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Small Bathroom Ideas for a Bigger, High-End Look

Don't let small square footage limit your imagination, or fun, when it comes to the look of your bathroom. Good lighting, clean lines, clever storage, lighter colors and attractive hardware can give your small, average-looking bathroom a larger, more luxurious aesthetic. Here are some ideas for small bathrooms that will expand the feel of your space, even if you can't literally push out the walls.

Mind your colors

White and light, creamy colors can give a small bathroom a fresh, open, spa-like feel. A fresh coat of paint in a light shade with similarly light-colored tiles can help do the trick.

Don't have the budget or patience to replace tiles? Bathtubs and shower tiles can be reglazed, either as a DIY project or professionally, at a reasonable price.

Designers often suggest using color to help unify your bathroom's look to make it appear larger.

High End Bathroom Color

Opt for long, clean lines

This design trick can provide a sense of space, so try to avoid visually cropping different areas within the bathroom.

Designer Carla Aston, on her blog, suggests such techniques as using wall paint that matches the shower tile, painting walls and ceiling the same color, tiling the shower from floor to ceiling, and using shower wall tiles throughout the entire bathroom.

Mosaik Design & Remodeling cautions against use of partitions or contrasting tiles that section off parts of the bathroom, and suggests installing large rather than tiny floor tiles, to keep fewer lines in your space, and using grout that matches the tile.

Moen's collections of coordinating accessories and fixtures can help provide unity in your bathroom.

Bathroom Tile Design

Consider reflections and size

Installing a bigger mirror can make your bathroom seem roomier than it is. This move could be as simple as replacing the mirror over your sink with a larger one, or going a step or two further to create an illusion of space.

As Better Homes & Gardens suggests, covering a bathroom's long wall with a mirror can make the space seem wider, and, similarly, two mirrors facing each other can mentally expand a room.

Tidy the clutter

Use recessed wall storage to contain clutter and maintain a more spacious look.

Whether you create shelves or install a medicine cabinet or floor-to-ceiling closet, recessed storage gives you more room to keep anything from towels to cotton swabs without intruding much on your clean lines or square footage. This strategy may allow you to choose a smaller vanity or a pedestal sink, and help avoid the use of storage furniture that can easily clunk up a small bathroom.

You might also consider some storage tricks that hotels, like towel shelves located at the far end of the shower.

Bathroom Lighting

Invest in lighting effects

The right lighting can appear to expand a small space. Whether you use wall sconces, recessed lighting, new or bigger windows, a skylight or a Solatube, the spruce notes, man-made or natural light can expand a room without eating up floor space.

Remember small, high-end touches

These design elements can give even a small bathroom a luxurious aesthetic, whether you install an ocean-glass bathroom sink or a curved shower rod, or accent your space with premium towels. A stylish fixture, like Moen's new Idora two-handle bathroom faucet, or a rainshower spray head, may also do the trick.

Idora Two Handle Bathroom Faucet
Clear Water Divider

Bathroom

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