12 Tricks to Make the Most of a Tiny Bathroom

A smaller bathroom can have everything you need and more if you make the most of the space available

Charmean Neithart 17 November 2014

Houzz Contributor

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Some small bathrooms make you feel like you have to lose weight to enter them, but I really like working on this type of bathroom design. Trying to make everything fit in the available space is like doing a giant crossword puzzle. Among the challenges: configuring the toilet and sink, allowing enough clearance for a shower and, of course, where to put the towel rails and toilet roll holder? Despite the challenges, in most cases it’s still better to squeeze in an extra bathroom where one is desperately needed, even if it must be small. Here are 12 tips for designing a small bathroom.

Sheila Rich Interiors, LLC

Select a vanity unit with one shelf
Sink unit design has got smarter. Even a pedestal style with one shelf can hold towels or a basket for toilet paper. I personally love the way fresh, clean towels look when folded neatly in a bathroom.

See how to banish bathing clutter

Jordan Parnass Digital Architecture

Float the vanity unit
Besides just visually helping the bathroom appear bigger, mounting a vanity unit above the floor frees up a little space for small items underneath.

Check out bathrooms that have twin basins

Hillary Thomas Designs

Install a corner sink
Sometimes even a pedestal sink can disrupt the only available traffic lane in a bathroom. In this case, placing a corner sink across from the toilet works better than a sink across from the shower. The opening and closing of the shower door usually creates an awkward walk-around situation.

Scott Neste | Minor Details Interior Design

Use a shower curtain
A shower curtain that moves back and forth saves space over a glass door that moves in and out. Shower-tub combos actually can fit into small spaces, with some tubs coming in at just over 1.5 metres in length.

Peter S. Balsam Associates

Round the vanity unit
Tight spaces can make sharp corners hazardous. If the corners of a vanity would get in the way, opt for a rounded style. Yes, a round vanity can work in a square space.

Chris A Dorsey Photography

Extend the worktop over the toilet
This arrangement can be done with stone or a wood slab. The extended surface creates just enough space for a few needed items. Toilet placement is not affected, and the look is minimalist and clean.

Dunlap Design Group, LLC

Use a large-scale pattern
A big pattern, like this wide stripe, can trick the eye into seeing expanded space. The size might stay the same, but the bathroom will feel bigger.

Wagner Studio Architecture

Skip the shower door
If your bathroom is about 1.5 metres wide, that’s just enough space to squeeze in a toilet and a 75cm by 1.5 metre tub. With tight conditions such as these, consider a glass panel instead of a glass shower door. It will keep water in the shower and free up needed elbow room.

Chic Decor & Design, Margarite Oliveira

Expand the mirror
In the tightest spaces, having a mirror stretch across the wall instead of just the vanity unit can enable two people to use it at once. In less-than-ideal space conditions, every centimetre helps.

Michael Goodsmith Design

Mount the towel rail on a door
Where can I hang the towels? I wish I had a penny for every time I heard that question. When space is at a premium, mounting a towel rail on the shower door keeps towels handy. You might need to store the bulk of your towels in a nearby linen closet, but having that one towel close by is essential.

Design Cube Inc.

Install a trough sink
The narrow, clean styling of a trough sink is a good-looking space solution. Trough sinks have a low profile. When wall mounted, they free up floor space as well for storage or foot traffic.

Studio Frank

Use a wall-mounted tap
Mounting a tap on the wall allows for a narrower sink or vanity unit, which in turn frees up square footage in the total bathroom. Don’t be afraid to try a wall-mounted tap in traditional design. It works anywhere!

TELL US…
Please share your latest small-bathroom design tips in the Comments below.