How to Create a Luxury Bathroom on a Budget

With spring in the air, you might have a hankering to renew a dated bathroom in your home. But if inflation has reduced your renovation funds, don’t get discouraged; you can still transform your bathroom into a luxurious oasis on a smaller budget.  

As experienced tile contractors, we’ve helped many clients bring their dream bathrooms to life, and along the way, we’ve collected a few tricks on achieving a luxury bathroom for less! So, if you’re ready to renovate your bathroom, we’ll cover some money-saving hacks that will uplevel your washroom without breaking the bank!

What’s Your Budget?

Before you spend anything to start your bathroom remodel, you want to have a frank conversation with your partner or a flooring contractor on how much money you can comfortably afford to spend on the project. 

Here are some things you should factor into your budgeting:

• If you’re using a tile contractor, get multiple quotes to see the true value of your project and determine which contractor you connect with.
• Research how much tiles and materials cost.
• The average bathroom renovation cost (in Canadian dollars) is:
• A small powder room runs about $2,800-$3,600.
• The primary bathroom costs around $6,800-$10,600+.
• A partial reno to your bathroom is around $1,000-$2,500.

Having a rough idea of costs helps you understand what your bathroom transformation will truly cost you and helps you figure out priorities, like new flooring over a new tub. 

Keep in mind that a full bathroom renovation could run you anywhere from $14,000 to $20,000, especially if you start getting into higher ticket items like plumbing, electricity, bathtub replacements and more. The good news is, you don’t have to spend that much to see a big difference. Keep reading, and we’ll show you cost-friendly ways to get the luxe look for less. 

Colour Scheme: Monochromatic

Coloured and patterned tiles are always more costly than plain colours like white, grey, or black. When homeowners envision a tranquil, sleek new bathroom, more often than not, they picture a white space. So if you plan on hiring a tile contractor, you can shrink your tile cost with white or neutral tiles.

Pro Tip: Base your bathroom design around a neutral tile and add a colour or patterned tile to infuse the space with a touch of character. 

• Trending: White and grey are hot colours, perfect for your bathroom.

Bathroom Accessories: Spa-Inspired

If you’re craving that spa look for your bathroom but your budget is restrictive, then make the most of your finances by upgrading your bathroom accessories. These bathroom accessories upgrades will give you the most bang for your buck:

• Switch to a low-flow or rain-style shower head for a spa vibe.
• Switch to sleek new soap dispensers, toothbrush holders, and containers.
• Upgrade to a stylish new faucet.
• Switch out your bathroom cabinet handles and hardware for something fresh and modern.

Pro Tip: Try gold if you want something trendy when replacing your fixtures. Otherwise, you can never go wrong with nickel or chrome if you want something that blends in.

• Trending: Gold accents are all the rage.

Bathroom Walls: Paint or Wallpaper

You can immediately update the look of your bathroom walls with paint or patterned wallpaper. If you want to create a luxe bathroom rich in character, opt for nature-inspired wallpaper; otherwise, you can never go wrong with a fresh coat of paint!

Pro Tip: If you plan on painting your bathroom walls, try creating a feature wall with a couple of framed pictures.

• Trending: Cool blues, light pinks, grey, white, or seafoam greens are all popular colour choices.

Spa-Like Ambiance: Bring Nature Indoors With Plants

The hottest bathroom trend is relatively cheap: we’re talking plants. Bring nature indoors with house plants as they make your bathroom serene and inviting. Plus, you can find great plants on a budget. So, if your end goal is a spa-like washroom, get your tile contractor to install only white tiles and finish the space with house plants.

Pro Tip: Mix and match house plant holders with hanging and freestanding planters.

• Trending: Make your plants stand out with geometric shaped or gold-dipped planters.

Bathroom Floors: Affordable Tiles

If your bathroom floor is an eyesore and you have no choice but to rip it up and replace it with something new, stick with inexpensive plain tiles. Some of the most affordable tiles you can buy are white porcelain tiles—perfect for bathrooms. 

Porcelain is on the lower end of flooring costs, it’s water-resistant and hardwearing, making it an ideal choice for your space. Plus, white is clean and perhaps the most popular colour for a bathroom. 

Because porcelain is so affordable, you may even be able to splurge for large-format tiles if you have a small bathroom or powder room, as it will make the space appear larger.

If you opt for white tiles, another way to add interest to your bathroom is by mixing and matching different tile shapes. For instance, your floor could be hexagon tiles, while the wall combines subway and square tiles, giving your room texture. 

Pro Tip: Installing tiny tiles like hexagon-shaped tiles is a challenging DIY project. If you can afford it, it’s worth hiring a tile contractor to do it right the first time, on time, and quickly versus doing it yourself. 

• Trending: White tiles are always popular, but another huge trend is hexagon-shaped tiles.

High-Impact Look: Tile Rug

If you’ve got a tile contractor coming in to help with your bathroom renovation, then there’s one way you can uplevel your “plain white” floor tiles to achieve a high-impact look: get them to install a tile rug. A tile rug is a small rectangular “rug” that breaks up neutral tiles with a mosaic or patterned tile. 

Pro Tip: Plain tiles are more affordable than mosaic tiles when you buy them from a hardware or tile store, but you can get them for even less by shopping at a liquidation or discount flooring store. 

• Trending: Geometrics, mosaic, and black and white patterns are trending choices for your tile rug.

Bathroom Vanities: Upcycle

Chic-looking bathroom vanities are expensive to buy in store, but you can achieve the look you want with a bespoke vanity. Even if you aren’t handy, you can buy an upcycled piece of furniture for a fraction of the price of a brand-new vanity—plus, you’re supporting a person/small business vs. big business! Many pieces of furniture, like a dresser, can easily be converted into a vanity. 

Pro Tip: Upcycled furniture can be found on buy-and-sells, flea markets, or liquidation stores, so shop around until you find the perfect one. 

• Trending: Bespoke furniture is in, just make sure the colour matches your space and is on trend (e.g., neutrals, or seafoam green).

Upgrade Your Bathroom on a Budget

You can update the look and feel of your bathroom in many ways without breaking the bank. Mix and match some of these design ideas and you’ll achieve a high-end renovation without the high cost or the elevated stress levels!

If you’ve got questions on maximizing your bathroom renovation on a budget, give the Brothers Flooring a call today, as we offer free consultations. We have 20+ years of experience and are confident we can help bring your vision for your ideal bathroom to life.