Guest Bathroom Makeover with Holiday Touches

We gave our 1970s guest bathroom a makeover...and added in some simple holiday touches, seasonal toiletries, and special scents throughout. Check it all out below.

It's funny...since we've owned this house for the last nine months, I feel like we've had more overnight guests than we ever did in our previous home (which we were in for several years). Something about having an actual guest bedroom and bathroom is probably a bit more appealing to family and friends, right? In our previous place, guests slept on our sons' Star Wars sheets in their room while the boys bunked with us. They also shared a bathroom with our kids. To say space was tight was not an exaggeration. I had always dreamt of a home where guests could have their own space and not feel like they were in the midst of our craziness...it was a complete bonus that this out-of-the-way guest bedroom came with its own bathroom, too. This is the first of our bathrooms (besides our half bath) to be taken out of its 1970s glory and into something that better fits our tastes. We didn't break the budget either...just a few cosmetic fixes, loads of fluffy white towels, and the most amazing natural soaps, scrubs, and lotions from a delightful small business that our guests can enjoy 'til their hearts' content. Check it all out below.

This space will probably not be a guest bathroom forever. We purchased this home with the intention and knowledge that one day one or both of my parents will be joining us here as they progress in age and physical abilities. However, for the time being, we knew that we would definitely take advantage of the extra space for hosting guests. This bedroom and bathroom was a huge selling feature since it is already handicap accessible...which is a must for my mom. When they do come for a visit, she really appreciates the features of this space. Above is a photo of it the day of our home inspection. We redid the floors in here before moving in...they're the vinyl wood floors that we have in the rest of the home (except bedrooms, where we kept the carpet).

I knew I needed that mirror to be gone, y'all. This is the bathroom that is closest to my office in our home so I kind of take advantage of it. And, well, when one utilizes the (ahem) toilet, one is watching oneself in the mirror. Awkward. So, we pulled off the mirror (and lighting fixtures) before painting.

We replaced the mirror with one we've had for our entire marriage.

It's been an entryway mirror in all of our homes at some point. 

But I am loving how it looks (and functions) in here...no more awkward mirror placement!

We did an inexpensive new light fixture, too. 

We hadn't planned on it, but the toilet broke (it was actually the only working toilet in the house at the time) when we had the flooring installed. So, this room got a new potty, too. Since it is a handicap accessible bathroom, there is a greater amount of space around the toilet. I added in a storage rack close to the toilet to cozy the space up a bit. Then I used an old wine crate, that I already had, above the toilet for toilet paper, hand towels, and guest soaps.

After having kids, we realized that towel bars aren't always the best for functionality...but hooks almost always guarantee that towels will actually get hung up. Also added a small stool for guests to place items they may need on. We installed a fun schoolhouse light fixture in this space in front of the shower.

More than all of the little makeovers in this bathroom, I think details make a space extra special for guests. I added some really incredible natural products from Wild Mountain Soaps for my guests to use. They have over 50 scents for their products...including some festive ones for the holidays, like this Peppermint Handmade Cold Process Bar Soap.

As cliche as it sounds, I really want the space to feel all hotel-ish for guests. 
I added in lots of travel-sized soaps from Wild Mountain Soaps here and there.
I once saw an episode of Oprah that mentioned how she was a guest in someone's home once...and they hadn't changed out the bath soap from a previous guest. I'm with Oprah on this one, y'all...nobody wants to use used soaps, right? 

I made sure to place a bar of the travel-sized soap in the shower, too...since guests may not be as inclined to use the ones around the bathroom. This is a bit of a clear signal to use this, right? ;) I also added a scrub, a loofah soap, and a solid shampoo bar into the shower toiletry area. I'm fascinated with the solid shampoo bar...my bald husband says it was made for guys like him! ;)

The Cranberry and Fig Sugar Scrub smells just like Christmas in a jar, y'all.  

And these smaller soaps I mentioned are sold in one set at the Wild Mountain site.

Shopping small is important to me this time of the year...after all, I'm a small business owner myself. This time of the year is a big deal for us. We can all support small businesses, like Wild Mountain Soaps, from the comfort of home, without needing to get out a wallet and credit card by using PayPal as a payment choice. PayPal has an option called One Touch that allows you to pay for items in your shopping basket without having to enter credit card or billing details...activate it here.

Wild Mountain Soaps would make excellent gifts this time of the year, too. 

We are loving all of their lovely peppermint products in this bathroom.

And to say I'm happy that I ordered two of these loofa soaps is an understatement.

This is such a cool product...the loofa is built into the soap! Loving mine.

Can't wait until my guests get to try this thing out, too!

A simple poinsettia adds a bit more holiday festiveness to the corner.

I made sure the peppermint lotion was out and within reach, too.

I ordered the Toasty Marshmallow one, too, as a gift for our mail lady.

It smells intoxicating, y'all! 

A holiday hand towel is a special touch for guests, too.

I always seem to lose my chapsticks when I travel, so I added a couple of extras in here for guests to grab if they need it. I think the little bag these come in from Wild Mountain Soaps is cute, too. 

I painted this piece of art work for our previous home.

It fit perfectly in here. 

Lots of fluffy white towels are in here for guests to enjoy, as well. My pet peeve in a hotel room is when I walk into the room we reserved for all four of us and there are only two sets of towels. If my guests are like me, they use one bath towel for hair and one for body...so I like to make sure there are more than enough towels for them to use. I also save the nicest, newest towels for this bathroom...all the threadbare ones get demoted to our bathroom (ha!).

Be sure to check out Wild Mountain Soaps for lots of great toiletries for both your guests and you...they're perfect for gifts, as well! Don't forget to shop small this season. 

Be sure to take advantage of PayPal's cool One Touch feature during your shopping, too. For bigger ticket items, you have the option to use PayPal Credit, which is based on your PayPal transaction history and gives you instant credit when shopping.

By choosing PayPal Credit as your payment choice, you can apply for credit during checkout, and where available, choose to use PayPal Credit’s Easy Payments option to spread the price of your purchase payments over time. Your PayPal Credit account will be linked to your PayPal account and you’ll see it as a payment option every time you checkout with PayPal. 

This holiday season, PayPal is also offering free return shipping called "Return Shipping On Us" on items up to $30 for up to 11 purchases.

Really happy with how this space came together!

You're welcome to be our guests any time, friends! ;)

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.

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