A makeup vanity and a bathroom vanity share a name and almost nothing else. A bathroom vanity is plumbing furniture: it holds a sink, it stands at counter height, it is built for water. A makeup vanity is a desk you sit at.
People buy the wrong one more often than you would think, usually because they searched for "vanity" and the results mixed both. The difference that matters most is height.
Height: 29 to 31 inches, not 34
A makeup vanity is a seated surface. That puts it at desk height, 29 to 31 inches from the floor to the top.
A bathroom vanity is 32 to 36 inches, because you stand at it. Sit at one and your shoulders come up, your elbows have nowhere to go, and you will feel it in your neck within a week.
If you are tall, go to 31. If you are under about 5'4", 29 will be more comfortable than 30. This is worth getting exactly right, which is the argument for a piece cut to order rather than one that comes in a single height.
Depth: 16 to 20 inches is plenty
Deeper is not better here. You need room for your forearms and the things in current use, not storage. Anything past 20 inches puts the mirror too far from your face and pushes the whole piece into the room.
In a tight bedroom, 16 inches deep against a wall works and still takes a chair underneath.
Width: decided by the chair, not the wall
The minimum useful width is about 30 inches, enough for a mirror, a lamp and working space either side. Below that you are working in a corner.
40 to 48 inches is the comfortable range. Past 54 inches it starts to read as a desk, which is fine if that is what you want it to double as.
Leave 24 to 30 inches of clear floor behind for the chair to pull out.
Knee clearance is the spec nobody lists
Measure from the floor to the underside of the top, or to the bottom of the center drawer if there is one. You want at least 24 inches of clear height and about 20 inches of clear width.
A vanity with a full-width drawer across the middle often leaves only 22 inches, and you sit with your thighs against it. This is the single most common complaint about vanities that otherwise look perfect, and it never appears in a product description.
Light, which matters more than the furniture
Overhead light casts shadows down your face. Light from one side makes half of it. The arrangement that works is light on both sides at face height, roughly level with your eyes.
If you are using daylight, face the window. Do not put the vanity with its back to it, you will be sitting in your own shadow with a bright window behind the mirror, which is the worst case for both your eyes and a photograph.
Color temperature: around 4000K reads closest to daylight. Warm bulbs at 2700K make everything look softer than it is, which is pleasant and misleading.
Wall-mounted or standing
Wall-mounted makes a small room read larger because the floor runs underneath, and it lets you set the height exactly. It has to go into studs.
Standing can move, and it usually gives more storage. In a rented home it is the safer choice.
Storage: shallow beats deep
Deep drawers turn into a pile. Several shallow drawers, two to three inches inside, keep things in one layer where you can see them. One deeper drawer at the bottom for the things you use weekly rather than daily.
A center drawer is the one to think about twice, because of the knee clearance above.
Finish, given what gets spilled on it
A vanity top meets more solvents than any other furniture in a house, remover, alcohol-based products, oils. A hardwax oil finish handles those and, more importantly, can be repaired in place: clean the spot, re-oil it, blend it in. A lacquered top that gets marked has to be stripped and refinished as a whole.
That is the argument for an oil finish on this piece in particular.
Before you order
- Sit at a desk you find comfortable and measure its height. That is your number.
- Measure the wall, then subtract for the chair to pull out.
- Check knee clearance against your own leg, not against a standard.
- Decide where the light comes from before deciding where the vanity goes.
Ask us about sizing, so 29.5 inches is as easy to make as 30. See the makeup vanities, or give us your height and we will build to it.
Common questions
How high should a makeup vanity be?
29 to 31 inches. A makeup vanity is a seated surface, so it sits at desk height rather than bathroom height. If you are under about 5 foot 4, 29 inches will be more comfortable than 30.
Is a makeup vanity the same height as a bathroom vanity?
No. A bathroom vanity is 32 to 36 inches because you stand at it. A makeup vanity is 29 to 31 inches because you sit at it.
How deep should a makeup vanity be?
16 to 20 inches is plenty. Anything past 20 inches puts the mirror too far from your face and pushes the whole piece into the room.
From the Rootelier range
Flow Curved Vanity and Twisted Sculptural Vanity, or see all bathroom vanities. Every piece is made to order, so sizes can be adjusted to the room.