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Making Over a Bathroom on a Budget

room makeover

Find ideas for updating a bathroom on a budget with DIYs that you can do yourself and my One Room Challenge week 2 progress.

*This is a sponsored post with brands that I love and trust.

Hello, my friend! Most of my big projects like the One Room Challenge have a slow start. This week I decided to add even more to my plate by changing the electrical and have a wall/door removed in our bathroom makeover. Today I decided to give you ideas on how to update your bathroom on a budget with easy projects that you can do yourself.

How to Make Over Your Bathroom on a Budget

Make sure to visit the One Room Challenge Blog to see all of the guests and featured designers and read more about the six-week challenge. Scroll down to the bottom of this post for my week 2 progress. I finally have my final fabric and wallpaper picks! You can find the eclectic and moody bathroom plans from last week in this post.

EASY BATHROOM UPDATES WITH PAINT:

Paint an accent wall with a bold hue or wallpaper. Go for a geometric wallpaper and vice versa if you are using a floral shower curtain. You can see how I updated our yellow builder grade bathroom by adding jewel tones with paint. It was so easy and the bathroom got a makeover for under $100.

Parisian Style Bedroom Watermark 34

Change the finish of your light fixture, towel hardware, or toilet paper roll with spray paint. Part of my $100 bathroom makeover was using paint that I had to make changes. One way I did this was by painting our light fixture. It isn’t too difficult to remove a vanity light but make sure your fuse box is off first!

Our vanity light got a quick update with gold spray paint. I then dry-brushed black craft paint to give it an aged finish. I used black spray paint for the silver toilet paper roll holder and two years later there’s still not a scratch on it. It held up beautifully even with consistent use.

Update your vanity cabinet with a fresh coat of paint. Change your builder-grade cabinet with good furniture paint. My favorite is Velvet Finishes which offers a beautiful variety of boutique colors and you don’t have sand your cabinet first.

SIMPLE BATHROOM HOME IMPROVEMENTS:

Replace your faucet with one that fits your style. It’s easier than you think and you’ll be so happy you did. A later update to the same small master bathroom was a faucet swap out with a matte black modern faucet. I can’t believe how much nicer it looks or how easy it was to replace it.

Replace the pulls on your cabinet. Another easy update that takes minutes and you can do on the cheap! Swap out your vanity cabinet pulls with a modern shape in a bright metallic to really pop.

Replace an outdated backsplash with this super easy alternative. First check out how to remove an outdated backsplash without damaging your walls and then replace it with something easy like a tin tile or peel and stick tiles. They are easy to cut to fit and install if you are too nervous about the real deal. And you can save you $$.

Paint your counter and tiles to give them new life. I painted over outdated tiles from the ’50s in our first house and never looked back. My friend Casa Watkins Living shared a great DIY to achieve beautiful results for her boho bathroom makeover.

Shop garage sales, thrift stores, or discount big box stores for vanity mirrors. All you need to do is find one with the right shape and size and then customize the finish of the frame with paint like I did with these gold mirrors without having to remove the frame.

Painted Gold Mirror Edited 5

Give your bathroom a boutique look with a hotel towel rack! Over the toilet shelves and cabinets can be an eyesore. So try using a hotel-style towel rack for chic bathroom storage.

Small Bathroom Makeover On A Tight Budget, view of white walls with a bench and gold towel rack for a colorful shower curtains round up
Bathroom Progress

TIPS FOR ADDING BATHROOM ACCESSORIES:

Hang a large piece of art in your bathroom. I know wallpaper, tiles, and counters can be expensive to add but a large piece of art or fun gallery wall can do wonders for your bathroom or powder room. Thrifted art and inexpensive prints are easy to find these days with FB marketplace and free printables like I offer (hint hint).

Use a small area rug instead of a traditional bathroom mat. Forgo the plain bath mats and go for a small area rug. Just make sure it has a thin pile for easy drying and bonus if it’s machine washable. You can also go a little bigger when you are looking at area rugs which is great if you are wanting to cover ugly tiles.

Bathroom Makeover Rug

Add a small piece of furniture like a stool, table, or cabinet. Even the smallest of bathrooms can handle a cute accent piece. I love using something wood or organic to contrast the cold hard surfaces of a bathroom. A ceramic garden stool, small curio cabinet, or brass pedestal are cute options and can be found for a song at resale stores.

Use beautiful decorative containers and trays to hold bathroom necessities. You don’t have to buy bathroom or vanity containers. Think outside the box with decorative dishes, vases, baskets, and trays to corral and store bathroom items. A pretty pot, bowl, or urn can hold a variety of items. Using a collection of similar containers looks stunning.

Get rid of soap and shampoo bottles. Use decorative bottles if you have exposed shampoo and conditioner bottles or if you like to keep things looking pretty in the shower. As a result, you’ll feel like your bathing in luxury. And don’t forget your hand soap! I absolutely love this for bathrooms that serve household members and guests.

One Room Challenge Bathroom Update

I asked my Instagram followers help me decided on the final choice for fabric, wallpaper, and trim. Here it is!

Fabric Wallpaper Trim Orc

 Thank you so much to my sponsors for making this One Room Challenge possible.

Orc Fall 2020 Logo

Hansgrohe | Fringe Market | Milton & King | Jeffery Court | Clare | Crystorama

A One Room Challenge just isn’t is without a long to-do list!

Here’s my to-do list for the next four weeks:

  1. Have the light switched box on one side moved to the vanity side
  2. Remove the door between the bath and vanity area and expand the walkway
  3. Repair the drywall
  4. Sand the ceiling on the vanity side
  5. Paint the vanity side, trim, door, and medicine cabinet white
  6. Paint the tub/toilet side black with white trim
  7. Install cove molding on the vanity side
  8. Apply wallpaper to the ceiling
  9. Add gold pulls to the cabinets
  10. Hang the new light fixture
  11. Hang new mirror
  12. Install marble and gold shelf
  13. Install new faucet
  14. Change the towel hangers to an antique hook
  15. Have professional tilers install new tub surround and flooring
  16. Have professional refinish tub
  17. Replace tub faucet, drain, and cover
  18. Sew a custom extra-long shower curtain
  19. Make a faux roman shade
  20. Update toilet holder
  21. Hang gallery wall
  22. Add new rugs and other decor
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About Kathy

Chai tea addict. Classical music lover. Decorating and DIY fanatic. Mom, wife, piano teacher, and twin. Founder of Up to Date Interiors.

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