Retire Your Towel Rack: The Thrift Store Find That Makes Bathroom Storage Cute

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It's no secret that balancing functionality and style can be difficult when it comes to bathroom storage. Shopping for thrift store items allows you to curate unique solutions for towel displays while not breaking the bank. Use a vintage, rustic, wooden ladder for easy bathroom towel storage that serves as a replacement for the traditional towel rack. The ladder hangs right on the wall, takes advantage of vertical space, and creates a new décor element for an often-overlooked room.

This is slightly different from the usual blanket ladder storage you know and love (like this smart way to store towels without messy stacks). For one, the ladder is mounted directly on the wall, rather than propped against it. This makes it a bit challenging for renters, so as always, check your leasing agreement before mounting anything on the wall. Secondly, you have to know where your pipes are inside your bathroom walls before you start drilling. Many renters and homeowners alike use a stud finder to locate pipes inside their walls. It's a DIY gone very wrong when you hit a pipe. All that said, finding an authentic, patina-covered ladder or personalizing a simple one from the thrift store is a DIY bathroom dream.

The good news about this ladder project is that you don't need the whole ladder. A broken ladder or an antique find that is not functional is now your next towel rack. Some DIYers use ladderback chairs — the straight chair with horizontal wooden slats up the back — as a hanging towel rack. There's also few ladders online that range from around $40, like the odorsTT Black Blanket Ladder at Walmart, to almost $600, like the Carolina Collection 4 Tier Ladder Towel Bar at Allied Brass, if thrifting isn't working out. But the joy of the find is half the fun.

Depending on your space, you may have to saw or have a professional help size down your ladder. Since it is wall mounted, you should not have towels touching the floor when hung on the lowest rung. If you are sawing your ladder yourself, make sure there are no splinters that can catch in the fibers of your towels. Sanding down the edges and using a clean coat of paint can prevent snags.

As for mounting, there are ladder mounting kits available at hardware stores and online. Etsy offers a range of kits that may be a bit more decorative than the heavy-duty hardware brackets used in garages. Follow all instructions included to safely install, and if needed, there's a hack to help mount heavy objects evenly using masking tape. Wooden ladder hooks are also used to store ladders and can be installed directly on the wall. Get thrifting, and get that bathroom looking cute with this towel rack alternative.