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How to Paint a Bathroom - Bathroom Paint Advice | Little Greene

Close-up of a dark green paneled wall painted in the shade 'sage green'.

Painting a Bathroom

When selecting a shade for your bathroom, consider shades that exude tranquillity and serenity so you can create a haven within your home. To create a scheme that provides you with a calm retreat, use colours with warm undertones that add a comforting feel to a space.

Whether you are painting over an existing finish or creating a completely new bathroom scheme to accompany fresh furnishings, Little Greene provides durable finishes to ensure your walls remain beautiful in a space that often experiences condensation and frequent cleaning.

Here, we explore some inspiring schemes to help you plan your bathroom decorating project and offer advice on how to best paint a bathroom.

How to Paint a Bathroom

1. Choose your paint colour and finish

The best place to start when choosing colours for your bathroom scheme is by ordering a complimentary Little Greene colour card on our website. Here you can browse our complete curated colour palette, which presents timeless historic neutrals like Portland Stone and French Grey alongside bolder, more contemporary shades, such as Livid, Giallo and Hicks’ Blue. For colour inspiration, explore our gallery, or read our bathroom paint ideas below.

For painting bathroom walls, we recommend our low-sheen, fully washable paint finish, Intelligent Eggshell. Available in all Little Greene colours, this subtle and elegant finish will protect your bathroom walls from moisture, stains and everyday wear and tear. Or if you want to create contrast with a high sheen finish, consider Intelligent Satin or Intelligent Gloss, which are both superb hardwearing paints for a bathroom transformation that will last.

2. Prepare your space

Before painting your bathroom, you will need to complete a few preparation steps. Start by cleaning and de-greasing the surfaces you are painting with sugar soap and rinsing with clean water. Fill any cracks or imperfections, allow to dry and sand to an even surface. Thanks to Intelligent Grip™ technology, our Intelligent Paints do not usually require thorough sanding, unless you are painting aged oil-gloss paint. Just make sure the surfaces are clean, dry and stable before you move to the painting stage.

3. Paint your bathroom

Once you are satisfied with the condition of your bathroom walls and woodwork, you are ready to begin painting. Our Intelligent Paints have a built-in primer, so there’s no need to prepare the surfaces with a coat of primer beforehand. Simply apply the first coat of your chosen finish and allow it to dry for at least 1-2 hours before applying the second and final coat. If you are using Intelligent Gloss, you may need to wait up to four hours between coats. For a step-by-step guide to painting a wall, read our advice piece.

Bathroom Paint Ideas

Bathroom with walls, bathtub and panelling painted in various shades of Rolling Fog, a collection of neutral brown paints.

Soothing neutrals

Bathrooms are often smaller, functional rooms with little natural light. Selecting brighter tones or light neutrals will draw light into the room and help to create the feeling of more space.

Termed the ‘classic neutrals’, warm, refreshing tones such as ‘Rolling Fog’ and ‘Mushroom’ can be used in place of whites and greys for a restful ambience and are often the best bathroom paint colours for those with more simple decor.

Explore neutrals

Bathroom with a freestanding bathtub and a black wall featuring two large windows and a chandelier wall light in between.

Single colour schemes

For a finish with immediate impact and a touch of opulence, opt for an all over colour using a deep, moody hue like ‘Lamp Black.’

The strength of the colour will provide a sophisticated scheme that can be complemented with white porcelain and high-shine accessories.

Discover Lamp Black

Bathroom with paneled off-white (Flint) walls and a contrasting deep blue ceiling with a bathtub and chair by the window.

Colour highlight

Colour blocking is a simple, contemporary way to introduce colour to a small space, without it being overwhelming. Pair contrasting shades for an interesting combination and a striking finish that really frames the features of a space.

Consider experimenting with the proportions of your bathroom by painting the ceiling using a bold shade, such as 'Deep Space Blue', to draw focus to the height of the room.

Shop this look

Bathroom with two-tone wall decor, featuring Poppy Trail pink floral wallpaper above and a mustard colour paint below.

Pair wallpaper and paint

Wallpaper can be used in well ventilated bathrooms to add texture and pattern. Each Little Greene wallpaper design is accompanied by three complementary paint shades, which you can find online and in our wallpaper books.

Here the flamboyant floral paper, Poppy Trail - Masquerade is paired with the coordinating light pink, Masquerade, and the contrasting Yellow-Pink for an alluring combination.

Explore this look

Choosing the right paint finish for your bathroom

Paneled bathroom with the upper wall painted in Aquamarine and lower wall in dark green with a white sink and round mirror.

Our Intelligent paints offer an unrivalled combination of beauty and durability. These paints are easy-to apply, quick-drying and have almost no odour, meaning you can complete your decorating quickly and enjoy your finished project sooner. Our Intelligent bathroom paints are up to 15 times tougher than ordinary household paints.

Our Intelligent Paints are:

Water-based
Fully washable
Extremely tough
Certified child-safe
Long-lasting
Quick-drying (2-4 hours)

Both Intelligent Eggshell and Intelligent Matt Emulsion are available in the full Little Greene colour palette and are available in tin sizes of a quart and a gallon.

Bathroom with a freestanding bathtub and a dark grey (Urbane Grey) wall to the left and a light grey (Inox) wall to the right.

Intelligent Matt Emulsion

The perfect choice for your bathroom wall paint, Intelligent Matt is a completely washable finish, suitable for walls in well ventilated rooms.

It is matte and can be used on both walls and ceilings, so you won’t require multiple finishes for your project.

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A bathtub in front of a wall with the lower half in a muted pink (Blush) and the upper wall in grey (Gauze - Dark).

Intelligent Eggshell

For small rooms where steam is a factor to consider, we would recommend using Intelligent Eggshell for painting walls and woodwork, due to its long lasting, extremely-tough qualities. Formulated to resist moisture, Intelligent Eggshell is a superb paint for rooms which may have limited extraction or suffer from condensation.

Intelligent Eggshell provides a beautiful, low-sheen finish which is completely scrubbable, so you can remove any marks from the bathroom walls quickly and easily.

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