No closed storage + tiny confined space = EVERY. DETAIL. MATTERS. Each element you add to your small bathroom should strive for its full potential in terms of fashion and function – especially when your space is tiny and has no closed storage. And you don’t have to break the bank to do it! Here are my top 5, budget-friendly, small bathroom styling tips that I have found to be most impactful in my own rental bathroom.
1. Pick A Cute Shower Curtain
Your shower curtain basically acts as another wall in your bathroom, so make it count! It can single-handedly dictate the vibe of the entire space, so be intentional with what you choose. This bold, ever-famous Peaches shower curtain from Urban Outfitters instantly injects loads of personality into my own small rental bathroom. Bonus points: pick out cute shower rings too! These ones are metal, decorative, have two hooks; one for the cute fabric curtain on the front, and one for the waterproof shower liner on the back.
2. Be Selective About What Is On Display
Bathrooms are full of eye-sore items, but those are not the items that need to be out on display! Only put out the bath salts in cute packaging, the *nice* toiletry bag, the cool girl candles — all the aesthetic things. Plus, it costs zero dollars to hide the ugly items and display the cute ones. Mix those in with some sneaky concealed storage ideas (check out this post on creative ways to conceal the ugly bathroom items we all have), some faux plants, and BAM! Perfectly curated bathroom styling that is also practical.
3. The Tissue Box Holder
Seems extra. Maybe it is. But I think we can all agree that the below tissue box pictured atop the toilet looks a whole that better than those bonkers neon aquatic floral designs from the bulk tissue box packages at Co$tc0… I got this rattan one from Simons, but there are loads of cute options on Etsy that are also worth checking out. (Cognac leather? Yes please.)
4. Put Soaps And Shampoos Into Amber Glass Bottles
Our hand soap, our bathroom cleaner, our toilet refresher spray (recipe here), and our shampoos are in amber glass bottles. You can ‘I Spy’ them all over the place. These are so much cuter and cohesive looking than all the different packaging competing against each other like your bathroom is an aisle at the grocery store with loud branding to win your attention. This isn’t a grocery-store aisle. This is your bathroom. And you don’t need wild packaging yelling at you from every surface while you’re just trying to wash your hands. Get off my back, L!ster!ne.
5. Use Baskets To Categorize And Conceal Clutter
Last but not least, my final small bathroom styling tip is to use baskets to conceal all the mess — especially when that small bathroom has no closed storage! All the bathroom essentials — your hair straighter, razor blades, extra body lotion, first aid kits, towels, etc. — can be overwhelming to look at all the time when you don’t have nice closet doors to hide it all behind. Pick out cute, appropriately sized baskets to hold all the jumbled items while keeping them categorized in a logical manner.
Moral of the story: don’t just a bottle of soap on the counter; make it a cute bottle of soap. Don’t just put up a shower curtain; make it a shower curtain that *counts*. Ya dig? Picking out cute homewares to begin with means you barely even have to try when it comes to styling because everything will automatically look curated and intentional with no real effort your part!
Not a tip, but bonus information:
IKEA, Wayfair, H&M, Simons, online secondhand shopping, and thrift stores were my friends when it came to finding just about all the items you see outfitting this bathroom. Baskets, towels, basically everything you need in a bathroom can get really expensive. We managed to do it in a low-budget way by taking advantages of sales, price-comparing, and buying secondhand wherever possible.
