12 Genius Ways To Repurpose An Over-The-Toilet Storage Shelf All Around Your Home

As those familiar with moving to a new home know, what works perfectly for storage in one bathroom might fit awkwardly or be totally irrelevant in another. Over-the-toilet shelves are a good example of this; depending on the placement of the toilet, they can go from "perfect solution" to "clunky and too big for the space" after a move or renovation. The shelves themselves can also deteriorate in quality — rust is a possibility for metal units since they are exposed to the bathroom's moisture and humidity. But that doesn't mean you should toss them out. Genius ways to put an over-the-toilet shelf to use around your home abound: Plant shelving, holding your crafting supplies, and displaying your shoe collection are just a few ways to repurpose them.

There's likely something in the back of your mind that tells you shelving that has outgrown the bathroom would be useful somewhere else in your home, and you're right. Many are designed with shelves framing an empty space at the bottom where the toilet would fit, and a basket or houseplant could fit just as well. These units give you some decorative space but also provide adequate vertical space for items, a surefire way to maximize storage space in your small home. Other shelf designs come in a ladder style or are mounted to the walls,  but they all present storage opportunities outside the bathroom.

Crafters know that it helps to have all their supplies in one place where they can see everything they have to work with. It's also nice to have your yarn stash, paints, or woodworking supplies up high so they're accessible without cluttering the space you live or work in. That's why upcycling an over-the-toilet storage shelf is a genius craft room organization hack.

It may not seem like the bathroom and your stylish footwear collection have much in common, but just as you can use a shoe cabinet hack to declutter your bathroom, an awkward over-the-toilet shelf can get a new life as a shoe rack. The shelving units usually have two or three tiers, so you can categorize shoes for different purposes and occasions. The tall open space at the base can fit tall boots (or a bin filled with more shoes or accessories). It's a smart way to create more closet storage.

Your entryway can sometimes be just as small as the spot where your toilet fits in your bathroom, so an over-the-toilet shelf is often the perfect fit for a cramped space. The shelf styles with closed shelving can offer a similar look and function to a more traditional entryway cabinet, and you can even remove the tall legs and replace them with shorter ones to create a unit that sits lower to the ground. Open shelving will work well, too, especially if you need a place to put shoes when your family and guests take them off.

The design of an over-the-toilet shelf is a handy feature in the kitchen, where it can nestle over a trash can or recycling bin. Once it's in place, the possibilities are many. You can place small décor items, a natural deodorizer (like a bowl of baking soda), or small appliances on the shelves, or make a mini coffee or tea bar. If you already have the shelf or can score it from a neighbor who's decluttering, this is a budget-friendly way to organize your kitchen.

Need a place for your plants to soak up the sun and drape their cascading leaves? Look to the bathroom. In addition to turning a simple shower caddy into a tower for plants that'll look great in a corner, you can also transform an over-the-toilet shelf into a plant shelf to fit against a wall. Houseplants tend to have particular light needs that take a while to figure out, but shelves made to go over a toilet are often light and thin enough that you can easily move them as you find the best spot for your greenery.

Shelves moved from the bathroom can be turned into storage above the staple of college dorm rooms everywhere: the mini fridge. Whether you're furnishing a space full of students or not, over-the-toilet shelves are incredibly useful for holding bins with snack-sized bags of chips, protein bars, and other dry grab-and-go snacks. A shared kitchen and a bedroom is just some of the spaces where this can work.

A laundry room is an ideal place to put that extra bathroom shelf to work. Just as the tiers of shelves can hold bottles of toiletries, they can store laundry detergent and other essentials. If they can hold bins of toilet paper, the same goes for freshly folded towels. Whether the shelves are one unit you can slip over a washer or dryer or the kind that mounts to the wall, having your supplies in one place will make laundry day so much easier.

Not everything has to be fully functional when you're designing your home. Although shelves made to be placed over the toilet are created with utility in mind, that doesn't mean you can't place them on another wall just to display your favorite trinkets. The space on the shelves is perfect to use to hold decor, and if your unit features open shelving, you can even take advantage of the blank wall behind it as a spot to hang art.

The structure of an over-the-toilet shelf might just be the support your climbing plants need. If you have a metal shelf, it will provide vines some extra support as they cast their tendrils upward. The shelves tend to be tall but not too wide, making them good candidates for growing plants that climb — whether you're nurturing vegetables or fragrant vines — especially on a small space adjacent to your home like a patio or balcony.

Parents use shelves in the bathroom to keep bath time toys out of the tub (and off the floor), but even outside of a bathroom, shelves that go over the toilet may have the perfect amount of space for storing their favorites, like small stuffed animals and board books, in one place. You may want to convert this to toddler-height by either removing the legs of the unit or using a smaller shelf that's made to rest on top of a toilet. With little ones around, attach the shelf to the wall so it doesn't fall over.

Some of the shelves that fit over the toilet already look like trendy bookshelves you'll see in stores. They're perfect for placing books where you can grab them and guests can check them out. The airiness of the shelf lets the books become part of your decor, but also keeps them within reach. You can decorate a ladder shelf that was originally in the bathroom by organizing books by color and interspersing plants.

Because many over-the-toilet shelves come in neutral colors, they can complement whatever bedroom aesthetic you're going for. Moving an extra shelf from the bathroom to the bedroom will give you a place to store makeup, skincare, and other essentials you may want within reach of a vanity-style mirror. Place the shelving unit alongside the bed, and it can also be a phone charging station and place to set down any reading material. Along the same lines, you can put supplies for your guests on what you've turned into a side table for a spare room when they stay overnight.