We’ve all been there. You’ve looked around your bathroom and wondered “How did I let it get this way?” If you have a young family admittedly, it’s not your fault!
But for those of us who have a bathroom to ourselves, it’s probably time to look around and give the most personal room in your house the attention it needs.
You don’t have to break the bank, there are simple steps you can take to give yourself the haven you deserve. Find some ideas below for making your bathroom great again!
Do a Deadly Declutter!
“In a house where there are small children the bathroom soon takes on the appearance of the Old Curiosity Shop.” - Robert Benchley
As the days get shorter, the kids get back to school and the need for some cosy home-alone me-time becomes more inviting...let’s talk about making that bathroom of yours into the sanctuary you deserve.
Begin with a declutter. Take a leaf out of Marie Kondo’s book and be sure to release, or recycle anything that is no longer in use and does not bring joy
- Start with looking around for redundant bathroom toys, empties and fixtures to remove
- If something is not in use on a daily basis and you do have room elsewhere like your dressing table and wardrobe, store those items there e.g. hair tongs, and rollers
- Start checking your medicine cabinet for out of date products.
- There shouldn’t be 2 of one thing like multiple shampoo bottles. Take out the spares and store them away.
Streamline With Storage & Space Saving Hacks
Out of sight makes for a calmer state of mind. But you’ll need to find and create extra storage options. Stand back and look at your whole space and spot locations where you can hang hooks, install shelving or add recessed or hung cabinetry.
Check out these simple DIY hacks.
The Smart Storage Inside Job
- A magnetic strip attached to the inside of your medicine cabinet’s door is a great catch-all for metal pins and accessories like tweezers, nail files etc
- Stick organizers or small spice rack shelves to the inside of your medicine cabinet as holders for smaller items
- Install more hooks at the back of the door to keep the towels and the odd bathrobe out of sight. Use hooks on the inside of cabinet doors to hang smaller items or cloth accessories
Shelf It!
Add floating shelves in the following locations
- Above the door
- At a higher level along the perimeter of the room where possible.
- It may feel cluttered like an old pub if you just stick anything up there so do invest in a series of matching storage baskets or boxes to limit the ‘busy’ look. Wicker baskets match wooden shelving and solid boxes in the same colour as painted shelves also give a seamless look.
- Above the toilet roll holder
- Along the length of your shower area
- Wall mounted tall boy units also give you more floor space
- To create an even better illusion of space, use glass or frosted glass wall mounted shelving for complete invisibility.
- To give yourself more clear surfaces, install holders for suspending items like soap dispensers, toothbrush holders and toilet brush holders. Our Wenko range in stainless steel and black matt finishes comprise a range of helpful fixtures.
Make It Multipurpose
- If you have little ones, build a little wooden DIY Step that doubles up as a storage space with a lid where the step should be.
- Use a mirrored cabinet above the Sink AND Cistern for even more storage. A minimalist-styled cabinet with mirrored doors doubles up as a feature mirror and creates the illusion of more space.
Colour Me A Beautiful Bathroom
Colour goes a long way towards creating a new look, streamlining space or creating zones within larger space.
Streamline And Create Space with Colour
Bathrooms are great for DIY paint jobs as they usually have very limited wall space and can be done in a matter of a days.
A small bathroom should stay as monochrome or duo-chrome as much as possible.
- Reducing the noise in the colour palette and keeping your fixtures, accessories and shelving in a similar colour will streamline the look of your bathroom and make smaller spaces seem more spacious.
- In the same vein - using the same coloured tile floor to ceiling in a tiny wet room will also create the illusion of more space.
- If you have a wooden floor in need of a touch up - sand it, revarnish it in a new shade, or paint it over in a new colour. Matching the colour of your floor with the walls will give it an even more spacious look and feel.
DIY Bathroom Fixes
Sometimes a run-down bathroom needs a few more DIY fixes.
Tidy Up with a Touch Up
- You’ll go a long way if you get handy with polyfiller! Check those corners, walls left pockmarked by previous fittings or damaged areas on harder surfaces.
- Take care of the grimy, mouldy nooks and crannies with some fresh paint. Attack those old shelves, chipped floorboards and cabinet doors with a fresh coat. Alternatively you should sand down and varnish wooden features.
- Touch-up products exist for filling in cracks in your bathtub corners and the edges of bathroom fittings such as Super Glue White Porcelain Repair products.
It’s All About Proportion
A common mistake is to install fixtures that are oversized for your bathroom space. Be sure to measure in advance before procuring anything that looks good in-store but may overwhelm your space
Prettify and Purify with Plants
Did you know that houseplants will not just add a sense of calm and wellbeing into your bathroom, they also purify your air making it a truly deserving sanctuary? Check this list for 24 ideal bathroom plants.
Hang It Up To Save On Space
You can save even more surface space by suspending them as hanging plants. It might evoke the sensation of a bigger space drawing your eye upwards.
On Trend For Less
Why not swap out materials, for less expensive alternatives that can look amazingly like the real thing? It’s also a less risky and faster way to give your bathroom a contemporary or trendier look.
Lookalikes at Lower Cost
- Tile without Tiling! Fancy creating a new tiled wall without the risk? Instead of real tiles you can get stick-on tile covers to patch up cracked tiles. Use them to create a feature wall.
- Faux-stone ceramic and porcelain tile backsplashes can mimic the look of various marbles.
- Use vinyl flooring instead of real wooden flooring if you would like to test a new look.
- Laminate countertops may also be a quick way to refurbish counters without the expense of real stone.
Black Is The New Black
Black bathroom accessories, fixtures and fittings are a quick way to add a contemporary twist to your bathroom.
Take a look at our Wenko Bosio Matt Black accessories range of space saving hooks, dispensers, holders and rails.
Small Touches & Accessories
- Assuming your bathroom is not a wetroom, the addition of a simple water resistant or woven ethnic rug is a real fast way to add texture, flair and colour to your room. Change your bathroom rug to accessories with the latest trends or help change the colour scheme of your bathroom.
- If you have vintage or wooden cabinets, adapt the look and theme of your space by changing the door knobs and handles. You could go from retro to minimalist to rococo in a jiffy!
- Have a bit of extra room? Create a better sanctuary by seeking out a nice boudoir chair for that empty corner or locate a great rattan find in the next sale.
Your Bathroom Makeover Toolkit
Shopping list
- Wooden Shelving & Brackets
- Waterproof Paint, Paint brushes + Drop cloth
- Air-purifying Houseplants + Macrame plant holder + ceiling hooks
- 400mm Minimalist Floor Standing Vanity Unit
- Bosio stainless steel Glass Shelf
- 600mm 2 Door Turin Mirror Cabinet
- Wenko Bosio Matt Black accessories range
- WENKO CUBA Hair Dryer Holder Matt
Stop by our Bathroom & Plumbing and Painting & Decorating sections to catch an overview of the supplies and brands available
Has your Bathroom just got a Makeover? Tell us how you did it!
What DIY steps did you take to give your bathroom a new look?
Why not tell us on Facebook and Instagram and share your handiwork