Small bathrooms offer big payoffs

Its a small room that gets a lot of use.

The hall bathroom represents a design challenge: How much style can you fit in 40 square feet?

But that little room also could be an appealing starting point: a remodeling project small enough to be affordable and still look stylish or even luxurious.

The hall bathroom also can be a test of DIY skills without overwhelming the family handyman. (Just remember that its OK to enlist a professional when needed, and some things need city permits.)

Bathroom remodels continue to be a hot item, report industry experts. As the economy continues to recover, homeowners keep up the trend of updating their houses instead of moving.

All the [remodeling] business is really coming up, says Harry Headrick, owner of Expert Design & Construction in Rancho Cordova, Calif. The last four years, bathroom [projects] really became a lot more popular as peoples budgets obviously were a lot tighter.

The reason people are tackling the bathroom especially the powder room or small hall bathroom is its manageable, says Sarah Fishburne, Home Depots trend and design director. Its a weekend project or a couple of weekends that you can tackle yourself. Products are ever-evolving to make it simpler, too.

But these little rooms represent a design challenge namely, size. Its small and cant get bigger. Often, the hall bathrooms position in the house, squeezed between other rooms, prevents expansion.

A typical hall bath with shower measures 5 feet by 8 feet; with a bathtub, its a few square feet more. Throw in the toilet and vanity, and thats one cramped space.

The trick is to make the room look more spacious without knocking down walls.

See original here:
Small bathrooms offer big payoffs