Give Your Bathroom a Facelift on a Small Budget

I like to start any project with a couple of weekends at yard sales or garage sales. I find the best deals are at estate sales and moving sales. I only go to flea markets to get ideas on crafts that I can make myself for ½ the cost of what they are selling them for.

Some things you may be looking for are new (to you) artificial plants, light fixtures or light covers, mirrors, candle holders, magazine racks, left over tile (that can be used as a boarder- not to retile the entire bathroom)- things of that nature.

Most things can easily be spray painted to match your colors. Spray paint is $2-$3 a can and it's important to look for the rust proof type. Most importantly- do all of your spray painting outside or in a large, well ventilated place- like a garage or the driveway. Having you unconscious on the floor is not part of the new décor. You'll make a lumpy floor mat.

First decide on what color you want your bathroom to be and add two shades of the same color, one lighter and one darker (or one totally different but matching color) for accents.

Strip everything out of your bathroom so you can start with a fresh, empty room. You should start with my other article "Making Spring Cleaning a Breeze- Part 1- Bathrooms" and deep clean before you begin your bathroom face lift.

Depending on the condition of your fixtures, you can polish them with mixture of vinegar and a small amount of baking soda paste to make them really shine. Use an old toothbrush to get into the tight spots. You may need to leave the cleaner on for a few minutes if it's really grimy or you need to remove a small amount of rust.

If they are in bad shape, they can be replaced relatively inexpensively at any discount department store- Target, Wal-Mart, Big Lots, General Dollar and Family Dollar stores. A new faucet set should cost about $10-$12 and a new shower head around $10-$15.

Fixtures are very easy to replace yourself and come with detailed instructions on how to do it. The #1 thing you need to remember is to turn off the water before you start the replacement process.

Don't ask me how I know that; just take my word for it. If you don't turn off the water first, you will have an unintentional shower (and shower the small child standing behind you, watching to see what you are doing. Unless your goal in life is to make your small child terrified of the bathroom, turn off the water before you begin.)

You can also pick up a new shower liner for about $3.00, a new shower curtain and new bathmats for about $10 (a set ) at these same stores-if you didn't find them at a garage sale for less.

If you are not going to replace your towel rack, bathrobe hook and toothbrush holder- you can take them down and spray paint them the color of your choice.

Small touches make a big difference.

If you have a large bathroom mirror, I have found accessory holders with suction cups at a discount department store. I use a small one for my make-up stuff and a larger one for deodorant, toothpaste, contact lens solution- things like that, to get them off the side of my sink. The cost for both was about $7.

I also found a netted, pocketed hanger that I hung inside my shower liner on the shower hooks. It will get all your shampoo, razors and soaps off the edge of the tub and hides these things behind the shower liner. You can use a second, larger one for children's bathtub toys (if you have small children). The cost was about $3.

Tile makes an interesting and dimensional boarder and is very easy to install yourself. You shouldn't need a lot of tile if you are just doing a boarder so the cost should be minimal. Just be sure to wipe away excess grout as you work because once it dries, it's really hard to get off. Be sure to make a level mark to follow before you begin so your boarder doesn't end up aiming for the floor ½ ways around your bathroom.

If you're good at math, you can measure the distance around your room and measure the distance across the tiles. Do the math and skip a spot equal to the same size of the tile. If math isn't your strong subject just find a 5^th grader to do it for you.

Tea light candles around your tub will give it a romantic feeling and looks very pretty. Also a small mirror on the back of your toilet with tea light candles is a nice touch. Who couldn't use a nice smelling candle in their bathroom anyway?

You can also use tea light candle holders for things other than candles. I have two that I filled with a small amount of sand and some tiny seashells that I found at a craft store for about $2. If you live near a beach, these things can be found for free.

If you are going with a seashell kind of décor, you can pick up a shadow box at a craft store for a few dollars. In the back you can add a picture of the ocean (or whatever you like) then fill it 1/8 of the way with sand, tiny seashells and sea glass. Just a little bit in the bottom of the shadow box is all you need. (This will work with almost anything; you just need to use your imagination)

Another fun look is if you have one of those bathroom sinks with a cabinet, you can use ordinary ceramic drink coasters that match your theme and attach them at an equal distance to the blank spot or to cabinet door. You can either use double sided tape or glue them on with wood glue.

The possibilities are endless if you use your imagination. If you have more than one bathroom, rinse and repeat.