Craft An Elegant Toilet Paper Holder With An Item You Can Find When Thrifting

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Typical wall-mounted toilet paper holders have a tendency to get loose and wobbly. Eventually, this can damage your bathroom walls. Even if you find the ideal place to mount your toilet paper holder in the bathroom and install it perfectly, it can be a bit of an eyesore. Luckily, there are all kinds of alternative roll holders. Taking things one step further, you can make yourself a device with items found at your local thrift store. For example, you can DIY a toilet paper holder that gives any bathroom an affordable refresh and a touch of elegance using an ornate, vintage-look candle holder.

This DIY is so quick and affordable that anyone can do it successfully. Keep your eyes open at the thrift store for a tall candle holder or stand that sits on the floor and is roughly the same height as your toilet. It's ideal, though not necessary, to find a holder with a hollow center. The void allows you to insert the dowel that holds your toilet paper roll in place deep into the holder. Alternatively, if you have a tall candle holder already, you can use that. In a pinch, you can buy one, like this Sofe White Rustic Pillar Candle Holder for about $36.

Once you have a tall candle stand in your possession, it's time to start constructing the holder. If the stand is hollow, simply insert a sturdy wooden dowel that's slightly longer than the stand is tall into the cavity. Note that you may have to drill or cut through the top of the stand to access the hollow interior. Then thread a roll of toilet paper down its length. If your stand isn't hollow, you can glue a shorter piece of tubing to the flat top of the stand instead. A Loyal Bakeware Heavy-Duty Plastic Mounting Bracket should work for this purpose. (The cardboard core of a toilet paper roll measures 1½ to 2 inches.) For a decorative touch, top the dowel or tubing with a decorative cabinet pull.

Before you actually source a candle holder, it's important to think about the best toilet paper holder for your space. Don't have the footprint to accommodate a floor-standing toilet paper holder? Look instead for a smaller candle stand that could sit on your bathroom vanity countertop or a nearby ledge or shelf. If you can't find a candle holder you like at the thrift store, an old ornate lamp base would also work for this DIY. Remove the wires and any unneeded hardware from the lamp before converting it into a toilet paper roll stand and placing it in your bathroom. Whatever object you decide to use, feel free to paint or decorate the completed DIY to help it better fit with your existing bathroom aesthetic.