showers

maybe it’s because I’m from Edmonton, Alberta (“Right next to the North Pole” as my mom used to always say) that I find something about outdoor showers fantastical. It’s like an instant escape, and this summer has reminded me that should I ever have my own cottage, it is one of the first things I will add. hopefully it will be as decadent as designer Michelle Lloyd’s shower, off of her boathouse on Lake Simcoe, Ontario (above). I’m a sucker for white, and using white outdoors creates a tropical vibe, antithetical to most Canadian cottage design.

I love old-fashioned cedar outdoor showers and Japanese-style tubs, but I’m discovering I really love modern, sleek rainshowers, especially when set against a rustic wood backdrop. Belgian design company trade Winds offers some stunning outdoor and garden products, like the Cascade shower (above).  

Here is another contemporary version by mark Suensilpong for Jane Hamley Wells that combines teak wood and stainless steel. It looks like garden sculpture when set against rocks and plantings. I love the cross handle faucet. 

A portable solar powered shower is perfect for camping trips, and will even give you warm water (the base traps solar radiation, heating the water). You just need a hose to connect it to. this one is very affordable, making it a pool or lakeside must-have. 

For a permanent outdoor installation check out these new waterfall shower systems from Jaclo, available through Imperial Decorative Hardware. The simple, polished stainless steel designs of the Aqua Adagio (left) and Arc Column (right) don’t attract too much attention, and the multi-functional settings allow you to have a pretty deluxe shower outside. 

One of our other editors, Anne Côté, who works at our French sister magazine, Maison & Demeure, turned me on to this outdoor shower system from Riobel. I find modern conveniences that connect you to nature very appealing, and this image sums it up pretty perfectly! 

Photo credits:1. house & Home July 2007 issue, photography by Stacey Brandford2. trade Winds 3. Jane Hamley Wells 4. Residential Solar Power 21C 5. Jaclo 6. Riobel