Small Bathroom Design Ideas – ORC Week 1

Our half bath is tiny and dated! These small bathroom design ideas will make it feel bigger and wow our guests. Come check out my plans and inspiration!

I must be crazy, but I’m tackling ANOTHER bathroom remodel for the One Room Challenge this fall! In just six weeks, I’ll transform our tiny, dated half bath into a modern powder room that will wow guests. But first, I need some small bathroom design ideas to inspire me to take on this challenge!

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In my last bathroom remodel, I had to design around the existing almond bathroom fixtures because the huge jetted tub was far too expensive to replace. In a feat of almost super-human endurance, I managed to transform that dated space into a relaxing retreat all by myself in just six weeks!

Alas, even though this bathroom is now the nicest one in the house, it’s still the one we use the least! Our main bath gets the most action, followed by our teeny-tiny upstairs half bath. That’s the one that will be getting a makeover this time around!

Small Bathroom Design Ideas

There’s plenty of things you can do to make a small bathroom feel larger. Our powder room measures just over six feet square, so I need all the help I can get!

Add pattern

A striking tile pattern on the floor will draw the eye to every corner of the room, making it feel bigger.

Photo by Designstorms LLC

Adding pattern to the back wall gives it depth. If there weren’t a window in our bathroom, I would be all over this look!

Photo by Corsini Stark Architects

By keeping the rest of the small bathroom design simple, the pattern takes center stage! Hand painted ceramic or cement tiles are pricey, so I plan to use a stencil and floor paint to create the same effect.

Free Up Floor Space

Keeping the vanity up off the floor gives it a lighter appearance, and shows off the tile underneath. Pedestal sinks are the traditional way of minimizing floor coverage, but they lack storage. A vanity with tall legs or a floating vanity gives you the storage you need with the same effect.

Photo by Tradewinds General Contracting, Inc.

I’m hoping the tile under the old vanity is in good shape so I can continue the stencil design all the way to the wall. The new vanity I chose has feet to elevate it off the ground, and is narrow enough to fit in the existing space.

White with a Pop of Color

It’s true what they say about white making a space look larger than it actually is. But a stark bathroom can look sterile and boring. Balance white walls with a darker element like this vanity to ground the space and give a small bathroom more visual interest.

Photo by Gallery Kitchen & Bath

I’m thinking of running white subway tiles vertically up the wall behind the sink and toilet. This will give our height-challenged room the illusion that it’s taller while protecting the wall from splashes.

Photo by Mata Design Studio

Clean Lines Keep Visual Clutter to a Minimum

We all know that clutter can make a room feel smaller. But an overly ornate vanity or light fixture can also contribute to the same problem.

Photo by Interior Affairs — Vickie Daeley

Wow. That’s a whole lot of look!

There’s so much going on, the eye doesn’t know where to focus first. Keep the details to a minimum to really make them pop!

I’ll be sticking to a simple color palette for this small bathroom. Just white, dark blue and a touch of gray! By incorporating all these small bathroom design ideas into the space, I’m hoping it will feel much bigger.

I’m so excited to get started! Follow along as I show you how I turned this ugly little half bath into a sleek, modern space! I’ll be posting video updates every week on my Facebook page so you can see my progress.

Don’t forget to check out all the other participants in the One Room Challenge! We’re all working hard to finish one room in just six weeks!