Small Bathroom Renovation Ideas

Instead of viewing your small bathroom as a negative aspect of your home, treat it as an opportunity to create your dream space. After all, you can pretty-up a petite powder room without draining your savings, while remodeling larger bathrooms can become a major investment. To get you inspired, we've compiled our favorite small bathroom renovation ideas, including some before-and-after bathroom transformations that show just how much you can transform your own bathroom.

Tile is a major investment — one of the biggest you can make in a small bathroom renovation. Before you rip out your existing tile, think of ways you can change the visual context to improve the look of your tile. Adding color-coordinated wallpaper is a fraction of the cost and can totally transform your bathroom's aesthetic.

Lighting is key in any design and can make a space feel warmer and inviting if the right selections are made. Consider a lighting plan before your small bathroom renovation to ensure you make the absolute most of the space a create a welcoming design.

No room to add a linen closet or install a vanity filled with storage? No problem! Open shelving is your new best friend. What else are bathroom walls good for anyway? Pro Tip: To keep unsightly items hidden on open shelves, invest in a few cute baskets.

We've all seen wainscoting, beadboard and the like painted in contrasting, often white, paint. Admittedly, while classic and charming, the powder bath might be the perfect spot to try something new. Consider painting your paneling to match the walls. This creates a more muted contrast, which highlights the textural change of the millwork.

A vanity backsplash is an easy way to up your bathroom's elegance without going all in on a major tile installation. And, if you've never installed backsplash tile, you may be shocked to find out how easy it is.

Oftentimes, outdated or worn vanities create a major eyesore in a small bathroom. The solution? Swap out your old vanity for something totally different.

Boring, builder-grade mirrors are typical finds in your run-of-the-mill powder room, and homeowners rarely take the time to swap them for more curated pieces, but doing so can make a major difference in how your bathroom looks and feels. In some cases, it can even make your small bathroom seem bigger.

Before renovations, this bathtub was anything but a relaxing place to soak. Scroll to see how this dull space was transformed.

Nearly anything would be an improvement over this bathrooms before status, but this overhaul takes it to new heights. The marble bathroom shower is now dripping in elegance thanks to the lovely honeycomb mosaic tile. To really take it up a notch, the shower fixtures, towel rod and niche trim are all trimmed in matching gold.

This bathroom needed some love. Its basic white cabinetry, mirror and lighting were not so inspiring. Scroll down to see how a new vanity made this space look totally different.

The general layout of this bathroom didn't have to change for it to take on an entirely upgraded feel. The black countertop and light wood vanity offer visual balance, while the expansive lower shelf gives the vanity a floating feel without the complex nature of an actual floating vanity installation.

Before renovations, this outdated and cramped bathroom was practically begging for a new chance at life. See how designers totally transformed this once dated small bathroom.

This newly brightened space doesn't even feel like the same bathroom. The white, soft gray and light blue finishes keep things clean and light, while the enlarged mirror spreads tons of light throughout the space, making the small bathroom feel much larger than before.

It's hard to find words to describe the peculiar layout of this bathroom before renovations. If you have a strange small bathroom layout, scroll on to see how to rearrange your space into a smarter layout.

One look tells you nothing was salvageable in this major bathroom overhaul. The renovated space is now dressed in bold, black and white tile covering the floor and extending behind the single wood vanity. Chunky black and white marble sits on top of the wood vanity, tying into the tile, while dots of gold throughout warm up the chic, modern space. This new layout makes this small bathroom more useable and functional than before.

Before renovations, this bathroom suffered from a maze of partial walls leading to the shower, which resulted in the bathroom feeling smaller than it really was. In the next slide, you will see how removing a few walls will drastically change the look and feel of a small bathroom.

Post renovation, the awkward maze of half walls is totally gone, with frameless glass taking their place. This opens up the bathroom and spreads light throughout the space, making it feel huge in comparison.

While this kids' bathroom was technically getting the job done, it had a lot of unmet design potential. See below on how designer Ashley Ausland transformed this once underwhelming bathroom space.

The kids' bathroom was updated to be bright and durable without breaking the budget, creating a space with a clean, functional feel. Opting for a soft gray vanity helps to break up the stark nature of the white wall tile, while brass fixtures add a subtle bit of warmth to the overall aesthetic.

We've all seen a bathroom we'd rather not visit, and that's exactly how this one makes us feel. See how this scary small bathroom space was transformed, below.