Stepping into a cramped bathroom can feel like squeezing into a phone booth. Most homeowners think they’re stuck with what they’ve got unless they’re willing to knock down walls. But HGTV designers have a secret weapon for making tiny bathrooms feel twice their size without major renovations. Their number one trick? Mirroring an entire wall. This simple yet dramatic change creates an instant illusion of doubled space that can transform even the most claustrophobic bathroom into something that feels open and airy.
Mirror an entire wall instead of using a small vanity mirror
When HGTV designers tackle tiny bathrooms, they almost always go big with mirrors. Rather than hanging a modest mirror above the sink, they cover an entire wall with mirror. This powerful visual trick instantly doubles the perceived space by reflecting the opposite wall, making the room appear twice as large. The effect works because our brains interpret the reflection as additional square footage. What was once a 5×8 foot bathroom suddenly feels like a 10×8 foot space. The transformation is immediate and dramatic, especially in bathrooms with windows, where natural light bounces off the mirrored surface.
The mirror wall strategy works particularly well when placed opposite a window or interesting architectural feature. The reflected light creates depth and dimension that standard walls simply can’t provide. Custom mirror installations can be pricey, but you can achieve similar results with larger wall mirrors mounted side by side. For maximum impact, experts recommend extending the mirror from countertop to ceiling. The vertical emphasis draws the eye upward, creating the illusion of higher ceilings. Some designers even incorporate backlighting around mirror edges to amplify the effect, adding a hotel-like luxury feel to even the smallest spaces.
Use glass shower doors or remove doors completely
Another game-changing trick HGTV designers swear by is replacing opaque shower curtains or frosted doors with clear glass options. Solid barriers visually chop up the bathroom and hide a significant portion of your square footage. By installing frameless glass shower doors, you maintain visual continuity throughout the entire space. The uninterrupted sightline makes the bathroom feel cohesive and open rather than segmented and cramped. Even small shower stalls benefit from this approach since the eye can travel through the glass rather than stopping at an opaque barrier.
For truly tiny bathrooms, some designers recommend taking this concept even further by eliminating shower doors entirely. A doorless walk-in shower with proper waterproofing and subtle drainage slopes can create a seamless, spa-like experience. This European-inspired approach requires professional installation to manage water containment, but the visual payoff is substantial. Strategic placement of rainfall shower heads and careful tile work can transform your shower area from a boxed-in afterthought to an integrated feature that enhances the overall sense of space. A proper wet room design might cost more initially but delivers major visual expansion.
Choose large scale tiles or patterns for visual expansion
Contrary to what many homeowners assume, HGTV designers typically avoid small tiles in tight spaces. The conventional wisdom suggesting tiny tiles for tiny rooms actually works against visual expansion. Small tiles create numerous grout lines that visually segment the space and draw attention to its limited dimensions. Instead, design experts opt for large-format tiles measuring 12×24 inches or larger. These substantial tiles create fewer grout lines and less visual interruption, allowing the eye to travel smoothly across surfaces without constant stops and starts.
The direction of tile placement matters significantly too. Designers frequently install rectangular tiles vertically on shower walls to emphasize height rather than width. This vertical orientation draws the eye upward, making ceilings feel higher than they actually are. For bathroom floors, laying larger tiles diagonally creates the illusion of expanded floor space. This diagonal placement tricks the eye into seeing more surface area than actually exists. Consider large format tiles in lighter shades that reflect more light, further enhancing the spacious feel. When budget allows, carrying the same tile from floor to ceiling on all walls creates a continuous, unbroken surface that maximizes perceived space.
Float your vanity and toilet for visual floor space
Watch any HGTV bathroom renovation and you’ll notice a recurring feature: floating fixtures. Wall-mounted vanities and toilets that don’t touch the floor create visible floor space underneath, significantly contributing to a bathroom’s perceived size. This small gap between fixtures and flooring creates continuous sightlines, allowing you to see more floor area at once. Our brains interpret this uninterrupted flooring as additional square footage, even when the actual dimensions remain unchanged. The visual trick is especially effective when combined with large floor tiles or continuous flooring materials.
Beyond the visual benefits, floating fixtures offer practical advantages that enhance the spacious feel. Wall-mounted vanities provide streamlined storage without bulky cabinets that protrude into precious floor space. Many floating vanities include clever organizational features that reduce clutter – another essential element for making small bathrooms feel larger. For maximum impact, designers often pair floating vanities with wall-mounted faucets, further minimizing counter footprints. The space-saving advantages extend to cleaning as well – the ability to mop underneath these fixtures without obstacles makes maintaining your bathroom easier, which naturally contributes to a more spacious feel.
Match floor and wall colors for seamless visual flow
One of the most counterintuitive but effective HGTV designer tricks involves creating visual continuity between floors and walls. When surfaces share similar colors or patterns, the eye doesn’t register where one surface ends and another begins. This blurring of boundaries makes the entire room feel more expansive and cohesive. Rather than creating distinct zones with contrasting colors, designers often select variations of the same hue for both horizontal and vertical surfaces. The reduced contrast eliminates visual stopping points that would otherwise segment the space and highlight its small dimensions.
This technique works particularly well with modern, monochromatic color schemes. A light greige or warm beige applied to both floors and walls creates a soft, enveloping effect that expands perceived space. For a more dramatic approach, designers sometimes opt for high-gloss finishes in deeper colors like navy or charcoal. The reflective quality of these finishes bounces light around the room, creating depth and dimension despite the limited square footage. When using darker colors, adequate lighting becomes even more critical – strategically placed sconces or ceiling fixtures ensure the space feels cozy rather than cave-like.
Install pocket doors or sliding barn doors to save space
Traditional swing doors consume valuable floor space in small bathrooms, with the average door swing requiring about 9 square feet of clear area. HGTV designers frequently replace these space-hogging doors with pocket doors that slide into the wall cavity when open. This simple swap instantly frees up usable floor area while eliminating the awkward dance around an open door. The cleared floor space contributes significantly to the bathroom’s perceived size, allowing for easier movement and creating space for additional storage or fixtures that wouldn’t otherwise fit.
For homes where pocket doors aren’t structurally feasible due to plumbing or electrical within walls, sliding barn doors offer a stylish alternative. These doors slide along an external track mounted above the doorway, requiring only wall space adjacent to the opening rather than floor space within the bathroom. Modern sliding door hardware comes in various styles from rustic to contemporary, allowing this functional choice to become a design feature. Both pocket and barn doors often incorporate frosted glass panels that permit light transmission between rooms while maintaining privacy, further enhancing the airy, open feeling that makes small bathrooms feel larger.
Maximize vertical storage with tall, narrow units
HGTV designers consistently emphasize the importance of thinking upward in small bathrooms. While floor space may be limited, most bathrooms have untapped vertical real estate waiting to be utilized. Tall, narrow storage units that extend toward the ceiling draw the eye upward while providing substantial storage capacity without consuming valuable floor area. This vertical emphasis not only solves practical storage needs but also creates the illusion of higher ceilings and more generous proportions, particularly when these units are installed from floor to ceiling.
Strategic placement of these vertical storage elements makes all the difference in small bathrooms. Designers often tuck tall cabinets into otherwise wasted corners or narrow spaces between fixtures. Custom built-ins that utilize the full height of the room maximize every available inch. For rental properties or situations where permanent modifications aren’t possible, freestanding tall bathroom cabinets with open shelving on top create similar visual effects. The key is selecting units with the right proportions – too wide and they’ll overwhelm the space, but properly sized narrow units add architectural interest while solving storage challenges without visually cramping the room.
Create a focal point with a statement feature
Perhaps the most surprising trick HGTV designers use to make small bathrooms feel larger is creating a bold focal point. Rather than playing it safe with neutral everything, they often introduce one dramatic element that captures attention and distracts from the room’s dimensions. This counterintuitive approach works because a standout feature gives the eye something specific to focus on rather than registering the overall size limitations. Common focal points include a dramatic vanity, statement light fixture, bold wallpaper on a single wall, or an unusual mirror shape that serves as functional art.
The psychological effect of a well-chosen focal point transforms how we perceive space. When entering a bathroom with a stunning pendant light or eye-catching tile pattern, visitors register that feature first rather than noting the room’s modest square footage. This distraction technique works particularly well when the focal point incorporates elements that enhance spaciousness, such as reflective materials or vertical lines. The trick is maintaining balance – one statement piece creates interest without overwhelming, while multiple competing features can make the space feel cluttered and smaller. When selecting your focal point, ensure it complements your overall design while providing enough visual interest to draw and hold attention.
These HGTV designer tricks prove that expanding your bathroom doesn’t require moving walls or major renovations. By implementing strategic visual illusions like mirror walls, glass partitions, and floating fixtures, you can dramatically alter how spacious your bathroom feels without changing its actual dimensions. Start with one technique that fits your budget and style, then add others as time and resources allow. You might be surprised at how transformative these professional design strategies can be, even in the smallest bathroom spaces.
