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You are here: Home / Decorating / Five Ways to Update a Bathroom on a Budget

Five Ways to Update a Bathroom on a Budget

February 10, 2019 By Karen Cooper 4 Comments

I’m starting a series today about decorating your home on a budget. I’m going to go room by room, and today, for the first installment, I’m going to focus on how to update a bathroom on a budget.

Five ways to update a bathroom on a budget - thediybungalow.com

Here are five ways to update a bathroom on a budget:

1.  Change the lightbulbs.

One of the easiest ways to update the look of your bathroom is by swapping out the regular bulbs and outdated shades for some vintage-style Edison bulbs.

Change the look of a light fixture with new vintage-style bulbs - thediybungalow.com

Each bulb is about $10 – much cheaper than replacing the whole fixture. Plus you don’t need an electrician! To see how I did it, please see this post.

2. Add shelving.

Everyone needs storage in the bathroom – and it’s easy to make shelves.

Finished reclaimed wood shelves - Guest bathroom makeover reveal - thediybungalow.com

I made these shelves from reclaimed wood – one from a salvage yard and one was the bottom of one of the doors I used when I built my daybed. The brackets are from a big-box hardware store. It’s an easy project you can complete in an afternoon – the instructions are here.

3. Made in the shades.

When we moved into the 1929 House, our bathroom didn’t have window coverings. This was a problem…as you can imagine!

How to make faux Roman shades from shower curtains - from thediybungalow.com

Also, the bathroom and master bedroom have casement windows, which aren’t a size that lends itself to ready-made curtains or blinds.

I made no-sew “faux” Roman shades from shower curtains I found at Target! Find the tutorial here.

I love that these can be customized to your decor, color scheme, and shape and size of your windows. There are so many choices for colors and patterns for shower curtains now.

I did this project again for our guest bathroom:

DIY faux roman shades in the guest bathroom - five ways to update your bathroom on a budget - from thediybungalow.com

Click on the photo for the full guest bathroom reveal!

4. Paint.

A gallon of paint costs between $25-50 (depending on brand) and can completely change the look and feel of a room.

Here’s what our guest bath looked like before:

Guest bathroom when we moved in - thediybungalow.com

And now, the after:

Finished guest bathroom makeover reveal - thediybungalow.com

Guest bathroom makeover reveal - thediybungalow.com
In our old house – the kids’ bathroom, before:

Kids' bathroom before - thediybungalow.com

And the kids’ bathroom, after:

finished kids bathroom with backsplash - thediybungalow.com

And neither project featured above used more than a gallon of paint! Seriously!

5. Accessorize.

Change the look of any room by changing out accessories. This is definitely true for a bathroom because there usually aren’t that many accessories in there! So that means that (a) you can change a few things for a whole new look and (b) it won’t cost a fortune!

For example, our guest bathroom in our first house looked like this:

Old house bathroom wall before - thediybungalow.com

And here’s the after:

Floating shelves in bathroom balance the room and provide storage - thediybungalow.com

Amazing how two shelves and some accessories balanced out that wall and provided some needed storage!

So, there are five ways to update a bathroom on a budget! What room should I tackle next week?

For more decorating ideas on a budget, click HERE.

You might also like:

  • How to Update Bathroom Lighting (it's as easy as changing a lightbulb)
    How to Update Bathroom Lighting (it's as easy as changing a…
  • Guest Bathroom Project Update
    Guest Bathroom Project Update
  • Five Changes to the Guest Bathroom (Friday Five)
    Five Changes to the Guest Bathroom (Friday Five)

Filed Under: Decorating, Friday Five, Quick Room Updates Tagged With: Bathrooms 4 Comments

About Karen Cooper

Hi! I'm Karen. I call myself a “recovering lawyer” - I traded in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY adventures. Join me for DIY, home decorating, repurposing and upcycling, and organizing projects and tips as I transform a 1929 Tudor bungalow into our home. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home.

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Comments

  1. Linda says

    February 28, 2017 at 9:15 pm

    Good ideas. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Karen Cooper says

      March 2, 2017 at 4:22 pm

      Thank you, Linda!

      Reply
  2. Jamin Mills says

    March 5, 2017 at 11:34 pm

    Great stuff Karen, always a joy to see what you are up to! Keep up the amazing work!

    Reply
    • Karen Cooper says

      March 6, 2017 at 5:27 pm

      Thank you, Jamin!! Hope you and your family are well!

      Reply

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Hi! I’m Karen. I call myself a “recovering lawyer,” because I turned in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY. This blog is all about DIY, home decorating, repurposing and upcycling, and organization. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home.




find projects here!

My Daybed in This Old House Magazine!

Daybed from Old Doors featured in This Old House Magazine
Best of 2016 - Best Blog DIY Category - thediybungalow.com

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About Karen

A "recovering lawyer," I turned in my power suits for power tools and a life of DIY. I believe in merging old and new to make a house a home. Read More…

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