Your guest bathroom, or powder room, presents a great place to start your home makeover. Decorating this small room requires less money and effort than larger rooms. Plus, you have the opportunity to develop your personal interior design skills without committing to a big project.
Because guests view this small space in private, visitors take more time to notice the details of the interior design. For this reason, you want to showcase a great design to make a good impression. Plus, hospitality shines in a well-appointed guest bathroom where it only takes a couple of splurges on quirky accessories to make a big impact your guests will remember. The company may not remember your living room walls because they are focusing on the people in the space, but they will remember your powder room.
What if you don’t have a powder room and guests use your kids’ bathroom?
Children appreciate being treated like adults and don’t need a child’s bath. Do not use wallpaper or accessories with youthful prints.
Keep bath toys in the tub (in one of those plastic-coated wire baskets), and hang a ceiling-to-floor curtain in front of the tub. This curtain can be hung from the ceiling in front of normal plastic siding. For small bathrooms, where daylight enters from above the tub, use white or another light-emitting fabric. A curtain made of soft voile or cotton does double duty: softening the space with fabric while masking the bathtub, which is not a guest bathroom.
Toilet Basics
To finish off any proper vanity, you need a large sink, a faucet, and a cabinet with a large mirror, in addition to the toilet. If you’re working on a budget, look for sinks for sale at a warehouse store or at Habitat for Humanity’s thrift store, ReStore. Don’t buy a poorly built cabinet; look for an antique chest of drawers or a sideboard that spans the wall space.
Dramatic vanities emphasize remarkable mirrors. He may be tempted to stick with the ugly wall-mounted medicine cabinet, but if he really wants an impressive guest bathroom, hang a dramatic mirror instead.
Store toothbrushes and other necessities in the bottom cabinet and take medications into the kitchen, out of reach of children.
If you need to replace the toilet, which just needs to be functional because the other details will overshadow it, look for a toilet that matches the style of your home.
Tips for remodeling the vanity
In addition to bathroom fixtures, flooring, walls, and ceiling offer the most affordable home renovation opportunities. Due to the small area, you can use large ceramic tiles that imitate stone, marble or even wood. Additionally, linoleum comes in a multitude of interesting patterns and has the advantage of being warmer on bare feet than tile.
The area that makes the most impact in interior design, the walls and ceiling, provide the best place to have fun with your home remodel. Decorative paint finishes, like subtle coats of enamels, add a designer touch without the expense. Choose colors that harmonize with the rest of your home to reinforce your color theme. Use the psychology of color to make your powder room present a refreshing oasis or a warm haven.
Use an essential oil diffuser to help your vanity smell as good as it looks. Avoid unnatural sprays that cause irritation to people with sensitivities.
The final detail in interior design, exquisite lighting, doesn’t have to break your budget. Perhaps your dining room chandelier would make a better statement in your bathroom than it would in your dining room. If you live in a climate with high humidity and hot summers, a ceiling fan helps keep your room cool. Look for a fan with lights pointing up. Lights shining down on you in a small space feel overwhelming. Also, use wall sconces on either side of the vanity mirror instead of the usual construction chandelier above the mirror.
The finishing touches, guest towels, harsh soaps and lotions make your guests and yourself feel pampered. Choose generous, thick, soft hand towels to add softness to a hard surface space.
Because people are more comfortable in smaller bathrooms that offer privacy, a guest bathroom offers the perfect place to practice your design skills. Splurge a little on luxurious wall finishes and guest towels to show off your home’s interior design.
Copyright © 2005 Jeanette J. Fisher. All rights reserved. (You may publish this article in its entirety with the following author information with live links only.)