12 Everyday Bathroom Items You Can Repurpose In Other Areas Of Your Home

While the bathroom may not be the star of your home where people gather and memories are made, it is still a prime spot for relaxation, self-care, and handling the calls of nature. As a result, everyday routines like hair care, makeup, and hygiene put you in contact with a wide range of items. Unfortunately, nothing lasts forever, and there may come a time when you're looking to replace your tried-and-true bathroom essentials, such as tossing out an empty shampoo bottle or an old towel. Before doing so, consider repurposing some everyday bathroom items for use elsewhere in your home.

Repurposing bathroom essentials can add both visual appeal and function to other areas of your home. From using a hand towel bar in your kitchen to display mugs to transforming old plastic bottles from shampoo or body wash into stunning hanging planters, the possibilities are endless. Repurposing bathroom items can also reduce waste by giving new life to items otherwise destined for the trash, making this task as eco-friendly as it is budget-savvy.

Learning how and where to repurpose everyday bathroom items often requires a bit of creativity and some basic DIY skills. From shower curtains to used-up toilet paper rolls, there are plenty of DIY crafts that can bring new purpose to old items.

Plastic bottles

Many common products used in the shower, like shampoo and conditioner or body wash, come in plastic containers that, once empty, are discarded. Before these items end up in the trash, there are several DIY uses worth considering. After making a few cuts with a crafting knife, plastic bottles can make great hanging planters, especially if you take the extra steps to add drainage holes. Empty plastic bottles can also be upcycled into storage containers, such as phone holders or organizers attached to a corkboard

Glass containers

Plastic containers aren't the only bathroom item you can make use of elsewhere. Instead, you can also repurpose any glass containers, such as those from skin products, around your home. At a glance, glass containers can easily be reused in the bathroom, whether for dry storage or making DIY scrubs and balms. In other areas of your home, glass containers can be used as a vase for flowers, depending on the size, DIY candles (after confirming the glass is heat-safe), or storage for matches, paper clips, and other supplies you want to keep organized.

Sink-side trinket tray

If you like to keep your daily jewelry essentials close at hand, then you may have a sink-side trinket tray in your bathroom. This offers flat storage where you can easily keep your favorite necklaces, bracelets, rings, or even perfume and other self-care essentials. However, if you've found a different storage solution for your jewelry, then you may be wondering what to use your trinket tray for. Fortunately, these trays are often designed with many purposes in mind, and you can easily rehome it to your kitchen for storing soap dispensers, sponges, and dish brushes.

Hand towel bar

With their bulky handles and size, storing mugs in your kitchen can be a space-consuming task. However, by repurposing a hand towel bar, you can make use of a bathroom essential you're no longer using and create a space-savvy storage solution for drinkware. This beginner-friendly DIY only requires installing the towel bar on the wall behind your kitchen counter. From there, you can add hooks to hang your mugs from. You may want to experiment with different mug heights before installing the towel bar.

Old towels

When you pick out your soon-to-be favorite towels, you likely aren't thinking about their expiration date. Towels don't last forever, and with an average lifespan of two to five years, they'll need to be replaced when they start to break down. On the bright side, it's not farewell entirely. Instead, you can repurpose towels elsewhere in your home, such as cutting them down into rags for cleaning or transforming them into a DIY rug to brighten up other areas of your home.

Old toothbrushes

Dentists generally recommend replacing toothbrushes every three to four months. Before opting for the trash, however, there are many ways to reuse toothbrushes around your home. You can use your old toothbrush to clean around your home, from scrubbing grout to dusting your blinds. If you have a bamboo toothbrush, you can also remove the bristles and create plant labels to use in your garden. You can use pliers or tweezers to remove the bristles, as well as a simple permanent marker to create the label itself.

Toilet paper holder

There are many different types of toilet paper holders, and with their simple design and versatility, these holders are easy to repurpose in other areas of the home. For example, with a single-roll basket holder, you can create a wall-mounted pot holder for your kitchen window. This adds aesthetic appeal while also making it easier to keep your favorite cooking herbs at arm's length in the kitchen. Plus, repurposing a toilet paper holder here is easy, with no DIY changes or adjustments other than where you choose to mount it.

Shower curtains

Shower curtains provide a large amount of reusable fabric, and some styles with built-in liners are even water-resistant. As a result, there are many ways to repurpose your shower curtain once it's time for a replacement. If you have some basic sewing skills, you can transform them into decorative pillows. Or, for a simpler approach, cutting your curtain into a small square and securing it into a frame can give you an eye-catching statement piece with a story.

Shower liners

Shower liners aren't the same as curtains. Instead, they offer a waterproof barrier that protects the more decorative fabric of your shower curtain. Because of this, you can often repurpose shower liners in other areas of your home in a different way than shower curtains. This includes using them as drop cloths for DIY projects or as covers to protect plants during cold spells. Since many shower liners aren't recyclable due to their material, this is a great way to keep them out of the trash.

Washcloths

Flat mops are a great way to wipe down your floors each day and reach those difficult spots like corners. However, for flat mops with disposable heads, replacement costs can add up over time. Fortunately, old washcloths can be easily repurposed into reusable flat mop heads. The best part is, you don't even need any sewing skills. Simply attach the washcloth to your flat mop, do your cleaning, and then toss it in your washer when finished.

Toilet paper rolls

Toilet paper rolls are the bread and butter of many DIY projects. As a result, when you're looking for the best way to repurpose everyday bathroom items, there's few better places to start than with this humble piece of cardboard. In your garden, toilet paper rolls can be used for compost or even DIY seed-starting pots. With just a few simple craft supplies like scissors and glue, you can also create wall art, gifts, or cardboard flowers and animals for children to enjoy. You can even upcycle a toilet paper roll into a bird feeder.

Bathroom soap dispenser

Soap dispensers are one of the easiest everyday bathroom items to repurpose in other rooms because of how versatile they are. On the surface, you can easily use your bathroom's dispenser in the kitchen for dish soap. However, that's not your only option. For soap dispensers with decorative containers, consider ditching the pump and using the dispenser as a vase in your kitchen and living room. If you want to maintain its function, the dispenser can also hold lotion or certain cleaning products when appropriate.

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