by Plainenglish

Created on: March 03, 2009

A bathroom should be a place of sanctuary. Somewhere to wind down at the end of the day and de-stress; an escape from the pressures of life, the piles of laundry and the kids!

Unfortunately, particularly if you are a one-bathroom house, with a whole family sharing this space it can all to quickly become cluttered and untidy. With regular buy one get one free offers on toiletries, it's easy to let clutter accumulate. A cheap way to spruce up your bathroom is to overhaul your cupboards, add extra storage where necessary and de-clutter!

- Start with your cupboards. Items on the surfaces of your bath, shower, windowsill or open shelves tend to be used regularly, while cupboards hide rarely used items. Often, the majority of these can be thrown away, leaving plenty of space to store the remainder. Keeping your surfaces clear will give a sense of space.

- Use the storage you have effectively. If you have open shelves, these can be perfect for storing neatly folded towels. Not only is this convenient but also adds softness and texture to the room. Use baskets on open shelving to organize and store toiletries, makeup, toilet rolls and bathroom cleaning products.

- If you need more storage opt for the tall, slim floor cupboards now available. These will maximize storage and minimize the amount of floor space taken up. If you have kids, a small blanket box can work well as it doubles up as a seat for bathing the kids a place to stash ugly plastic bath toys when not in use.

- Keep accessories to a minimum. If you are trying to achieve a particular look, it's tempting to keep on shopping until this look is achieved. Sometimes, however, a theme can be overdone, and this is when it becomes clutter. Sometimes, a few carefully chosen items look much better.

- Updating your bathroom's dcor can sometimes be expensive, especially if it involves changing the bathroom suite or tiles. If this is impractical, tone down the existing style with a more neutral paint color and with white accessories. If the room looks brighter, you're more likely to enjoy it and avoid cluttering.

- Add a large mirror. This can double the feeling of space in your bathroom and reflect light. The cheapest way to do this is to have a piece of mirror cut to fit perfectly on one wall. This really is a lot cheaper than buying a framed mirror and will give your bathroom a clean-lined appearance.

- Finally, keep tubs, toilets, basins and taps sparkly clean. With your cleaning products at hand, it doesn't take more than a few minutes each day to give them a quick once over and then a thorough clean once a week. Eco-cloths, which only require water, are excellent for polishing taps, mirrors and glass in moment.

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