Mirrored wall cabinets can add storage space and light.
Remodeling a bathroom can be a daunting task because of the potential expense. Keeping the basic plumbing where it is while changing the flooring, paint and fixtures can help you cut your costs significantly. No matter what your budget, you can create a bathroom environment that makes you feel pampered or even one that becomes your own private retreat from the stresses of daily life. Does this Spark an idea?
Contemporary Look with Storage
When remodeling any size bathroom, consider where your storage space will be. Pedestal sinks allow a feeling of larger space in the room but lack under-cabinet storage. If you don't have a linen closet built into the bathroom or just outside, make sure to take storage into consideration. Wall-hanging cabinets or shelves that are placed above 6 feet high can lift your storage spaces out of the way while keeping items like clean towels, spare toilet paper and cleaning supplies handy. A folding step stool that stashes behind the sink can help you reach these shelves or cabinets. If your bathroom is small to begin with, be aware that losing some of the ceiling height to storage can make it feel smaller. To brighten things back up, paint the cabinets or shelves white or a light sky blue and consider adding mirrored cabinet doors or placing mirrors on the undersides of the shelves to reflect light. You can also add hooks or towel bars beneath the cabinets for additional storage. Draw attention to your increased floor space with warm bamboo flooring, decorative tile or brightly colored and patterned vinyl flooring. Keep all paint and accessory colors pale and neutral with bath mats and towels to add splashes of color.
Outdoor Theme
Bathrooms are popular rooms to decorate around a theme, meaning that the paint, fixtures and accessories all work together to create an atmosphere that evokes a different type of space. Beach themes are popular in bathrooms and easy to accessorize, but they aren't the only possibility. Outdoor themed bathrooms can use natural stone for flooring and tub surrounds, plus earthy greens, browns and reds for paint colors. Choose a bowl style sink with a natural rock look or use a clear glass bowl and place a few pretty stones in the sink, over the drain. Install a faucet that looks like a water pump to complete the look and keep a variety of towels on hand so you can change them out for seasonal colors, with oranges and reds in the fall, blues and whites in the winter, browns and pale greens in spring, and bright greens and yellows for summer.
Fifties Style
If you tend toward the retro, consider a fun and funky 1950s diner-style bathroom. This look can often be accomplished on a budget by finding older tubs and sinks at used building materials stores, although you will most likely want to have tubs and sinks refinished. Select items with broad sides and rounded corners and use chrome-plated faucets and other fixtures, including light bars, towel racks and even light switch and electrical outlet cover plates. If you can find a small table with a Formica top and chrome trim, use that as the base for a bowl sink. Glue unframed round mirrors to the center of old records and place them on the walls as decor. Keep the paint mostly white with red and black accents and opt for a black and white checkered vinyl floor. Pink was also popular in the 50s, so select bright pink towels or choose pink paint instead of red. Complete the theme with red or blue rope lights strung around the perimeter of the ceiling to simulate a neon look and add a sound system that plays 1950s tunes for added effect.
Tags: cabinets shelves, Keep paint, paint fixtures, storage space, tubs sinks, your storage
