If you find yourself staring at a blank sheet of paper or scrolling through endless glossy bathroom pictures every time you try to sit down and start a plan for a bathroom remodel, Dallas remodeling professionals will tell you that you're certainly not alone. Getting started can be the most difficult part of the process, especially if you have no clue where you're supposed to jump in. Over our many years of experience with professional renovations, we've noticed a few things homeowners can do during the careful planning phase. And that's to make the overall process simpler and help ensure that the finished project meets or even exceeds your expectations at the final reveal of a bathroom remodel. Dallas homeowners, here are a few tips that will make it easier to get started and come up with the perfect plan for your bathroom remodel project.
Focus on Your Household's Priorities
It's pretty common for homeowners to get a little distracted by trends at first, especially when paging through flawlessly airbrushed photos of bathrooms that are roughly the size of a small airplane hangar. It's fun to fantasize about bathroom design, but remember to bring your focus back to what your family or household really wants and needs—both now and a few years into the future.
Families and individuals alike tend to grow and change over time, so it makes sense to give careful consideration to how you might need to use the space a couple of years from now when planning your bathroom remodel. Dallas households should consider including features that may not be so important at this point in time but will be advantageous to them in the future. For example, if you are approaching your golden years or may welcome a family member with reduced mobility into your home, consider including accessibility features that will help them navigate the room independently. Or, if you're thinking of having children soon, avoid a shower conversion and keep your bathtub in place—bathing a toddler in a shower can be very difficult, and most young families want access to a tub.
Decide on a Design Scheme
Coming up with the perfect design style isn't always easy, especially because there's such a wide selection of styles, colors, and finishing materials to choose from when planning a bathroom remodel. Dallas homeowners sometimes get overwhelmed by this part, and that's understandable—not everyone is an interior designer, but we all want our homes to be beautiful and reflect our unique personalities. If you ask yourself a few pointed questions—and give yourself honest answers—the right design scheme is much easier to work out.
There are no right or wrong answers to these questions, of course, but they can help you identify your specific priorities so you can aim for a design that will make you happy and meet the needs of your household. Here are a few things to ponder while making your Dallas bathroom remodel plan:
- What style would complement the existing interior design of your home?
- How do you want to combine colors for a pleasing palette? (The 60-30-10 trick is a good way to think about your color scheme if you're not sure what direction you want to take: about 60% of your room is your main color, around 30% is a complementary secondary color, and the last 10% is a contrasting accent color)
- What's most important to you, aesthetic appeal or functionality and reduced maintenance? (You don't necessarily have to choose between the two, but there's often some trade-off involved between appearance and durability, so thinking about your preferences will help narrow your choices)
Include Storage Space
From toilet paper and towels to cosmetics and shampoo, there's a lot that needs to be kept within arm's reach in your bathroom so you and your household members can take care of your daily grooming routines. It may not be possible to add even more storage space if you're working with limited space, but at the very least, you should avoid reducing storage space during a bathroom remodel. Dallas residents who love a clean, crisp, minimalist look may be tempted to remove cabinets, and other storage options altogether—but you'll likely regret that decision when you've got bottles, grooming tools and other items spilling out of every nook and cranny with no proper place to store them.
Cabinets are a must-have for bathroom storage, but it doesn't have to stop with cabinetry during your bathroom remodel. Dallas homeowners should consider including other options as well, such as tiled cubbies in the shower, over-the-toilet shelving, hooks on the back of the door, and a narrow roll-out drawer for small items like cosmetics or jewelry. Adding a few additional storage places while carrying out a bathroom remodel, Dallas residents often find it helps the room feel less cluttered—and you'll still have everything you need on hand.
Don't Overlook the Finishing Touches
There's so much to think about during a bathroom remodel, Dallas homeowners sometimes decide to leave the smaller stuff like finishes until last, so there are fewer things to worry about. But those seemingly small details can actually have a big impact on the look of the room and may influence your design decisions. For example, cabinet hardware such as handles and drawer pulls may seem like insignificant afterthoughts, but they can make a surprising difference. Artwork is another big factor in the appearance of the room—you might find the perfect painting to hang in there after everything is said and done, and then wish you had chosen tile or paint that complements the colors in the art. Don't leave those so-called "tiny" details out of your plan when they could potentially make or break the overall design of your Dallas bathroom remodel.
