Sometimes a large, luxurious bathroom that looks as big as your dorm room in college just isn’t possible in your home’s current floor plan, but that doesn’t mean you have to feel inconvenienced by your tiny bathroom. There are many options for improving and enhancing your small bathroom.
Consider these “big” ideas for your small bathroom.
Do Something Unexpected
You may think you’re bound by the average sizes of various things in your bathroom, but there are some interesting options for squeezing more room out of what might feel like a claustrophobic bathroom.
For example, a homeowner in Ontario, Canada created a bathroom vanity area where the sink was the only feature that jutted out more than a few inches and the drawers lining the wall were scaled back to allow for more room in the overall space.
According to a write-up from This Old House:
“These homeowners opened up their space by getting rid of two small closets and adding task and ambient lighting to help create the illusion of a larger room. Little width remained after incorporating the tub and toilet, so a shallow cabinet was incorporated.”
Check out a photograph of this creative solution here.
Another awesome idea from the article featured a toilet that was hung from the wall where the tank was hidden within the wall. The sink was also installed in the corner with part of the edge rounded off to accommodate the particularly tiny space.
“This teeny, tiny full bath features a wall-hung toilet; the tank is hidden inside the 2×6 stud wall, allowing for 9 inches of extra space in the center of the room. Clear glass shower doors eliminate visual barriers and a skylight floods the space with natural light.”
If you’re working with just a few square feet, you’ll want to check out this interesting bathroom here. It’s an ideal way to turn a half-bath into a full bath even if you’re working with a room that can scarcely accommodate more than a toilet and a sink.
Using Décor for the Illusion of Space
It’s easy to trick the eye into believing it’s seeing something that’s not there, and using simple decorating techniques can make your small bathroom look much bigger. One of the best ideas is using a large mirror.
According to advice from Decoist:
“Mirrors automatically reflect natural and artificial light, and by catching the sunlight at its best you can amplify on the natural light. This will brighten the atmosphere up in your home notably aiding you by bouncing light in hidden haunted corners making them seem harmlessly large.”
In addition to using a large mirror to improve the light in the room, you’ll also want to think about reducing the decorations within the space. A few tasteful pictures is just about the only thing you’ll need to enhance the visual appeal of the bathroom.
You can rely upon features like the mirror, fixtures, and hardware in the bathroom for decorative appeal rather than extra items that might make the space feel crowded. In addition, the furniture and fixtures you choose can also have an impact on how large or small the space feels.
Better Homes & Gardens offers great advice on the vanity:
“Cabinet doors can visually weigh down a petite bath. Keep things light and airy with a furniture-style vanity.”
In addition to keeping things open and accessible, a vanity with small legs on the bottom rather than a vanity that reaches the floor can make things feel a little more open than if the vanity took up the entire wall.
If you’re not too worried about losing the cabinet space of your vanity area, you can also consider a pedestal sink, which takes a significant amount of the clutter out of a small bathroom. If you’re worried about having enough space to store toiletries, you can think about installing shelves behind the mirror.
Changing the Layout of Your Bathroom
One of the largest and most impressive ways to make your bathroom feel larger is by rearranging the layout of the bathroom. If it’s possible to enlarge the space by moving a wall, this is one of the best options you have for truly transforming your bathroom.
Alternatively, you can think about switching the placement of the features in the bathroom. Perhaps the toilet could move to the other side of the room, or maybe you could switch from a bathtub to a shower.
Consider: Does the bathroom share a wall with a closet? Turn half of the closet into a cubby area for the toilet.
Your contractor can tell you whether it’s possible to switch around the items in your bathroom that require plumbing, as well as whether switching wall placement is possible.
Looking for Advice on Your New Bathroom?
If you’d like to get started on a bathroom renovation, you’ll want to download our FREE eBook: Seven Questions to Ask When Choosing a Remodeler in the Indianapolis Area.
