How To Design Your Small Bathroom Space For Less

If your looking to makeover a small bathroom on a budget, we've got some tips for you. 

1. Lay it out - Carefully 

Your measuring tape will be your best friend when renovating, but particularly if you’re working with a small space. Be precise and draw up a carefully planned layout to ensure you don’t wind up even a millimetre off your desired outcome.

However, even if you think you’ve got your floor plan handled, Dale warns against one particularly common error when it comes to doors. To address this, you can also opt for cavity slider doors. These slide into your walls as opposed to opening out into the space.

2. Use glass for your shower

A popular trend and key space-saving device is the glass shower wall. You can leave an opening for the ‘door’ instead of having an actual door that swings out or slides. This will leave you with more space within your shower and in your bathroom on the whole.

3. A space-saving vanity

Maximising floor space is key and a wall-mounted vanity can help achieve this. Instead of having a large cabinet sitting on your floor, you can wall-mount a single basin with a mirrored cabinet for storage.

4. How to create the illusion of space

A number of tips to help make your bathroom look bigger than it actually is:

1. Increase light

If your bathroom is a bit dark it will feel even smaller than it is. Make sure it has plenty of light, via a skylight or some strategic lighting.

“Understandably, it can be impossible to add a skylight to an apartment or lower level bathroom, so if you’re fortunate enough to have a window, capture that light by keeping the blind and window open,” Dale says.

2. Light colours

Another way to lighten things up is via your colour palette. Steer clear of darker colours and use pale shades to enhance the natural light.

3. Use smaller tiles 

Dale says smaller wall tiles can help give the illusion of a bigger space. If you’re looking to cut back on your tile budget, opting for ceramic over porcelain tiles can help with this.

5. Leave your plumbing in place

If you can renovate your bathroom without moving pipes and plumbing, this will definitely help you save. See if you can work with the existing locations of taps, drains, toilets and your shower head.

Aesthetic changes, like new taps, cabinet handles and mirrors can go a long way!

6. Consider what you have

If you’re renovating a small space, think carefully about the existing features before ripping it all out and starting from scratch. This will help you manage your budget, particularly if you can cut out or reduce the time required by certain trades.

“The more you want to do, the more you need to invest. A complete bathroom renovation can require a whole team of trades — a plumber, builder/carpenter, electrician, tiler and a glazier.”

Source: Realestate.com.au - Presented by Highgrove Bathrooms