There are many ways you can do to make your small or narrow bathroom feel bigger. You may have a lot of ideas in mind to do this which may only overwhelm you. But really, you just need 5 guiding principles to follow if you want your bathroom to feel and look bigger.
Tips To Do If You Want Your Bathroom Space Look Larger
When you enter a room, your eyes can easily determine if a room is small, average, or large. This is because a room’s space can easily be ascertained by its corners
So, if you re going to plan or remodel an existing bathroom there’s one tip to remember. Project the illusion that your room’s boundaries are endless or trick your eye to avoid these corners. If you do this, you’re off to a good start.
1. Make your floor space visible.
An easy principle to keep in mind is this – if your eyes can see the floor, it sees space. Try to avoid objects that will block your vision on your floor areas. These may be a solid object or aesthetically by lines which gives you the illusion of an end point or corners. Here are some ways to make your floor area look spacious.
- Use floating vanities and toilet seats. Visually, if something floats, then you can see more of the floor. Choosing a floating vanity is a good way to make use of your bathroom fixtures without compromising your floor space.
- Discard the carpet. If you have a small area, you need every inch of space to be visible to make your room look larger. This goes to your floor as well. So, keep that floor space open nstead of trying to hide some inch of it behind your carpet.
- Prefer a shower over a tub. Again, placing a bathtub in your small bathroom makes your space more limited. It would be practical to opt for a shower since it is attached to a wall that doesn’t eat much of your floor space. Deciding a shower over a tub will make your bathroom breathable rather than restricted.
- Choose large floor tiles. Large tiles give you the illusion of wide spaces. This is unlike smaller tiles which will give you lots of grout lines – tricking the eye to endpoints – making your bathroom look smaller still.
2. Show off walls.
Another principle to consider if you want your bathroom look larger is to make your walls noticeable. Again, every inch of your wall is considered space. So here are some tricks to make your walls add up to your bathroom area.
- Replace shower curtain with a glass panel. Using a half glass panel for your shower instead of a curtain is better because it enables you to see the wall through the glass. This way, your bathroom will look bigger due to the illusion of an extended space. This is unlike the effect a shower curtain does which blocks your view of the wall, thus cutting short your room’s dimension.
- Limit your wall décor. Go minimalist with your bathroom wall décor. Avoid hanging lots of decoration or pictures which will make your wall look too busy and your bathroom smaller. If you want to hang something on your small bathroom, one picture or décor will suffice.
- Choose recessed shelving over visible wall shelves. Recessed shelving gives the illusion of the wall’s continuity, as the shelves are subtly hidden. This contrasts with visible wall shelves cutting the wall space. Just imagine how putting your personal essentials on the wall shelves would block most of the wall’s view
- Clear the clutter. Keep your essentials hidden in your bathroom drawers or closet rather than place them on plain view on shelves or countertop. A neat space gives the room airy and breathable. A nice way to unclutter your bathroom is keeping cabinets hidden behind your bathroom mirror – yes, just like a medicine cabinet or armoire – is a smart way to give your mirror a dual purpose.
3. Stretch your room.
A principle to keep in handy if you want your bathroom look bigger is to stretch your bathroom size visually. Since space is already constricted as it is, then giving the illusion of a bigger area will do the trick. You may want to consider some of the following ways to stretch your room size.
- Lay your tiles horizontal or diagonal. If you have a narrow bathroom, how do you make bathroom bigger with tiles? it’s good to choose long rectangular floor tiles rather than small ones. What direction should you lay your tiles? You can choose to lay your tiles horizontally – this gives the illusion of stretching more of your narrow bathroom space. Or you can go diagonally – since this patter will draw the eye away from the corners of the room.
- Keep the same tile design from floor to wall. If you consider one tile design or color for your floor and wall, this gives the impression of continuity of space. This tricks the eye to see only one space without finding the corners. However, try to keep your tile design simple and the color subtle to give a relaxing effect. If you opt for this trick, avoid tiles with too many prints which will make your bathroom looking loud or busy.
- Paint your wall white. How do you make a small bathroom bigger with paint? As a rule, painting a room white always give the illusion of space. However, this doesn’t stop you from adding a touch of color. If you want to apply a two-tone paint scheme, it’s better to paint your wall white – or any brighter shade – halfway towards the ceiling. This directs your vision upward giving the illusion of height.
4. Brighten the room.
This principle is easy – if a room is bright then you can see all the surrounding spaces. Why does light make a room expand? Because it gives the illusion of openness. This said, there are many ways you can do to make a bathroom look brighter.
5. Trick the Eye (when all else fail).
Another principle you must remember is that your eye is the one calculating your room size. So, to avoid this, direct your gaze somewhere else. Here are some practical ways to trick your eye from focusing on your bathroom size – without any expensive remodeling.
- Place a backlit mirror. Putting a backlit mirror is a good way to trick your vision. The soft hollow lightings illuminating from the mirror’s edge gives the illusion that it’s floating against the wall. And in effect, making the wall ‘feel’ visible, thus adding to space.
- Place a painting on the wall. This is a nice way to lead your eye to a focal point. Pictures always catches everybody’s attention – not to the background wall.
- Hang a chandelier. Okay, so a chandelier may be a bit grand for a small bathroom. But there are already mini chandeliers in the market that may fit well with your modest space. A chandelier always captures attention – be it heavy or small. Also, it directs your vision upwards to the ceiling giving the illusion of height and at the same time, giving you that elegant vibe.
