The guest bathroom turned out so much cuter with just a few simple updates. That small space proves that even rooms that feel stuck can shine with fresh paint, a new window treatment, a bit of art, and mixed accessories. Instead of ripping out the vintage yellow tile (and the scrabble-board floor), we embraced its charm. For about $50, the room became dramatically more appealing.
The space now has a casual Anthropologie-inspired vibe, which I don’t always manage to pull off—most of the credit goes to the original features like the white sink and the 1960s tile. Adding art and a few well-chosen accessories filled the empty spots and made a big difference. Here’s a before photo taken from the same doorway about a week after we moved in:
Goodbye, full-body-while-you’re-on-the-toilet mirror—definitely an improvement.
It’s a tiny room, so I wasn’t able to capture every angle. The print over the toilet is a page I tore from a back issue of Real Simple. I keep a flat box of potential art under the guest room bed, and that page’s colors and the water/fishing motif felt right for a bathroom. The frame came from Target and included a mat for $22.
I like how the softer white frame and the art balance the deeper, charcoal mirror and light fixture. Instead of competing, the art recedes and lets the painted mirror frame (Benjamin Moore Silhouette) become the focal point. The monogrammed hand towels are from West Elm—gifts from readers at book signings—and the lemon tea towel was another signing gift. They finally found a spot and add personality.
The guest bathroom has such a sweet look now. (Full disclosure: expect a bad joke about two monogrammed P towels—just ignore it.)
For those who asked about the shower opening: the room is compact, so this is the best view I could get. You can see the artwork across from the mirror a bit better—just a framed fabric remnant from U-Fab that I placed there.
The coral fabric connects with the brighter yellow tiles on the floor and echoes pops of yellow in the nearby guest room. Here’s a closer shot of the bottom of the shower so you can see the tile lip that keeps the curtain from sliding onto the sink. The shower curtain is polyester, like a fabric liner, so we just toss it in the wash. It’s held up well over six months of use.
This is the view from the guest room; the colors tie together nicely thanks to the blue window shade and the Turkish towel on the door, which look cute next to the polka-dot curtains.
It’s funny how an old yellow bathroom that once felt out of place now fits perfectly with the rest of the house.
Here’s what we did to pull the room together:
- Painted the walls, trim, and ceiling
- Frosted the window for privacy
- Made a window treatment from a bold fabric remnant
- Painted the mirror frame so it stands out
- Hung art above the toilet and across from the mirror
- Added thoughtful accessories to finish the space
Budget breakdown:
- Decorators White paint for walls, ceiling, and trim (Benjamin Moore): $25 (quart)
- Mirror paint (Silhouette by Benjamin Moore): $0 (already owned)
- Frame for art above the toilet: $22 (Target; art was a torn page from Real Simple)
- Coral fabric art in the mirror: $0 (fabric remnant and frame already on hand)
- Fabric remnant for window treatment: $4 (U-Fab by Iman)
- Window frosting film: $0 (already owned)
- Hand towels, plant, bath towel, and soap: $0 (already owned)
- Total spent: $51 (around $70 if you needed to buy mirror paint, towels, and frosting film)
That’s the power of styling and accessories—small investments, big impact.
