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When you have a small bathroom, it can be a challenge to create a highly functional space that also looks great.
But, with a few clever design tricks, you can make your bathroom look and feel more spacious, transforming it into the beautiful, practical and relaxing space you’ve always wanted.
1. Include lots of natural light
Small bathrooms can often appear dark. Natural light makes the room look brighter and opens up the space so it appears larger.
If you only have a small window, install a skylight or solar tunnel to bring more natural light into the room.
A translucent window shade will also help more light to come in while still protecting your privacy.
2. Keep everything the same colour as much as possible
Using lots of different colours and patterns in your bathroom makes it appear cluttered. It divides up the space so it feels smaller.
Using a uniform, light colour throughout the room will open it up and create the impression of a larger, brighter space.
3. Go all-white
All-white bathroom designs never go out of style. They also have the added advantage of making the room look bigger as white reflects light better than any other colour.
As most bathroom fixtures tend to be white, this also creates a more seamless, unbroken look throughout the space.
4. Paint the ceiling the same colour as the walls
The unified look doesn’t have to stop where the walls end. Painting your ceiling the same colour as the walls will continue the seamless appearance throughout the entire space.
If you really want a contrast, choose a slightly lighter shade for the ceiling. Ceilings tend to appear darker than the walls due to the way light is reflected so painting them slightly lighter can create a more unbroken effect.
5. Blend the tile and wall colours
If your bathroom is only part-tiled, paint the rest of the wall space the same colour as your tiles.
This eliminates the dividing lines which can occur where the tiles end – these divide your walls into sections and make the room appear less spacious.
Using grout that’s the same colour as your tiles also helps to create a more unified look.
6. Install tiles all the way to the ceiling
If possible, have the same tiles throughout your bathroom, all the way up to the ceiling.
This way, you will have no horizontal dividing lines on your walls, which will help to open up the space by giving the impression of your ceiling being higher.
7. Transition seamlessly between materials
The key to making a small bathroom look larger is to create a cleaner, more expansive look.
This is easier if you use the same materials wherever possible – for example, using the same flooring in the shower as you have in the rest of the space.
The more different materials you use, the more it creates the impression of the room being divided into different sections.
8. Use large plain-coloured floor tiles
It’s a common mistake to use smaller floor tiles in a small bathroom. This actually makes the room look smaller as it creates more dividing lines between the tiles.
Choosing a large, plain-coloured tile will give the impression of more floor space and a cleaner, less cluttered look.
9. Create long lines
To give the impression of more space, you need to draw the eye to the widest point in the room.
You can achieve this by highlighting the longest line in the room, such as a clear wall without a window.
Creating a horizontal line here with a shelf will make the room look larger.
10. Visually push the walls apart
If your bathroom is long and narrow, you need to work with the horizontal lines to give the impression of more width.
Use horizontal floor tiles to widen the space and make it look less cramped.
11. Use clear glass in the shower
Shower curtains and patterned glass can have the effect of creating an extra wall, dividing your bathroom into sections and making it look smaller.
Clear glass shower screens reflect the light more effectively and open up the space.
For an even more seamless look, consider a frameless shower screen as this gets rid of all visual barriers.
12. Go big with your mirrors
The more light you can reflect, the bigger your bathroom will look. Instead of just hanging a small bathroom mirror above the sink, consider mirroring a whole wall, or at least a large portion of it.
This acts like a window in bringing a lot more light into the room and creating the illusion of a much bigger room.
13. Reflect a nice view
Ideally, your mirror should reflect a light source, such as a window or open door.
However, if this isn’t possible, don’t reflect something mundane like the toilet.
Make the mirror a design feature by reflecting a vase of fresh flowers or a beautiful ornament.
14. Recess your shelves into the walls
Building shelving into the walls is practical as well as aesthetically pleasing. It frees up space in your bathroom as nothing is protruding from the walls.
It also keeps the lines unbroken, making the room look even larger.
15. Use open shelves
Instead of installing a shelving unit, opt for open shelving instead. This creates depth as it makes the walls look further back than they actually are.
16. Eliminate the clutter
The less items on display in your bathroom, the larger it will look and the more practically it will function.
If you don’t use all those products, get rid of them or store them somewhere else.
If there isn’t room for the laundry basket without it getting in the way, find a new home for it in another room.
This will instantly make your room look and feel bigger by creating more space.
17. Install a pedestal basin
A pedestal basin creates more floor space due to its narrow size. This makes it an ideal option for a small bathroom.
Do check first though as you may need to get some pipework done before it can be installed.
18. Hang things from the walls
Suspended fixtures are a great way of creating more floor space.
Bathroom vanities, cabinets and even the toilet can be attached to the wall rather than the floor, creating an unbroken line of flooring and making your bathroom easier to negotiate.
19. Combine your bath and shower
If there isn’t room for a separate shower cubicle, install your shower over your bath.
This still gives you both options, while only taking up as much floor space as the bathtub.
Get more bathroom design ideas
If you would like more design tips for small bathrooms, or are considering remodelling your existing bathroom, please contact us. Our experienced team will be happy to help.
And make sure to download your free copy of our guide to designing your dream bathroom.
