I guess it depends on your vision of awful. It doesn't look so bad to me - I would just leave it until the full remodel.

I agree with Mei-Ling. Maybe paint it something less cottage-y than yellow? A cool, more modern color in keeping with the rest of the house.

I think I'd just paint the walls a cool color, maybe slate blue. Other than that, it looks pretty nice to me.

I would leave it until you're ready to do it completely. If you're really wanting a quick fix, I'd remove the light fixture and replace it with something a little simpler. Then, maybe remove the cabinet over the toilet. It'll "calm" the wall down a bit.

I'd go bold and bright with Mondrian as my inspiration. Repaint the cabinet doors of the vanity in various colors (bright red/yellow/blue/black and white) pick one of those colors for the walls as well. Add a slick modern light fixture or a vintage one. Replace the round mirror with a square one. And add a new slick looking modern medicine cabinet over the toilet. Can't really see the floor but maybe you can paint that too or add color coordinating rugs?

I would agree with k2yhe but take it one step further and remove all the wall fittings. Paint the walls a similar color to the units to make the space feel bigger and then add a simple mirror with a single small shelf underneath it on the wall over the sink. Use the shelf for a nice colored candle or vase to draw the eye to it and add a simple light fitting over the mirror. The towel rail could be placed to the right of the sink unit at a lower level and add a towel that matches the shelf display color. You are lucky that the sink and toilet are fairly neutral though, as the other stuff is much easier to fix / change.

The towel rod above the toilet looks odd. I would get a circular one and hang it to the right/above the sink.

While I agree somewhat with the other people on waiting, some paint wont break the budget and it'll make the space livable. I say go for it.

My suggestion: Paint the cabinet a charcoal grey

Switch the mirror for one with a frame (white, pewter, stained wood/or blonde wood or silver)

Remove the old medicine cabinet and get a new one from ikea (Godmorgon 1 or 2 door in high gloss white).

Go with a more modern light fixture. There's a great one at Home Depot (I have this in my bathroom - the HD photo doesn't do it justice

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-202275773/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053).

Paint the walls in a bold colour and/or stencil them a tone on tone pattern or a solid colour pattern. My preference would be doing a tone on tone yellow (mustard with a lighter yellow) but not everyone is a fan of yellow (Blues or greens would be nice as well). It would look nice in any colour. Just make sure the wall colour goes with the charcoal grey on the cabinet (or whatever colour you paint the vanity)

(http://www.cuttingedgestencils.com/).

Change the knobs on the cabinets (or keep them). Anthropologie has great knobs and since you only need 3, their prices wont kill you and you get fantastic knobs

http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/catalog/category.jsp?pageName=Knobs&popId=HOME-HARDWARE&navAction=push&isSortBy=true&navCount=30&pushId=HOME-HARDWARE-KNOBS&id=HOME-HARDWARE-KNOBS.

If you're looking for a good alternative to your floor tiles then you could use TrafficMaster Allure Milano Vinyl Plank. I also have this in my kitchen and bathroom. It's a vinyl floor that's in planks and isd a great colour. I've recieved a lot of compliments. It's 66.82US (48CAN) a case and covers 24sqft. Your bathroom doesn't look that big so you probably wouldn't need more than one or two. It comes in colours other than Milano but that's my favourite.

http://www.homedepot.ca/product/trafficmaster-allure-milano-6-inch-x-36-inch-vinyl-plank-24-square-feet-per/912882

By the way Ikea has a 24" bathroom vanity w/ 2 drawers in high gloss white or grey for $149 + Vitviken sink bowl $120 + Rorskar faucet $49.99 (total of $318.99+tax. It's not that expensive to switch out the vanity. Then buy yourself a couple of mosaic tiles (1ftsq) for $18ish each. You can cut them in half to create a 6" tile backsplash.

Hope this helps. You should let us know what you decide to do. The one thing I wish AT would do is post photos of completed projects people ask questions about.

Oh... any you could switch out the towel rod. If it's jsut for hand towels you could either replace it with a round one if you plan on only having 1 hand towel, or two round for 2 towels or a nice bar one that fits 2 hand towels.

It also looks like there's a window on the left hand side. You could add a small roman shade in a cool colour and/or add a film for more privacy

http://emmajeffsshop.co.uk/

I agree that getting rid of the cabinet & towel bar will clean it up so it isn't so busy. Maybe a nice graphic or abstract print there instead? I wouldn't replace the mirror or light until you are ready to do the full remodel. I have done this in my home - replacing bits & pieces thinking I liked the new bits & pieces. When it came time to gut, I wanted to start fresh so the money was wasted on those items. I would definitely paint the walls, I had a similar color in my bathroom when I moved in & it was one of the first things to go! I would consider painting the vanity base as well for a cheap temporary fix. I found some super cool cabinet pulls for a couple of bucks & painted out my white vanity a color called Mushroom by Martha Stewart at Home Depot. It's a nice brown toned gray & then I painted the walls a pale gray, added a white shower curtain & brought pops of color in through my towels, rugs & art. Good luck!

Oh, geez, this is not a bad bathroom at all! Yes, paint, peach is not 2011. But the fixtures are really pretty cool. Add some great towels, and a potted plant, and some smelly soap on a great soapdish and you are good to go.

Paint. Lose the towel rack and cabinet entirely (pretty print!) and replace the mirror with something that looks less generic. Finish with a pale blue. The light fixture and vanity will look less horrific until you can do a full remodel.

we have a tiny 1/2 bath in our mid century house. we remodeled it last year. you can see pics here.. http://1088churchill.blogspot.com/2011/03/bathroom-beforeafter.html

sounds like you are just updating for now, but maybe it will help for later :)

Not bad at all, at all... Paint & be done with it if you plan to remodel in the future. If the mirror isn't working for you, I'd suggest hanging it horizontally & mounting a small shelf beneath it (glass perhaps?) OR....just send it to me =]

Good luck & be sure to post *after* pics!

i would go for something cool, clean and vintage in keeping with the mcm house. i.e. vintage industrial a la
http://bungalowbungahigh.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/ny-times-photo-russell-groves-bath-2.jpg

some easy fixes:

- light grey/clean white paint.

-flip out the generic light fixture with vintage cage light (pair?) http://vintageindustriallighting.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/barn-lights-4-287-2.jpg

-change the cabinet pulls with vintage apothecary cabinet pulls in ceramic http://www.trocadero.com/stonegate/items/952375/en1.html

-labware cup, toothbrush holder http://remodelista.com/products/kimble-kimax-beaker-starter-pack, amber lab glass bottles for q tips, cotton balls http://www.digsshowroom.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=409_408&products_id=5075

-apothecary soapdish http://typewright.blogspot.com/2011/09/fixation-izolas-apothecary-style.html

-red carbolic soap http://puresoapworks.com/carbolic.htm

- pipe towel and matching toilet paper holder http://www.sweetspot.ca/SweetHome/renee_elliott/32769/off_the_rack/

-hinoki or bamboo bathmat

-hemp shower curtain.

if you feel REALLY adventurous you could also take down the cabinet above the toilet and install some reclaimed wood floating shelves http://www.flickr.com/photos/melongings/5352580683/ and get some vintage wire baskets for your towels, toiletries etc. http://winginiteveryday.blogspot.com/2010/07/vintage-wire-baskets.html ( i would go for the gym style ones with the numbers)

i forgot the most important part!

the medicine cabinet- go for something metal and vintage industrial like the one half way down the page with the mirrored back:

http://www.tchochkes.com/wordpress/home-tour-vanity-creates-nice-place-live-part-1/

How about taking a whole wall or the bottom half of a wainscotted one and decoupaging some period sheet music, Dick and Jane books, coloring books, cookbook, newspaper, maybe your own picture or story pages - copies or originals if you can find something not valuable? I'd make sure the pages were overlapped in a haphazard way or you could line them up. Be mindful of the pics if you use the: copy them in a large enough scale. Then, paint out the rest of the room in a color that goes with that bedroom or a more mid-century one. How about turquoise for the joyful-ness or yellow, red, or even a wonderful green apple? I'd take a color that matches the tones of the papers. Are they sepia? Now for the hardware. Why bother replacing it if you are just going to replace it again when you redo it? Leave it but get some really great knobs. I'd love to see a colored copy of the Dick and Jane storybooks the wall across from the toilet - instant bathroom reading!
Or wallpaper it. :). Good luck!

Get a large rectangular mirror - think as wide as the sink console and tall.

Replace light fixture.

Paint walls a cool color, like mid-grey.

Over the toilet you can add some graphic prints, black/white photos. Think 2 or 3 8x10 framed prints.

Add white shower curtain and fluffy white pillows.

You are lucky the fixtures are white - many mid-century homes have those pink or blue bathrooms!!

We have a small bathroom in a 1956 house. We went the direction of recreating what had been there, which was a cabinet like you have. We now have a drop-in sink set up on metal legs. It does decrease in-bathroom storage, but it made the rooms seem correctly sized.

We also went with the pink that was there, but I understand that it's not for everyone.

Wow... I wish my bathroom looked like this (with a different paint color of course).

DON'T do anything twice! Don't spend money to "fix" the temporary situation. Buy a can of white paint and maybe a new light fixture, but super cheap on craigslist, nothing more than $20. Seriously... It would be my suggestion to see the floor plan for your bedroom / master bathroom. I have a few ideas up my sleeve for you... (maybe, depending on the layout)

There's nothing wrong with this bathroom except that it's a bit monotonous.

Here's what you have going for you: It's tiny, you don't spend much time in there, and you're planning to redo it later anyway. All of that = time for a bold experiment. Therefore, paint the walls a vibrant coral, or copen blue (or both). If your tiny space really does have plenty of storage (how?), replace the medicine cabinet and towel bar with a photo of tropical foliage/flowers. Alternatively, paint the cabinet something vivid on the outside and something different and even more vivid on the inside. Hang magazines over the towel bar.

Don't change the mirror. It's a classic, beautiful shape for your sink and toilet, and putting up a mirror in a frame would just be trend-slavery that you'd wind up undoing three years from now.

I agree the bathroom is fine and you should not spend money on something you want to totally change in the future. I think that you should roll with the peach paint (peach is flattering on most skin tones so its not a bad color for the bathroom) and add in teal and chrome. Peach-Teal-Chrome is very atomic age. Buy a small can of teal paint and paint the vanity and the box above the toilet. Remove the towel bar and get chrome rings, which you can affix next to mirror. Buy some quirky cool hardware from Anthropology. Total cost should be $50. If you want to go farther, maybe replace the mirror with one that is framed (I think the unframed mirror lacks definition against the peach walls, which is annoying you).

Lose the towel bar & install hooks or a bar on the back of the bathroom door. If you don't need the space, get rid of the cabinet. Paint the walls a color you love. Wait on everything else.

And DEMO THAT ILLFITTING BACKSPLASH. It's the only thing that's really off about the space.

I'm not sure how I missed this post! I would:

1. Get rid of the oval mirror. It doesn't fit in the space.

2. Get rid of the cabinet over the toilet. It makes the space feel smaller than it is.

3. Change the light fixture. It needs to not have that terrible curve.

4. Demo the weird backsplash.

5. Repair the wall where the backsplash was.

6. Paint the walls something in the grey family, skewing towards the green or blue.

7. Hang a new mirror that has a frame. Doesn't need to be fancy at all.

I don't think these improvements would break the bank at all, and would make it feel less hodge-podgey.