Paint the Walls! One of the best ways to make your bathroom come alive is to give it a fresh coat of paint. Painting a room is one of the cheapest ways to renovate it. You only need one gallon for your average bathroom. Make sure you choose semi gloss which will hold up well to steam. You can paint your bathroom one solid color, or, if you look at the photo of my own bathroom, you will see that I painted the walls beige on the bottom and white on the top. This makes the bathroom look larger because it brings the eye up. Then I covered some cardboard strips with fabric and used that as molding to separate the wall colors. It adds interest and almost makes it look like I have wainscoting!
Add Linoleum Tiles! You can give your floor a brand new look for as low as $20 if you buy some inexpensive self adhesive linoleum tiles. Take a look at some dollar stores! They often have left over lots of linoleum tiles. You may need a bit of help learning how to cut the tiles and lay them but if I can do it, anyone can (I did my entire house!).
Change the Toilet Seat! Get rid of any spongy plastic seat (you know the ones I mean) and buy a plain toilet seat. It’s looks clean and new! You can go with a wooden seat too. Wooden is especially good if you are stuck with a 70’s color like I am (avocado green!).
Get a New Shower Curtain! Here’s where the fun part comes in. Get yourself a new shower curtain. But save some money and head on over to the fabric department. You will have an endless amount of prints to choose from. And you don’t have to worry about fabric content. You can buy cotton, satin, lace… even fur if that’s your thing! And you don’t have to know how to sew either. Pick up some Liquid Thread and the sales clerk will be able to help you decide how much fabric you need and will explain how to use the glue. Then just pick up a cheap shower curtain liner (dollar store!) to protect your fabric shower curtain. Just hang them both together with the liner on the inside.
Get a New Window Treatment! If your bathroom has a window you can make a curtain that matches your new shower curtain! Or you can just hang a mini blind. Mini blinds are very cheap (around $4.00) so when it gets dirty don’t bother to wash it… replace it!
Get a New Floor Rug! A new rug on the floor will look wonderful. And you are not limited to the furry rugs in the bathroom section. Go to a rug store and ask to see remnants! You can often find unusual rugs for only a few dollars!
Paint the Vanity! Yes, you can paint a vanity, counter top and all! So if you are stuck with dark brown and want to make it brighter (I went from dark brown to beige) just paint away! Then add a couple coats of clear waterproof sealer on the counter top.
Add Some Decor! Just because it’s a bathroom does not mean you can’t have art on the wall. Frame some of your kid’s artwork or buy some cheap prints at the dollar store. You can even put up a few decorative shelves to hold some candles or a few knick knacks. And buy yourself a nice big basket to hold your towels! Just roll the towels up and put them in the basket. It’s pretty and convenient! And put a vase with some artificial flowers on the sink. It will look wonderful!
