How to revamp your bathroom… On a very tight budget

We have lived in our St Albans house for nearly 7 years now, so the time has come for me to get itchy feet and want to move! Admittedly this happens ALOT so until we can afford a house move we are going to keep my unsettled nature at bay and redecorate the house!

First up in the series, it’s the bathroom. When we moved in it was bloody horrible. I mean proper grim. Think shell prints, peach and poo stains. Yeah, PROPER grim. So a complete gut out was needed to make it liveable without fear of catching some rank disease. A white bath/shower overhead, new sink with mixer tap (an absolute must for Todd), toilet and tiled flooring was installed and laid. It honesty changed our world! Dramatic I know, but it really was! Infact, still is. We love our bathroom. It’s not an expensive suite, it’s from Homebase but has served us well so far so no complaints.
7 years on, it could do with a bit of a spruce up. Money isn’t free-flowing at the moment so it’s going to be on a budget. A tight budget so thought you might like to take a look at the journey, and maybe take some inspiration from it too then all the better.

Cheaper paint choices

I am obsessed with research. Honestly, I spend so long researching things I run out of time to do the actual task! The paint I initially chose was Dulux Chic Shadow. Currently it’s a Dulux Natural Hessian, a sort of light biscuit colour. The bathroom paint range wasn’t on offer at Homebase so decided to have a look else where to see if I could bag a bargain. To cut a very long story of boring research short, I ended up choosing an own brand by Wickes called Slate. I think it’s a bit darker than the Dulux alternative but I quite like that. And the fact it was £14.99 even better right!? It took 3 coats which is probably more than an expensive alternative would have taken, but I had the time so wasn’t that fussed.

Functional decoration

Part of my thought process for the revamp of the house is to really love the products I am buying, that probably sounds ridiculous, but I sometimes buy the cheapest, most convenient item rather than wait to find the real deal. Items that will last. In keeping with this idea, I have sourced (more research you see!) some gorgeous towel hooks for the walls. They are from Made.com. My new favourite shop. I went for red and orange to add a bit of colour so they room doesn’t feel to danky grey. They were £12.95 for all four so a bit of designer luxury without a massive spend. Update: I got the hooks. They were crap. I was so disappointed. They were badly made, and actually a really poor design. The screws that hold the fitting in place just fall straight out so the slightest weight pulls the hook off the wall. Bloody rubbish. Sent them back. Humph.
I replaced them with a find off of Etsy. Beautiful homemade items from all over the world. I went for a sturdy brass hook (4 screws, no chance of it falling off the wall this time!). I love it, and cheaper too. £5.99 Inc postage.

Storage- v. important

An absolute must for a bathroom. And number one priority if you have kiddies. We had a new bathroom installed before we had the sprogs so the storage thing was not really considered at the time, however, the masses of toothbrushes, different pastes, bubble bath, shampoos it’s really our top priority this time around. I ordered this IKEA unit in white for the main wall. I think it is meant for the kitchen but screw that, I think it will be very useful here. It has fairly deep shelves to keep the odds and sods at bay, and handy hooks underneath for towels etc. £35. The kids ‘helped’ put it together, and it’s ideal.

For inside the bath (we had a manky net thing) we ordered these bath storage baskets for their toys and sponges. They have a handy drainage hole to stop them getting smelly too. They have suctions to stick to the bath/ tiles, but we shall see how that works out. Never really got those bastard things to stick. Even if they sit on the side it will be a plus.

Prettifying (even a word?)

I wanted our toothbrush and paste holders to obviously be functional but also to be a bit quirky so not using the item for its initial purpose. We are using a mug that I already owned. BUT a cute Rob Ryan tin one so both super lush and practical! Success!
Most of the prettifying items I have added to the bathroom I already had, so just a change of room has revamped their purpose and my love for them. Like the little ceramic birds from Wilkos and wooden hand made boat. I did however buy a couple of fake plants from John Lewis. Normally fake plants look just that, but these are beautiful. They were £8 each. The last item was the retro style orange clock. A clock is a must in a bathroom if you ask me. £15.

So to conclude, a bathroom revamp came in at:

£88.99! I’m pretty chuffed at that. And it looks good so that’s a plus. Phew.

Hints:

Change the colour, and opt for a store own paint. You may have to use more coats but who ever finishes a tin of bathroom paint anyways!

Concentrate on storage. It will benefit you in the long run.

Choose objects from around your home to bring new life into them and the bathroom.