Feelgood Fixes for Ugly Bathrooms
Don't be a hater – bathrooms in need of some serious TLC can be turned around with an attention-stealing addition or two
Joanna Tovia
26 August 2016
Houzz editorial team. Photojournalist specialising in design, travel and living well. Follow her photodocumentary about pets and the people who love them on Instagram @unfoldingtails
Houzz editorial team. Photojournalist specialising in design, travel and living well.... More
Love your house but loathe your bathroom? Not ready to part with the cash required to renovate it? It’s time to employ some quick-fix solutions that will take your attention away from grotty grout, old-fashioned fixtures and fading charm and direct it towards features more pleasing to the eye. Try one of these ideas at your house, and you’re sure to get a few more years out of your bathroom yet.
Add cheery decals
Raindrop decals add a little colour and fun to this bathroom. “The diagonal patterns help break up an otherwise sterile corner,” says homeowner Jenn Clapp. “Plus, they were six bucks on Etsy.” Clapp admits she isn’t the biggest fan of the bathroom, but says sometimes, “it’s better to embrace the ugly than try to pretend it’s not there.”
Going graphic at home
Raindrop decals add a little colour and fun to this bathroom. “The diagonal patterns help break up an otherwise sterile corner,” says homeowner Jenn Clapp. “Plus, they were six bucks on Etsy.” Clapp admits she isn’t the biggest fan of the bathroom, but says sometimes, “it’s better to embrace the ugly than try to pretend it’s not there.”
Going graphic at home
A decal could turn your plain shower screen into an adorable feature – like this ‘Haru the Happy Bear’ vinyl decal from Made of Sundays. If you don’t have kids and wonder if you should choose something a little more grown-up, stop – it’s your bathroom and you can do what you like with it. Adding a playful element brings joy, after all.
Brighten things up with a colourful shower curtain
What’s the first thing you see in this bathroom? The Marimekko shower curtain, of course. There’s a reason the Unikko print has been so popular for decades – it’s bright and cheery, and eternally stylish. Add a bright new shower curtain to your bathroom and you might be surprised at the difference it makes.
What’s the first thing you see in this bathroom? The Marimekko shower curtain, of course. There’s a reason the Unikko print has been so popular for decades – it’s bright and cheery, and eternally stylish. Add a bright new shower curtain to your bathroom and you might be surprised at the difference it makes.
Get your DIY on
Now that you’ve added a good-looking shower curtain, it’s time to think about furniture. Don’t underestimate the impact of a brightly painted chair or stool stacked with fresh, newish towels (not the old ratty ones at the back of your linen cupboard). The trick is to go bright with the colour: think hot pink, bright green, bold yellow or fire-engine red. Old chairs can be picked up at op-shops for a song, and a small pot of paint is all you’ll need to cover it.
Now that you’ve added a good-looking shower curtain, it’s time to think about furniture. Don’t underestimate the impact of a brightly painted chair or stool stacked with fresh, newish towels (not the old ratty ones at the back of your linen cupboard). The trick is to go bright with the colour: think hot pink, bright green, bold yellow or fire-engine red. Old chairs can be picked up at op-shops for a song, and a small pot of paint is all you’ll need to cover it.
Turn your window into a feature
It doesn’t matter how dowdy your bathroom is – install a bright set of window shutters (or paint the ones you already have), and it can’t help but go from daggy to dashing. What have you got to lose?
It doesn’t matter how dowdy your bathroom is – install a bright set of window shutters (or paint the ones you already have), and it can’t help but go from daggy to dashing. What have you got to lose?
A Roman blind can take any bathroom upmarket, especially if you paint the untiled portions of the walls in a coordinating colour.
Splurge on soft furnishings
Updating the vanity is, of course, one way to improve your bathroom, but if your bank account isn’t flush with cash right now, just start with the bathmat. A bright and beautiful bathmat like this one is a scene stealer, and could cover a multitude of sins. Triple the effect with three bathmats and your bathroom is suddenly a far more inviting place to be.
Updating the vanity is, of course, one way to improve your bathroom, but if your bank account isn’t flush with cash right now, just start with the bathmat. A bright and beautiful bathmat like this one is a scene stealer, and could cover a multitude of sins. Triple the effect with three bathmats and your bathroom is suddenly a far more inviting place to be.
Ditto for towels. Add decadent bath sheets and hand towels in bright colours like these from Missoni, and you’ll feel better every time you enter the room.
Browse more contemporary bathroom photos
Browse more contemporary bathroom photos
Transform the ceiling
If you think you’ve done all you can to pretty-up your bathing zone, look up. Transforming the ceiling with wallpaper will take every bit of attention away from the sorry state of your bathroom and lead your gaze up to the heavens. Vinyl wallpaper can be used in bathrooms without moisture becoming a problem.
If you think you’ve done all you can to pretty-up your bathing zone, look up. Transforming the ceiling with wallpaper will take every bit of attention away from the sorry state of your bathroom and lead your gaze up to the heavens. Vinyl wallpaper can be used in bathrooms without moisture becoming a problem.
Go a step further and your wallpaper can envelop a bathroom in pattern or colour from top to toe.
If you’ve already put wallpaper into the too-hard basket, don’t give up on the ceiling idea just yet – a lick of paint could be all it takes to make you love your bathroom a little more.
Bathroom colours that will never date
Bathroom colours that will never date
Beautify the bath
Rainbow stripes on your tub can be enough to make the blandest of bathrooms beautiful. Paint them yourself with the help of painter’s tape to keep your lines neat, or go for the decal option.
Rainbow stripes on your tub can be enough to make the blandest of bathrooms beautiful. Paint them yourself with the help of painter’s tape to keep your lines neat, or go for the decal option.
Give your floor a makeover
Floor tiles take a beating in bathrooms and eventually become an eyesore. If you’d love to extend the life of yours for a few years before renovating, a temporary floor covering could be the answer. Mirth Studio’s Peel and Stick vinyl flooring stick to your tiles and are said to last at least four years.
TELL US
Which short-term fixes have you used in your bathroom? Share your ideas in the Comments.
MORE
Browse more mini bathrooms
Floor tiles take a beating in bathrooms and eventually become an eyesore. If you’d love to extend the life of yours for a few years before renovating, a temporary floor covering could be the answer. Mirth Studio’s Peel and Stick vinyl flooring stick to your tiles and are said to last at least four years.
TELL US
Which short-term fixes have you used in your bathroom? Share your ideas in the Comments.
MORE
Browse more mini bathrooms
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Most of these bathrooms look great to start with, how about showing some actual ugly bathrooms to try these changes on?
Great ideas here. I had the most disgusting grotty little bathroom off the garage & art studio. I tarted it up for just under $2000 which included tradies. First of all I gave it a darn good scrub, clean & disinfect after we'd stripped out the disturbingly disgusting toilet & wash basin. The shower screen & plain white subway tiles in the shower came up to look perfectly acceptable. The floor had ugly 70's style shopping centre tiles on it so we tiled over the top of those which I think is OK for a bathroom that hardly ever gets used. Then we put in a new high end toilet & wash basin , taps, shower head, towel rails & toilet roll holder sourced cheaply from discontinued lines on E Bay & after i painted the walls & ceiling i topped it off with a mosaic mirror I made. The floor tiles are just ceramic (Beaumont Tiles) so they weren't expensive. By far the biggest cost was the plumber & tiler. Unfortunately I don't have a before photo but trust me, it look a 3rd world bathroom!
A 'Doctor Who - Tardis' shower screen for my 5 year old grand-daughter certainly took a bland-as bathroom into a much more interesting space.