Buying a loo: The secret to choosing the best seat in the house

From fixtures to scale, Kya deLongchamps will have you fluent in toilet talk in no time

Sonas Bathrooms WC unit in Morning Sky Blue/Stockholm collection, from €475 (toilet not included).

It's the great unspeakable vessel in our lives. We cannot do without it, but in terms of our bathroom suite, it has a certain blushing character when it comes to discussing its finer plumbed-in points. Here’s my essential guide to knowing what you’re peering at and into when buying the new loo.

First of all, there’s scale. A typical toilet has a projection (length reaching into the room) in the area of 650mm to 700mm. It’s hard to cut back on width without dreaded over-spray, but if you’re working with a smaller bathroom, the shorter the projection the better.