Can You Remodel Your Bathroom On a Budget?
Spending a fortune on a makeover project is easy, but most of us don’t have the luxury of unlimited funds to spend. A far more likely scenario is having to make sensible choices within a budget. Whether you’re sprucing up a bathroom in order to sell and move on, or just fancy a change of décor, we have some top cost-effective ways of improving your bathroom on a very limited budget.
Get The Designer Bathroom Look on a Budget
If you’re a fan of the glossy interior design magazines, it can be easy to fall into the trap of thinking that you can only get the high-end look by spending a huge amount of money. That’s far from the truth however, and with a bit of careful planning, it’s easy to get the designer look with some clever key purchases and some basic DIY and design knowledge.
It’s not easy to transform a room in your house. It takes time, and whichever way you look at it the process will cost you money too. The good news is that remodelling the bathroom in the home doesn’t have to cost the Earth. There are ways to make sure that the whole process comes in at a sensible price, rather than a fortune. This means you can spend the money you expected to fork out on something else. Take a look at the ideas below and see how you can remodel the bathroom at a low cost.
The basic elements to a bathroom are the bath, basin (sink), toilet and shower unit. If you focus on being careful with your money on these pieces, you should find that the remodelling brings less of a financial hit.
1. Paint your Bathroom
A fresh coat of paint can work wonders in the bathroom and paint is one of the best-value decorating products around. All of the big DIY retailers will sell a wide range of paint, with prices starting at as little as £10 for 5 litres of paint. Even when you add in the cost of a tray, roller and brush, you can easily paint the average bathroom for under £20. One of the big current interior design trends is for brightly coloured ceilings in bathrooms – a great way of adding a splash of colour. Look online for inspiration; a bright orange or lime green ceiling, coordinated with towels or other accessories can really set your bathroom apart from everyone else’s. Just remember to picj up a couple of plastic dust sheets to protect your bathroom suite from splashes and drips as you paint.
2. Consider Wallpaper
Wallpaper isn’t the standard bathroom choice, with most people preferring tiles or paint. But choosing the correct paper can add a real luxury feel to the room. Wallpaper generally isn’t suitable for areas which come into contact with water, so choose a small area of the room to use as a feature wall. Vinyl coated paper, or paper specially treated to resist moisture is the best choice for areas which are prone to humidity and moisture. Bright and bold wallpaper will give that designer look in any bathroom, and as you’ll probably only need a roll or two, check out the reduced to clear or end of range sections online and in your local DIY store, and try to bag a bargain. If you’ve not hung wallpaper before, check out some of the videos online to walk you through the process.
3. Get some Plants for the Bathroom
Bringing the outdoors inside has been a huge trend in interior design recently, and for the bathroom you are looking for plants which are happy in warm, humid environments. Bamboo is a good choice as it is known to be easy to look after as are the classic 70s spider plants and aloe vera. Hit the charity shops for colourful plant pots, or buy plain terracotta pots and paint them to match your overall bathroom colour scheme. If your bathroom is small on floorspace, think about plants such as ivy or spider plants which you can have hanging from the ceiling, or smaller plants which are happy sitting on a shelf. If you’re really keen on the indoor garden look, go the whole hog with leaf printed wallpaper, green towels or pictures on the wall featuring botanical themes.
4. Turn your Bathroom into an Art Gallery
If you don’t want to paint or paper, then another great way to give the walls a makeover is to install a “mini art gallery” on one of the walls. There are no rules about how to do this, but the idea is to gather together posters, pictures or photographs which appeal to you and display them together on one wall. Don’t worry too much about matching frames, colours or styles; the idea is to create a personal display which reflects your interests and taste. Check out your local car boot sale or charity shop for frames of all sizes and shapes, or interesting pieces of artwork too.
5. Replace the Flooring
Bathrooms are often the smallest room in the house and that means that replacing the flooring doesn’t always mean spending a fortune on something new. One of the most cost-effective and easiest to lay products is vinyl, which comes in large sheets and can be easily cut to shape for a bathroom installation. If you have basic DIY skills then you should be able to manage the fitting yourself, and there are lots of instructional videos online to walk you through the task. Sheet vinyl can cost as little as £8 per square metre. You will usually need some form of underlay boards, but may be able to re-use the boards currently in your house depending on condition. Even when you factor in the price of the boards, a Stanley knife to cut the vinyl and some adhesive tape, the cost of re-flooring a an average bathroom with basic vinyl will be under £100.
6. Paint the Bath or Change the Panel
Most British baths are white, with a plain white panel. If you’re lucky enough to have a free-standing bath, then these can be painted with metal paint to give them a completely new look, and then changed to another colour when you fancy another change. If you have a standard acrylic bath with a panel, these are usually standard size and you can buy a new panel online. Bath panels are sold in rainbow shades, or made to look as if they are panelled or made or tile or stone. If you have a shortage of storage space, then look for panels with sliding doors, allowing you to store your bathroom products out of sight.
7. Ditch the Shower Curtain
Shower curtains are cheap and easily replaced, so if yours is looking less than pristine, then swapping for a new one will instantly make the room look brighter and fresher. If you’re unable to put your own stamp on a rented property by changing the colour of the wall or hanging wallpaper, then swapping a plain shower curtain for a brighter one with a pattern is a good alternative. Just unclip the old curtain, fold it and keep it safe until you move out, when it can be replaced.
A slightly more expensive option is to get rid of the shower curtain altogether, and replace it with a glass or Perspex panel or screen over the bath. These come in a wide range of styles and sizes, and are easily fitted to the wall. A screen will make the room seem larger too, as there will be nothing blocking off your view of the room as a whole.
8. Regrout your Tiles
Tiles might be a durable and easily-cleaned wall covering in the bathroom but the grout takes some maintenance to keep it looking new and fresh. It is possible to clean up grubby grout using a toothbrush and a bleach solution, but it takes time and effort. A good alternative is just to remove the grout completely and replace it. This isn’t an expensive task but it can be time consuming. Buy a special grout removing tool from the DIY store and watch some instructional videos before you get to work. When shopping for new grout don’t automatically go for white; grout products are now available in a huge range of shades and choosing one which contrasts with your tiles can both update your bathroom and keep it looking fresher for longer.
9. Use Tiles Sparingly or Part-tile the Bathroom
One of the key aspects of many designer bathrooms are tiles. Beautifully made and patterned tiles can be hugely expensive, especially if you’re thinking about tiling an entire wall or the whole room. A smarter way to use expensive tiles is as a feature. Perhaps one row around the bath, or a smaller quantity arranged as a splashback over the sink. Match your expensive tiles with basic tiles in white or cream to allow the design to shine. Search online for tile inspiration and if you’re only using a small number of tiles, shop in the end of range sections to snag a bargain.
Bathrooms have tiles in them, but it isn't necessary to overdo it with them. You could focus on one wall for example, having tiles in one area alone brings about a refreshing look and is far less expensive than a full retile.
10. Change the Taps or Shower Head
A new set of taps can transform the whole bathroom appearance. Designer taps can easily run into hundreds. However, unless you’re a plumbing expert, you won’t be able to tell them apart from the cheaper options. So browse the top-end ranges for something you like the look of, then hit the internet to try to find a very similar product for a fraction of the price.
If you fancy a change in the bathroom but aren’t up for changing the whole suite, then a better option might be just replacing the taps. Prices for designer taps can easily run into several hundreds of pounds but you don’t have to spend that much if you shop around, and are prepared to wait for sales. Ask about ex-display taps from your local bathroom showroom as another way of getting a bit of a bargain, and remember that if your old taps are in working condition, someone may be prepared to take them off your hands and allow you to offset the cost of new.
Installing new taps isn’t tricky, but you will need basic plumbing skills and tools, and the water will have to be disconnected as you work. A similar task is changing the shower head, but this is even easier as changing often just means unscrewing the old head and putting the new one in its place.
11. Splash Out on New Accessories
All kinds of fixtures can be replaced, from drawer handles to light fittings. This can be done for a small amount of expense, and you will find that it helps to transform the look of the bathroom. You can go the whole way and decide to change other fixtures like towel rails. Match colours and you have a brand new look for the room. And all of that can be inexpensive.
One of the things we all love the most about hotel bathrooms is the posh handwashing soap and toiletries. Expensive handwash and towels might be a large initial investment, but you can keep using them for years. Who’s to know that your expensive bottle of handwashing liquid has been refilled with generic liquid soap from the supermarket? Towels don’t have to be expensive either. Stick to plain white towels for the designer look, and the fluffier the better.
Part of the joy of staying in a hotel is the coordinated approach to bathroom design, where everything matches and has been put together with care. If you haven’t the budget for an entire renovation, then one possibility is to replace your towels, accessories such as soap dishes and toothbrush holders and décor from similar ranges. Splash out on some good quality, fluffy towels or bath robes to hang behind the door, and choose some high-end bar soap or liquid soap dispenser too. Try to keep your bathroom uncluttered, even if this means investing in some sort of storage to help you keep everything out of sight.
12. Preloved Bathrooms
Consider buying a used unit rather than a brand new one. You can easily get high quality units that have been used before. This is especially true with the bath itself. If you’re thinking of having a freestanding bath, you can find some very inexpensive but good-looking units in furniture shops that offer preloved units. It shouldn't take too long to find something that looks amazing but doesn’t cost too much.
The only other unit that may cost a little is the toilet. If you are going to have a toilet in the bathroom you can buy a reasonably inexpensive one. The units only really go up in price the more luxurious they are. It pays to shop around.
13. Shop Smart for a New Suite
If you’re thinking about buying a whole new bathroom suite, then spend your time trying to find the best deal on your purchases. Large bathroom showrooms might have ex-display bathrooms which they sell off at a fraction of the new price. Alternatively, put your purchase off until the sales and try to get a better price. Keep an eye on the local selling pages on social media or sites like Gumtree; the quantity of nearly new stuff which regularly comes up for sale is staggering. Be patient and don’t rush into buying anything.
14. Stick to Monochrome
One of the elements which many of the top-end bathrooms have in common is that they are all very well matched and coordinated. If you’re trying to pull off this look at home, then the best advice is to stick to black and white. Other colours can be harder to match exactly. Black is also currently very on-trend when it comes to bathroom design. If you wish to add colour, do it with accessories which can easily be changed.
