Small Bathroom Remodel Ideas for Older St. Louis Homes (Where Space Is Tight)

If you own an older home in St. Louis — Webster Groves, Kirkwood, University City, Maplewood, the Central West End, parts of South City — you already know the challenge. The home has incredible character, original woodwork, real hardwood floors. And bathrooms the size of a closet.

We’ve been remodeling bathrooms in older St. Louis homes for years, and the same constraints come up over and over: 5×7 footprints, awkward plumbing locations, original cast iron drains buried in plaster, ceilings that slope in second-floor baths, and the constant question — “how do we make this feel bigger without adding square footage we don’t have?”

The good news: with the right design choices, a small bathroom in an older home can be more functional and more beautiful than the standard-size builder-grade bathroom in a newer subdivision. Here’s how we get it done.

First: Understand What You’re Working With

Before you start picking tile, you need to understand your home. Older St. Louis homes have constraints that newer homes don’t — and the constraints drive smart design decisions.

Original plumbing: Many homes built before 1970 still have galvanized steel supply lines and cast iron drains. They might be working fine today, but if we’re opening up walls, it’s almost always worth replacing them. Galvanized lines corrode from the inside and your water pressure is probably already compromised.

Wall thickness: Older homes often have lath-and-plaster walls that are thicker than modern drywall. That can actually help you — there’s room for built-in niches, recessed medicine cabinets, and shower shelving that wouldn’t fit in a 2×4 stud wall.

Floor framing: Some older homes have undersized joists or knob-and-tube wiring still running through bathroom walls. Both need to be addressed during the remodel — and both can be hidden cost surprises if your contractor doesn’t inspect carefully upfront.

Layout limitations: In a small footprint, you usually can’t dramatically change the layout without major plumbing relocation. The real design wins come from making the existing footprint feel bigger, not from rearranging it.

Now let’s get into what actually works.

1. Replace the Tub with a Curbless Walk-In Shower

This is the single biggest visual and functional upgrade you can make in a small bathroom. A standard alcove tub takes up roughly 15 square feet of floor space — a huge percentage of a 5×7 bathroom. Replacing it with a curbless shower opens the room up dramatically.

Curbless (no step-up to enter) is what makes it look modern and large rather than dated. The shower floor flows seamlessly from the bathroom floor, often using the same tile, which extends the visual floor space.

One caveat: If this is your only bathroom and you have young kids or plan to sell to families, keep at least one tub somewhere in the house. Resale data on tubeless homes is mixed.

2. Use Large-Format Tile (Yes, Really)

Counterintuitive, but true. Big tile makes a small bathroom look bigger. Small tiles create more grout lines, which the eye reads as visual clutter. Large-format tile (12×24, 24×24, or even 24×48) on the floor and shower walls creates fewer interruptions and makes the room feel more open.

If you love subway tile or hex floor tile (and we get it — they’re classic for a reason in older homes), use them as accents rather than the primary surface. A subway tile shower wall with large-format flooring works beautifully. So does hex tile in just the floor with simple large-format walls.

3. Float the Vanity

A wall-mounted (floating) vanity makes the floor visually continue underneath it. Even when there’s actually only six inches of clearance, that visible floor space tricks the eye into reading the room as larger.

Floating vanities also let you tuck a basket or towels underneath, run nice lighting, and avoid the awkward dead space that typical floor-to-ceiling vanities create. Just make sure the framing behind the wall can support the weight — older walls with lath-and-plaster sometimes need reinforcement.

4. Trade the Standard Mirror for a Statement Piece

The builder-grade rectangular mirror plastered above the sink is doing nothing for your bathroom. A large round mirror, an arched mirror, or a vintage-frame mirror gives the room a focal point and makes it feel intentionally designed rather than just functional.

Bigger is usually better — a mirror that’s wider than the vanity below it visually expands the space. We’ve put 36″ round mirrors above 30″ vanities and the proportions look great.

5. Build Niches Into the Walls

In older homes, the wall cavities often have room for serious built-in storage. Recessed medicine cabinets, built-in shower niches, and inset shelving above the toilet all add storage without taking floor space.

Recessed shower niches in particular are a small detail that makes a huge difference — no wire shower caddy hanging over the showerhead, just clean built-in shelves at the right height. Make them deep enough for actual shampoo bottles (4–6 inches), not the shallow ones you sometimes see.

6. Pick One Statement, Not Five

The most common small-bathroom mistake is trying to make every element interesting. Patterned floor tile, patterned wall tile, statement vanity, statement mirror, statement lighting, statement hardware — and suddenly the room is visually exhausting.

Pick one or two things to be the stars: maybe the floor tile and the vanity. Everything else stays simple and lets the stars shine. White subway tile, simple lighting, classic hardware — these aren’t boring choices, they’re the foundation that makes statement pieces work.

7. Use Vertical Space

Small bathrooms have one resource you haven’t used: height. Tall narrow cabinets between the toilet and the wall, full-height shower tile that draws the eye up, vertical-pattern wallpaper or paneling, and tall narrow mirrors all make ceilings feel higher.

In second-floor bathrooms with sloped ceilings — common in older two-story homes — embrace the slope rather than fighting it. Tile up into the slope, install a skylight if structural conditions allow, or use the lowest portion for built-in storage.

8. Pocket Doors Where the Swing Is a Problem

A standard hinged door takes 9 square feet of swing space. In a 5×7 bathroom, that’s 25% of the room you can’t use for anything else.

Pocket doors slide into the wall and free up that floor space entirely. They’re also a nicer aesthetic for an older home than a barn door (which we’d avoid in most older St. Louis homes — barn doors can feel too modern-farmhouse for a 1920s craftsman or 1940s brick bungalow).

Installing a pocket door requires opening up the wall, so it’s only practical during a full remodel. But if you’re already doing the remodel, it’s almost always worth it.

9. Match the Style to the Home

This one’s design philosophy more than technique. Older St. Louis homes have a vocabulary — woodwork, doors, trim, original tile in the rest of the house. Your bathroom should feel connected to the home’s era, not like a transplant from a 2024 spec house.

That doesn’t mean you have to do a period reproduction. A modern bathroom in an older home can be stunning. But the materials, proportions, and details should feel like they belong. Brass and brushed nickel both work in older homes. Chrome can read more 1990s. Black hardware is having a moment but can feel jarring against original woodwork — proceed carefully.

10. Don’t Forget the Trim

Older homes have beautiful baseboards, door casings, and crown molding throughout. When the bathroom has thin builder-grade trim, it looks disconnected from the rest of the home.

Match the bathroom’s trim to the rest of the house. It’s a small expense (a few hundred dollars in materials, more in labor for fitting custom profiles) but it makes the bathroom feel like it always belonged.

What This Costs in St. Louis

Realistic 2026 pricing for a small bathroom remodel in an older St. Louis home:

• Cosmetic refresh (new fixtures, paint, lighting, vanity, no tile work): $8,000 – $15,000
• Standard small remodel (tile, vanity, fixtures, new shower, no plumbing relocation): $18,000 – $32,000
• Full small bathroom remodel (curbless shower, custom built-ins, plumbing updates, premium tile and fixtures): $30,000 – $55,000

Older home surprises typically add $2,000–$5,000 to any of these tiers — galvanized pipe replacement, knob-and-tube rewiring, subfloor repair, framing reinforcement.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does a small bathroom remodel take?

Typically 3–5 weeks for a full remodel. Cosmetic refreshes can wrap in 1–2 weeks. Older homes sometimes run longer if surprises come up behind the walls.

Can you remodel a bathroom without changing the layout?

Yes, and in older homes we often recommend it. Keeping the toilet, sink, and shower in their existing locations dramatically reduces cost (no plumbing relocation) and lets you put more budget into finishes.

Will a remodel mess up my home’s original character?

Not if it’s done well. The goal is to remove what’s wrong (1980s mauve tile, water-damaged drywall, dated fixtures) while respecting what makes the home special. Original features worth saving — antique medicine cabinets, vintage built-ins, real hardwood floors — can often be restored rather than replaced.

Do small bathrooms add value at resale?

Yes, especially in older homes where buyers expect outdated bathrooms and a renovated one stands out. A well-done small bathroom remodel typically recovers 60–75% of its cost at resale, plus makes the home sell faster.

What’s the most common mistake?

Picking finishes from photos without seeing them in your actual bathroom. Tile colors look completely different under your home’s lighting than under showroom lighting. Always bring samples home before committing.

Let’s Look at What’s Possible in Your Bathroom

Every older home is different. The 5×7 bathroom in a 1925 craftsman has different bones than the 5×8 bathroom in a 1955 brick ranch. The right design depends on what’s behind your walls, what your home calls for, and what you actually want out of the space.

Covenant Contracting offers free in-home bathroom consultations across the St. Louis metro — Webster Groves, Kirkwood, University City, Maplewood, Ballwin, Chesterfield, and surrounding areas. We’ll measure, look at your plumbing and framing, talk through what you want, and put together a real design and budget.

Request Your Free Bathroom Remodel consultation Or call (314) 282-1991 to schedule directly.