Simple life project: Tiny bathroom

Remember when I said we were looking for a house that was smaller and I called it "minimalism: downsizing the house"? I've decided that this is a really depressing title (with the use of the word 'downsizing'), and when talking about it to my dad caused him to offer me money, I decided to rename it the "simple life project." We want to live the kind of life where we can go on amazing trips and have extra money, and live in a smaller house with a ton of character (and, let's face it, fewer rooms to clean).

Here is our first hurdle: the teeny bathroom. Our (now rental) house in Phoenix has two decent-sized bathrooms. Our first house in The Springs had three bathrooms, including one quite sizeable one. Our new house has one bathroom, and it's the tiniest bathroom imaginable (except for those ones in boats or Japanese apartments where you have to shower over the toilet). It doesn't have a sink, but shares the one in the kitchen instead. There is a positive side, however; it has a clawfoot tub! Big enough for even tall people like us to take baths in! Plus, the rest of the house is simply oozing with charm, so I can deal.

 

Another big plus: there is a tiny room (bedroom? office?) right next to the bathroom that I'm turning into a bathroom extension/closet.

Here are some ideas I've been throwing around to make this project awesome without spending too much.

An awesome over-the-door vanity station - found on the Urban Outfitters site. It is really pretty, too!

This would go over the door between the bathroom and the kitchen, so Mike could use the mirror for shaving near the sink, and it would substitute for a bathroom mirror. It looks like it is adjustable for height (thank goodness).

For the bathroom extension, we have an inexpensive, simple vanity made cool by some new knobs and paint:

vanity makeover by jelitan on polyvore.com

Home Vanity - White : Target
$100 - target.com

Lucky Number Knob, Red
$8 - anthropologie.com

8 oz. Flame Yellow Interior/Exterior Paint Tester # 360B-6-360B-6U at...
$2.94 - homedepot.com

This would be useful for nighttime ablutions and makeup application. It would also easily convert to a laptop desk when necessary. I already have a chair to use with it, re-purposed from a table and chairs set that we won't have room for in the new place.

For extra closet space (minimal in a small house), I love this industrial garment rack, also from Urban Outfitters.

Sweet, right? It reminds me of Rhoda's apartment on the Mary Tyler Moore Show (nick at night people, I'm not that old).

And, last but not least, nothing brightens up a small space like a cool shower curtain. I really like these:

The "Care Shower Curtain" from CB2

 The "Woodland Garden" shower curtain from Urban Outfitters

I'm worried the latter might overwhelm a small space, so we'll probably go with the Care Curtain, though I love the idea of the Woodland Garden with a clawfoot tub! 

I'll be looking around for some options like these. The greatest part is, because we are saving so much on rent, a few new items don't even stretch the budget!

Any other suggestions?