My Bathroom Design // What Planning Goes in to a Bathroom Makeover?

It’s less than one week until we finally get the keys to our new home, but what have I got planned for our new bathroom design? In fact, what planning goes in to a bathroom makeover? See below for my tips and advice…

What planning goes in to a bathroom makeover?

Renovating a new bathroom can seem a little overwhelming, that’s why I want to share with you my advice from what I have learned so far whilst planning my bathroom makeover. Of course, we all want to delve straight in to decorative, cosmetic design, but there’s a lot more planning involved that needs to be considered before you can get to the fun part.

My Bathroom Design…

When I started planning my bathroom design, I broke the renovation plans in to three sections to help me to comprehend the scale of what needs to be done, and how it will be done. These three bullet points helped me break it down, hopefully they can help you too!

• How do you want it to look & feel?
• What can you afford to spend?
• When do you want it completed by?

This was a good starting point to work from so I knew exactly what needed to be considered. These three bullet points also consequence each other; for example, you may have to compromise on how you want it to look and feel if things can be too timely or costly. And likewise, if you don’t have a strict time scale you may be able to consider adding a few more time-consuming design elements. It goes in a circle…

Top Tip: Make a spider graph/spreadsheet to help you determine what needs to be done, and how you want things to pan out…

How do you want it to look or feel?

It’s important when designing a bathroom that you really consider what you want from the overall outcome. Do you want it to be a relaxing, tranquil space that you can reside to? Do you need it to be efficient and productive for a large household? Perhaps both of these, and more!

Personally, I am aware that the our new bathroom is particularly small, that’s why it’s important to really focus on storage solutions to make it functional. I’m also very keen on creating a space that’s a little out of the ordinary but keeping a calm and relaxing environment. Everyone has their own unique style (including you), so make sure you really invest time in to figuring out what you want.

Here’s a sneak peak of the tiles I have my beady eyes on for our bathroom…

Top Tips for planning your bathroom makeover:

• Always order samples! Tiles can look very different online than in person. If you’re going for a pattern, you will want to know how big it’s going to be…
• Create a mood board/presentation document so you can see everything in one place. This will help you determine if your ideas are cohesive.
• Research for inspiration! Head over to Pinterest, Instagram or even Google to look for inspiration pictures. If you’re stuck with deciding what you want, this will help you realise what you’re most drawn to…

What can you afford to spend?

Ahh yes money. The thing that no one likes to talk about. Budgeting is one of the most important things you need to focus on throughout the whole design process when planning your bathroom makeover. It really can be make or break if you don’t list/spreadsheet your spendings. You need to avoid any unexpected panic and note down all costs that you intend to spend.

List everything you need to purchase to give yourself a rough guide or figure of how much you are going to spend, and to be safe, add on an extra 20% for the unexpected expenses (trust me, they will arise!).

Here’s what you need to consider when budgeting for your bathroom renovation:

• How much will you be spending on materials, products and cosmetic items? List these down or input them in to a spreadsheet.
• Always get at leats three quotes from builders/contractors to do the work. You want to ensure you’re getting the best bang for your buck.
• Are you going to need to take some time off work? If so, how long? And how will this impact your income?

When do you want it completed by?

We’re in a very lucky position because we have parents (with a bathroom!) who are more than happy for us to kip in with them for a while, but perhaps you’re in a different position?

In an ideal world, of course we all want renovations to be completed as swiftly as possible, but this isn’t always the case. Just incase there’s anything that crops up out of the unexpected, keep in mind the following:

• If the renovation goes overtime, will this increase labour costs?
• Do you need to make arrangements for somewhere to stay whilst the renovation is taking place? If so, can the time frame be adaptable to your circumstances?
• Is there an event that it needs to be completed before? Perhaps a birthday, anniversary or holiday that you have booked in…

I hope this post has helped you establish what planning goes in to a bathroom makeover, and how you can make things work most efficiently for you during your renovation.

I’m very much excited to finally move in and begin work on our new humble abode! Please don’t forget to follow me on Instagram to get all the latest updates and behind the scenes footage!

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All content and imagery curated by That’s so Gemma (Gemma Jayne Gear).

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