17 Before and After Small Bathroom Makeovers (2024)

Room Design

Bathroom Design

Small Bathrooms

See how DIY-ers took their small bathroom from 'blah' to 'spa'

• 01 of 17

  Before: Dark and Cramped

  

  Faith Towers Provencher of Design Fixation started with a small bathroom that had lots of natural light but still managed to look overly dark and enclosed due to the blue-grey walls and dark floor tile.

  After: Bright and Open

  

  By lightening up the room with white paint, silver fixtures, and tile (subway-style for the walls, marble geometrics for the floor), Faith was able to add more brightness—and the illusion of more space.Faith also chose to upgrade the lighting with a new wall sconce.

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• 02 of 17

  Before: Basic and Boring

  

  Lela Burris, an organizing pro and the founder of Organized*ish, had three words to describe her original bathroom: “Boring. Boring. Boring.” Essentially being completely white and beige, the bathroom lacked personality.

  After: Bold and Modern

  

  Lela went bold with her redesign, opting for black walls and unique geometric accents. She also removed the bulky storage cabinet in favor of some simple, streamlined shelving, which ended up being a useful tradeoff for opening up the space.

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• 03 of 17

  Before: Dark and Boring

  

  See Also

  21 Incredible Bathroom Makeover Ideas You Can DIY23 Budget-Friendly Bathroom Remodel Ideas to Try Yourself28 Easy Do-It-Yourself Projects to Transform Your Bathroom27 DIY Bathroom Vanity Makeover Ideas

  For Katja Kromann of A Home For Design, there wasn’t necessarily anything wrong with her small upstairs bathroom, but there wasn’t anything special about it either.

  After: Designer-Made

  

  This quick makeover didn’t require too much—just a new countertop, some fresh white paint, and a couple of new decor pieces including some greenery. But as you can tell from the "after" picture, a little bit certainly went a long way.

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• 04 of 17

  Before: Plain and Muted

  

  Erin Marshall of Live Pretty On a Penny is no stranger to quick, budget-friendly makeovers. And that’s good news since that's just what her powder room needed.

  After: Fresh and Welcoming

  

  Erin took on the “One Room Challenge” and the results speak for themselves. In addition to painting the vanity a very on-trend blue hue and adding vertical shiplap to the walls, she also put up textured wallpaper and a focus-grabbing circular mirror. Her advice for doing it yourself: “Start small, but start.”This advice applies perfectly to DIY bathroom design as well.

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• 05 of 17

  Before: Too Teeny Tiny

  

  Chloe MacKintosh, city-to-country transplant and founder of the Boxwood Avenue blog, felt there was a lot left to be desired in her small and dark bathroom.

  After: Modern Beauty

  

  In addition to swapping in bright and contemporary details, Chloe moved the bathroom itself, taking up part of the hallway to reposition the space in a way that flowed better with the rest of her home.A bright rug adds a fun pop of color to the dark floor tiles.

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• 06 of 17

  Before: Straight Out of the ‘80s

  

  For In My Own Style founder Diane Henkler, color is a good thing—but not when it’s pink wallpaper reminiscent of decades past.

  After: All Up To Date

  

  Color still reigns supreme in this bathroom, but this time it’s a bright, timeless blue that takes the space right into the 21st century.The contrasting pop of pink from the peonies also adds extra visual interest and a modern look.

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• 07 of 17

  Before: Humdrum Neutrals

  

  There wasn’t much to see in Lindsey Marlor’s original first floor bathroom. Marlor, the founder of the lifestyle blog Pillow Thought, knew it needed a new approach—and some cozier feelings.

  After: Blissful and Relaxing

  

  Lindsey installed new wall tile, bringing it up to the ceiling for added height, which helps the bathroom appear larger . She also added new flooring and contemporary décor for an updated look.There was also an entire shower remodel, complete with fresh tile.

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• 08 of 17

  Before: Stoic and Simple

  

  Like a lot of DIYers on this list, Kelly Lynn of Domestic Blonde didn’t have anything outwardly wrong with her small bathroom, but she was still eager for a change.

  After: Updated and Inviting

  

  With a fresh coat of paint and an eye for cozy details, Kelly was able to transform this small space. Kelly achieved this look by going with a less is more approach. She ended up only using one floating shelf above the toilet for greenery, extra storage, and fragrance.

  This draws the eye upward, especially with the newfound wall space. This helps the bathroom seem bigger. A bright pink rug brings the cozy bathroom together flawlessly.

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  See Also

  35 Inspiring DIY Bathroom Ideas

• 09 of 17

  Before: Black Tile

  

  Jamie-Lee Burns of the blog Mademoiselle wasn’t a huge fan of her bathroom’s design, or the fact that it wasn’t watertight.

  After: Marble Elegance

  

  A contractor was brought in for this project since water issues required it to be torn down to its studs. This gave Jamie-Lee the chance to go all out with her makeover, which included a modern vanity and new marble floor tile.Open shelving creates extra space visually and the large circular mirror opens up the bathroom further.

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• 10 of 17

  Before: Simple But Suitable

  

  Casey Finn of The DIY Playbook felt her guest bathroom could use some work to bring it up to her speed and style.

  After: Chic and Current

  

  There’s a lot that Casey did in her small bathroom transformation, but our favorite part is the new shower, which included ditching the tub and opting for a standup space with floor-to-ceiling subway tiles. The small bathroom tile on the floor of the shower adds beautiful contrast.

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• 11 of 17

  Before: Drab and Dated

  

  For this small primary bathroom, Sabrina Scrivo of the blog Pink Little Notebook required some major creativity to make up for her limited budget.

  About This Term: Primary Bathroom

  Many real estate associations, including the National Association of Home Builders, have classified the term "Master Bedroom" (or "Master Bathroom") as discriminatory. "Primary Bedroom" is the name now widely used among the real estate community and better reflects the purpose of the room.

  Read more about our Diversity and Inclusion Pledge to make The Spruce a site where all feel welcome.

  After: Clean Dream

  

  Your first thought looking at this amazing reveal probably isn’t “budget-friendly,” but Sabrina managed to get this look by purchasing just a few pieces and using what she already had for the rest. Her work-arounds included white paint she had leftover from another project, plus $6 worth of wood trim around the existing bathroom mirror.

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• 12 of 17

  Before: Blank Slate

  

  The Sweetest Digs founder Gemma Bonham-Carter wasn’t originally planning to update this basic bathroom, but a larger house renovation left lots of damage and a slant in the ceiling—plus some inspiration to do something a bit more exciting in the space.

  After: Eye-Catching Details

  

  The first pick for the bathroom transformation was the pretty patterned tile, which Gemma then paired with updated, clean lines and a thrift store mirror that she painted herself, in a navy blue shade to coordinate with the mosaic tiles.

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• 13 of 17

  Before: Brown on Brown

  

  When you look at this “before” image of Sue De Chiara’s bathroom (founder of The Zhush), you’re hit with a muted palette of brown, brown, and more brown.

  After: Cheery Changes

  

  This bathroom upgrade brings in new pops of color and a totally new style, all thanks to the custom royal blue wallpaper and spruced-up white vanity, among other bright and shiny details.

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• 14 of 17

  Before: Falling Apart

  

  The crumbling vanity was the least of the worries of Angie Wilson, founder of House Becoming Home, when it came to her kids’ shared bathroom.

  After: All Coming Together

  

  Angie DIY-ed nearly every detail in this impressive re-do, which included adding white subway tiles to the walls, painting the tub, and replacing the previously drab flooring with a wood option. The gold faucet and gold circular mirror bring a sense of cohesion to the space.

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• 15 of 17

  Before: Stained and Outdated

  

  Serena Appiah, the founder of Thrift Diving, felt anything but relaxed in her not-so-spa-like primary bathroom.

  After: A Private Oasis

  

  Three and a half months and a lot of DIY-ing later, Serena created for herself a serene space with romantic details, including calming lavender and pink accents. Shiplapped walls add extra personality to the room.

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• 16 of 17

  Before: Bland and Impractical

  

  Jen Fancher of Noting Grace had $1,000 to totally revamp this narrow space, which was no longer suiting her family (especially her son, who at 6’6” was struggling with the too-low vanity counter.

  After: Perfectly Proportioned

  

  Jen fixed the counter problem by completely removing the top and raising the cabinet base. She also added some trim to hide the addition. She painted the upper portion of the walls a stunning midnight blue, installed new hardware, and put up some textured wallpaper to bring more variation to the bathroom.

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• 17 of 17

  Before: Frozen in Time

  

  Ask Lindsey Elliott of the This Hiatus lifestyle blog how she felt about her original guest bathroom and she’ll tell you it was dark, crammed, and a little bit scary.

  After: Calm and Classic

  

  Aside from the window, Lindsey and her husband Tommy ripped out and replaced every detail of their small bathroom, bringing in new stunners like a homemade cedar vanity with plenty of open storage, perfect for towels and other necessities. Contemporary hexagonal tiling and some wall art tie everything together.