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Where is she? Soaking. Again.

Modern bathtubs are a girl's new best friend (some guys like them, too). They're slightly deeper or outfitted with mind-altering perks like massage jets and colored lights.

By ELIZABETH BETTENDORF, Times Staff Writer
Published August 7, 2007

"More and more of the population want the deep soaking experience - up to the chin," says Kohler's Paula Forseth Dick.
	[Kohler]

ADVERTISEMENT [Kohler] This soaking tub is the centerpiece of the bathroom. "The soaking tub is defined as anything from an alcove bath to a 72-by-42-inch drop-in tub," says Paula Forseth Dick.

Soaking in a long, hot bath might well be one of life's greatest pleasures.

Whether you take yours plain or with bubbles, scented or not, hot and steamy or just toasty warm, the bath provides a respite from life's daily grind.

It's a simple way to relax the muscles and mind, to daydream, plan, meditate or even rejuvenate the creative process.

Chances are if you've upgraded your bathroom recently, you've upgraded your tub.

If you haven't, you're probably thinking about it.

The buzz these days is all about "soaking" tubs, a loosely defined term that encompasses a wide variety of tub models that typically offer a deeper, if not more intense, bathing experience.

The trend traces its roots to the Japanese soaking tub that is more vertical and shallow in design, though the term has since come to mean anything from a slightly deeper standard bathtub to a luxury tub outfitted with everything from colored lights to bubble therapy.

"The soaking tub is defined as anything from an alcove bath to a 72-by-42-inch drop-in tub," says Paula Forseth Dick, product manager for bathing products at Kohler Co. in Wisconsin.

"It's basically about getting into the bath and soaking, whether it's in 16 or 22 inches of water. More and more of the population want the deep soaking experience - up to the chin."

Charlie Cox, co-owner of Cox Feivelson Antiques and Design Gallery, at 3415 Bay to Bay Blvd. in South Tampa, has noticed the trend in soaking tubs as well as "spa-style tubs with waterfalls or anything luxurious that has a Zen-like feel."

Claw-foot tubs are back, too, Cox says, particularly new ones that are much deeper and offer a more comfortable bathing experience.

"Most of the tubs I'm seeing in all styles are being made the focal point of the bathroom," Cox explains. "They are literally being 'floated' out in the center of the room and are the centerpiece of the whole spa bathroom."

Kohler's research has shown that the deeper "soaking" tub trend - an offshoot of the home spa boom of the last few years - is gender specific. Although some men like a good soak, "what we're seeing is definitely female based," says Forseth Dick.

To meet the demand, the company offers a wide variety of options at every price point.

Even more moderately priced standard bathtub-shower combinations allow for a few additional inches of water, thanks to an innovative overflow system.

For those wanting to invest more seriously in their bathing experience, choices include serious massage jets, floating remote-control systems and "chromatherapy," where colored lighting is used to enhance the bliss. "We're seeing a lot of demand for it," Forseth Dick says of chromatherapy.

"The color of the bath glows like a jewel. It intensifies the water action and you can see more of what's going on in the tub. I like the blue because it reminds me of the Caribbean and it's very relaxing."

Upgrading the bathing ritual doesn't come cheaply. A drop-in Asian-style soaking tub by Americh with a deep foot well fetches nearly $3,000, while a modern, freestanding Antibes acrylic modern tub costs $2,210. A new, traditional cast-iron slipper tub with brass feet is $1,695 at Signature Hardware www. signaturehardware.com.

Homeowners are willing to pay big bucks for their bathtubs because it may be the ultimate way to relax when not on vacation, a way to cocoon away from cell phones and e-mail and other perpetual interruptions of modern life. Forseth Dick says she's seeing master baths that now rival master bedrooms in cost and size.

Even the Paris design company Hermes has jumped into the water, with a leather-clad bathtub decorated with horses and equestrian motifs.

If you can't afford the bathtub of your dreams, you can visit it at the Bathtub Art Museum at www.bathtubmuseum.org.

The nonprofit online gallery is dedicated to artwork that features bathtubs.

Among the four current exhibits is one devoted to historic postcards of women bathing in tubs that range from wooden Japanese soaking tubs to elegant, old-fashioned claw-foot models.

But looking at pictures of tubs is a far cry from sinking into an abyss of warm water and bubbles.

"It's really down-time for people who want to get in and soak," Cox muses. "Instead of it being purely functional, it's become a way to escape our hectic lives. It's really about getting in and lingering."

Elizabeth Bettendorf can be reached at ebettendorf@hotmail.com.

[Last modified August 6, 2007, 20:34:33]