Small bathroom, big ideas

Throw enough money at your bathroom and you'll have a work of art. You'll have an oasis. You'll have a space so opulent that your friends will show up unannounced just to use it.

And that may not be what you're going for.

Sure, if you throw enough cash at your home you can create something pretty opulent, but the real trick is making a small bathroom look beautiful and function well without breaking the bank.

So check out our top five big ideas for your small bathroom.

5. Open sight lines.

Putting in half or full walls in a small bathroom is a waste of space. Use glass and mirrors as much as you can, but don't go nuts unless you're going for the Liberace effect.

4. Light it up.

For the most part, light will make a small space seem larger. That's not to say that you couldn't specialty light and go for a specific dramatic effect. But that takes a great amount of planning, something that might even be worth hiring a designer to pull off.

3. Consider the ergonomics.

Open the door and hit the toilet. Turn on the faucet only to find that you can't turn the water on all the way because the handle hits the medicine cabinet. What's the use of creating beautiful form if it doesn't function? Even in the world of heating, there are ways to customize a small bathroom to make it aesthetically pleasing, efficient, and comfortable.

2. Smart storage.

Cabinets are the primary source of storage in the bathroom. So you need to get cabinets that make the most of space. Check out these cabinet shelf inserts from Shelf Genie, that make excellent use of the typically cluttered cabinet base. Most cabinets can't utilize the top six to eight inches of the cabinet to make room for the sink and the down-tube. Fix the sink issue by going surface mount, and fix the drain tube issue by looking into these types of inserts. They're a lot cheaper than buying a new custom cabinet.

1. Use appliances that fit.

A shower is going to fit better in a small bathroom than a giant soaking tub. A round toilet is going to fit in a small bathroom better than an elongated WC. Pedestal sinks are beautiful, but their lack of under sink storage is a real problem in a small bathroom. When it comes to appliances, one size does not fit all.

Of course, all the fancy touches don't mean a thing if your bathroom is not comfortable, and one of the largest comfort factors is heat. We can help you keep your bathroom warm with a heater you can barely see.