River Rental Reveal: The Bathroom
We’re back with another room reveal in our rental renovation series, and this week we’re tackling the tiniest room in the house: the bathroom. Don’t let the size fool you—this space was, hands down, the most labor-intensive project yet.
It’s also the one room that breaks our secondhand-only rule. While most of the decor was thrifted (of course), we opted for all-new linens—think fresh shower curtain, bath mats, and towels—and had to completely gut and rebuild the shower/tub combo.
⚠️ Note: The shower renovation isn’t included in our budget breakdown since this series focuses on secondhand and budget-friendly upgrades. But if you’re curious about the shower demo and install process, drop a comment below! We’d love to share a step-by-step in a future post.
The Process
After the shower was handled, we got to work on the rest of the space.
We painted the walls our go-to bright white: Chantilly Lace, and brought in our accent color, Olympic Mountain, for the vanity base, door, and trim. The original vanity got a glow-up with a DIY faux marble paint treatment (tutorial coming soon—stay tuned!). We did install a new sink and faucet, but salvaging the vanity itself helped us stay within budget.
We also repurposed the over-the-toilet cabinet that came with the house. A fresh coat of Carolina Gull (the same color we used in the secondary bedroom) and some new knobs gave it an entirely new life. We also changed out the light in here to something more practical and aesthetic than the bare bulb that was previously in here.
Small Space, Big Impact
Because this bathroom is tiny, making it feel bright and open was the top priority. Swapping out the yellow shower surround for a crisp white one worked wonders. To maximize space, we splurged a little on a curved shower rod—it makes the shower feel significantly larger and was totally worth the upgrade.
While we wanted the shower to feel expansive, we also didn’t want it to become cold and unwelcoming. We opted to paint the walls above the shower surround green and kept the trim dark. This not only kept the shower warm and welcoming, but tied in other spaces in the house like the secondary bedroom.
After that, it was all in the details. A small wooden shelf, some secondhand art, and a few styling moments brought it all together.
The Reveal
Budget Breakdown
What We Already Had:
• Over-the-toilet cabinet
• Extra knobs
Secondhand Scores:
• Wooden shelf – $3 (Goodwill)
• Towel holder – $4 (Goodwill)
• River artwork – $5 (Goodwill)
• Tissue box cover – $2 (Goodwill)
• Silver tray – $1 (Goodwill)
New Necessities
• Wall hooks – $10 (Ace Hardware, $5 each)
• Wastebasket – $8 (Walmart)
• Toilet paper holder – $10 (HomeGoods)
• Bathroom mats (set of 2) – $12 (HomeGoods)
• Toothbrush holder – $8 (HomeGoods)
• Shower curtain – $20 (Walmart)
• Curved shower rod – $32 (Walmart)
💰 Total: $115
We’ve still got some exciting room reveals ahead—one of them is our most affordable transformation yet. Don’t forget to drop a comment and let us know:
💬 What do you love about this makeover?
💡 What would you have done differently?
Thanks for following along!
More soon. 🛁✨
