Otti Havana Fluted Vanities Buying Guide
Havana is Otti's fluted, curved-front wall hung vanity. The cabinet is timber veneer over moisture-resistant plywood, with four soft-close drawers, brushed gold bar handles and a choice of three kinds of top. That narrows the decisions to four: the finish, the top, the width and the bowl layout. This guide works through them, then covers installation, because a wall hung vanity with a curved front has to be fixed and levelled properly to open and close as designed. The Otti vanities and cabinets page covers the brand's other ranges.
What Havana is
Havana is inspired by the elegance of the city of Havana, with distinctive fluted detailing and curved edges. The flutes are vertical grooves along the front, and the front itself curves, so the cabinet has a softer outline than a flat-fronted vanity. It is wall hung only. The cabinet is 490mm deep and 550mm high, and the 1500mm version is 1480mm long.
The construction is high moisture-resistant plywood with a timber veneer finish. It has four soft-closing drawers on Hettich runners with an internal organiser, so check the drawer layout for your width on the product page before you order. The veneer is natural timber, so shade and grain vary between pieces. The handles are brushed gold bar handles as standard, and other handle colours are available as an upgrade, sold separately. Installation instructions are linked from each product.
If you like the fluted look but want a different shape, see fluted vanities for the style across brands, and curved vanities for other curved fronts. Otti's other fluted range is Byron, compared with Havana further down.
Sable walnut or woodland oak
Havana comes in two timber finishes, and the choice sets the whole room's palette.
Sable Walnut is a walnut veneer. It comes with a matching Sable Oak interior, so the inside of the drawers matches the outside. Woodland Oak is an oak veneer, and its interior is also Woodland Oak. Both come with brushed gold bar handles as standard.
The choice is about contrast. Walnut is generally the darker of the two timbers, so it gives the cabinet more weight in a room, and brushed gold hardware stands out against it. Oak is the quieter choice for a small room. Whichever you pick, look at a physical sample of the veneer first. Timber grain varies between boards, and a photograph cannot show how it will look under the lights in your bathroom.
Choosing a top
Havana is sold with three kinds of top, and they differ in what is included and in how much of the basin you choose.
The Chloe Silk top is a matte white solid surface stone top with an integrated rectangular basin and an overflow. The basin is part of the top, so there is no join between the bench and the bowl. It has a universal semi-pre-drilled tap hole at the 12 o'clock position, 35mm. A pop-up waste and tapware are sold separately.
For the stone top, the options are Cloudy Carrara, Pure White and Sand Dune English Edge. The top includes a basin waste cut-out, with a semi-pre-drilled tap hole underneath. The pop-up waste, tapware, top and basin are sold separately, while the box contains the cabinet and the stone top. Confirm the exact version and what is in the box before you order, because the basin is your choice.
The moulded top is available with a round or a square basin, with a pre-cut tap hole at 12 o'clock. The waste and tapware are sold separately.
Choose between an integrated basin and a separate one by how you clean. An integrated basin has no join to collect grime, and it wipes in one pass. A separate basin gives more choice of shape, and it has a join to seal. If the room is a showpiece, the stone top with a basin chosen separately gives the most control. If it is a busy family bathroom, the Chloe Silk top or the moulded top is simpler.
Drawers and storage
Havana has soft-closing drawers on Hettich runners, with an internal organiser. The drawers close slowly and quietly, and they pull out smoothly with a full load. The cabinet is 550mm high, which suits daily items such as towels, skin care and hair tools, and it keeps the tall items for a separate tallboy or shelf.
The drawers have to clear the plumbing. The basin waste and trap sit in the middle of the cabinet, and the supply hoses run to the wall, so plan what lives in each drawer around them. Keep the lower drawer for items that do not mind a gap around the trap. Cleaning products and spare toilet rolls suit that space, and a neat organiser tray stops small items sliding about.
Tap hole and tapware
The Chloe Silk and moulded tops have the tap hole at the 12 o'clock position, centred behind the basin, and the stone top has a semi-pre-drilled hole underneath. Decide the tapware before ordering. The hole position is set when the top is made, as with any vanity top. Brushed gold handles pair most simply with brushed gold or a matching warm metal on the tap. Matte black or chrome are a deliberate contrast. Look through bathroom taps and mixers in the finish you want.
Width and bowl layout
Havana is offered at 600mm, 750mm, 900mm and 1200mm with a centre bowl, and at 1500mm and 1800mm with a double bowl. The pattern matters: there is no single bowl at 1500mm or 1800mm, and no double bowl at 1200mm or below. If you want two basins, the choice is 1500mm or 1800mm. If you want one basin on a wide cabinet, Havana's widest single-bowl size is 1200mm.
Width follows use. A 600mm vanity is the minimum for a main bathroom or ensuite used daily. A 750mm vanity suits a small main or guest bathroom with one basin. A 900mm vanity is the main and family bathroom size for one basin and is not wide enough for two. A 1200mm vanity is a large single. A 1500mm vanity is the comfortable double, and 1800mm gives two users separation. The size collections cover every brand at each width: 600mm and smaller, 750mm, 900mm, 1200mm, 1500mm and 1800mm. For two bowls across all brands, see double vanities.
A double bowl at 1500mm or 1800mm needs two wastes, two mixers and two traps, so it asks more of the plumber than a single bowl does. Give the plumber the finished layout before the wall is closed. Choose between 900mm and 1200mm by the number of people who use the room and the floor space in front of the vanity, not by the length of the wall alone. A 1200mm Havana looks generous on a long wall and can feel tight if the door swings across it.
Havana or Byron
Otti has two fluted ranges on this site, and they differ in shape and hardware. Havana has a curved front, brushed gold bar handles and two finishes, Sable Walnut and Woodland Oak. Byron is Woodland Oak veneer on moisture-resistant plywood with a fluted front, soft-close drawers on soft-close runners and finger-pull handles, with a 12 o'clock tap hole on its ceramic tops. Byron's stone tops do not include a basin, and its undermount marble option does. If you want bar handles and a curved outline, pick Havana. If you want finger-pull handles instead, pick Byron.
Care and cleaning
A veneer cabinet stays in good condition with light, regular care. Wipe the front with a soft cloth and a weak solution of non-abrasive detergent, and dry any water straight away. Do not leave a wet cloth on the top edge or against the sides. The flutes collect dust and soap film in the grooves, so run a dry microfibre cloth or a soft brush along them each week.
Stone and solid surface tops clean with a soft damp cloth and a mild detergent. Keep abrasive powders and scouring pads off every surface. Brushed gold handles also need only a soft cloth, because a rough cleaner can wear the finish. Check the silicone along the back and sides of the top every few months and renew it where it has lifted.
Moisture resistant plywood is not waterproof. Run the exhaust fan during and after showers, and wipe splashes off the front, especially around the basin. A room that dries out between uses keeps the veneer flat and the drawers running true.
What to confirm before you order
- The finish: Sable Walnut or Woodland Oak, checked against a sample.
- The top: Chloe Silk, stone or moulded, and what the box contains for that version.
- The basin shape, and whether it comes with the top or is chosen separately.
- The tapware, matched to the tap hole position on the top.
- The width and bowl layout: centre bowl up to 1200mm, double bowl at 1500mm or 1800mm.
- The drawer layout for your width.
- The waste and water positions, checked by a licensed plumber.
- The wall: plumb, flat and fitted with noggins before it is sheeted.
Who Havana suits
Havana suits a household that wants timber and texture in the bathroom and prefers a soft, curved outline to a flat front. It suits a main bathroom or an ensuite where the wall can take a hung cabinet. It is not the choice if you want a floor standing cabinet, because every Havana is wall hung. If you want the same fluted look on the floor, see freestanding vanities. For a smaller room, the 600mm or 750mm Havana gives the full look in a compact size, and small vanities shows the other compact choices.
Finishing the room
A mirror hangs best slightly narrower than the vanity, in about 50mm to 100mm from each side, and about 100mm to 200mm above the bench or basin rim so it clears the taps. A double vanity takes one mirror over each basin or one wide mirror. Browse mirrors by width, and see bathroom basins if you are choosing a basin for a stone top. See bathroom vanities for the decisions that apply to every vanity.
