Small Bathroom Design

While it would be great to have all the space you want for each room in your house, the reality is that sometimes, space is limited. Attention to small bathroom design can help you deal with this limitation and still put some personal touch in your bathroom. Most houses have small bathrooms, precisely because this room is usually built to be efficient and not much more. Remember, bathroom design ideas do not have to be limited to big, luxurious bathrooms. With a little bit of extra planning and attention to detail, your remodeled small bathroom design can be all you need and more.

Two of the most important items that add to small bathroom design are colors and mirrors. For example, the planned use of mirrors can give the room a larger appearance (especially if mirrors face each other). A full-length mirror may be an ideal choice for the smaller room. Careful selection of lighting, in combination with mirrors, will do wonders in giving the small bathroom design a roomier appearance.

In addition, you probably want to make a limited-space bathroom too dark when choosing paint, wallpaper, or tile. Dark colors can make the room seem smaller. Most designers and decorators will suggest lighter, brighter colors for the illusion of space and warmth. Some designers strongly urge an off-white or very light pastel color. It may be best to avoid too many colors or patterns, because a small room can quickly seem "cluttered."

With small bathroom design, attention to basics is even more important than with larger rooms. A bathroom should be efficient and functional, so take careful measurements to be sure you allow enough room for each activity. One method suggests an area about three feet by four feet in front of the lavatory. Another method suggests 30 inches or slightly more from the center of the toilet to a wall or another fixture. An enclosed shower is most comfortable with at least three feet of space from one wall to another. These measurements are not meant to be absolute standards, but they can help when you are worker with your remodeling contractor or plumber.

A few other suggestions for making the most of limited bathroom space might be selective placing of windows and careful attention to window size; use of recessed shelves for storage; sliding doors, and corner shower. Inward-opening doors can be a problem in a small room. Careful selection and placement of the bathtub or shower (the largest fixture in the room) goes a long way toward making a small bathroom design work. Once you have accepted the fact that space is limited, it is time to move on to using that space in the best way possible. Your bathroom may not be spacious and luxurious, but a great small bathroom design might get you closer than you think.