How to Make the Most of Your Small Apartment Bathroom

You've done the impossible: you've found a great, affordable, beautiful apartment and you're all set to move in and begin decorating. Many urban apartments have lovely original hardwood floors, funky little kitchenettes, and spacious bedrooms. But if you're like me, you've probably noticed that most one bedroom apartments suffer from the same ailment - itsy bitsy ugly bathroom syndrome. Most are cramped and plagued with ugly tile and fixtures, often complimented by a super bad paint job. However, I have come up with some simple strategies to turn an unattractive apartment bathroom into a seemingly spacious beautiful bliss.

Utilize Mirrors

The best way to open up a tiny bathroom is to utilize mirrors. Many people are uncomfortable with adding additional mirrors to a bathroom, since all are already set up with cabinet mirrors above the sink. Take my word that by adding an additional mirror to the opposite wall, the effect will not be gaudy or overdone, but rather create the illusion of opposite space. It's best to not put the additional mirror directly in front of the cabinet mirror, but rather off to the side enough so that they just barely reflect off of each other. You will be pleasantly surprised to see how much bigger the space will immediately appear.

Careful With Your Curtains

Many people who lament about how small their apartment bathroom is fail to see that they themselves have worsened the appearance. How? By using a solid coloured shower curtain. The logic behind this is actually quite simple - the solid curtain creates the illusion of a wall, which causes the space to look even smaller than it is, due to the fact that about two or three feet of the bathroom are blocked off from vision. To avoid this unflattering illusion, utilize a translucent see through curtain. I have even spotted some clear patterned curtains at stores like Target or Linens'n'Things that were more chic than childish.

Pick a Theme and Stick With it

It's the old adage of when God gives you lemons, make lemonade. By playing with mirrors and using see through curtains you can create the illusion of slightly more space, but you're never going to turn a small bathroom into a gymnasium. Do what you can to open the area up, but also remember that a well decorated small space is far more aesthetically pleasing than a sparsely decorated one. Pick a theme (I advise basing it around a small painting) and pick towels, soap and brush holders, and other decorations and containers to match. With even a small budget, you can find pieces and linens that will compliment each other and create a chic and stylish - albeit small - apartment bathroom. Happy decorating!