Depending on your budget, the bathroom layout may be an easy or difficult task. With a tight budget, it's unrealistic to expect to be able to move all your plumbing fixtures around. Plumbers' fees make up a significant portion of your bathroom remodeling budget, so by leaving the layout as is, you're lowering the cost by lowering the amount of plumbing work that needs to be done. If you have the budget and the need to change your layout, then layout is your first design task.
Below are some sample "before and after" floor plans of bathroom remodeling projects. These rough drawings lack certain details such as wall thicknesses, but they help illustrate the importance of bathroom layout in making your renovation just right for you.
In figure 1, this master ensuite bathroom is accessed through the rather large dressing room and closet area, which is not being fully utilized by the homeowners. The bathroom is a bit cramped for the working couple, and the linen closet is awkwardly placed behind the toilet.
As you can see in figure 2, we can move the dividing wall 12 inches and reconfigure the closet space to create a more practical galley-style walk-in closet. At the same time, we expand the bathroom allowing for a new stand-up shower stall, double sink vanity and dedicated entrance. This project would not be inexpensive, as every bathroom fixture is being relocated, along with a considerable amount of new piping for the shower and vanity. In the next example, the layout changes can be achieved on a budget.
Figure 3 shows a master ensuite bathroom that is too large for the homeowners. They never use the massive disco-era jacuzzi tub, and meanwhile their closet is too small for them.
In figure 4, we see that by moving one wall and relocating the toilet just 6 inches, we expand the closet and add some much needed storage space. A generous 32 inch by 60 inch shower stall is installed in place of the tub. Even more closet space can be created by moving the wall and toilet further, but fixtures in the ceiling and accessibility issues for the shower door make this the most economical way to achieve what the homeowner needs.
Now that you have a sense of what you can accomplish with layout, the next two things you should consider are Bathroom Colors and Styles.