Ditch The Towel Rack: Turn A Bedroom Staple Into A DIY Storage Solution That Looks Good

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If your bathroom towel-rack system isn't working, it might be time to consider a different solution, one that you do-it-yourself using a bedroom staple. It's a little out of the box, but it makes something old useful again: This DIY turns a old wooden bed frame into a wall-mounted towel rack.

Specifically, this DIY upcylces a headboard from a wooden bed (although, a footboard could work, too). What you can do with your headboard will depend on its design. Does it have spindles or is it a solid piece? If it's solid, that's fine, and it actually gives you a lot of flat space to work with, as you could even use adhesive strips with one. For either type of headboard, you could add hooks or pegs, even a shelf. A spindle design has the additional option, though, of tying hangers around the rods. Either way, this DIY offers a much cooler way to store and hang your towels!

But before hooks, pegs, or baskets, you first need to measure your wall space. Can a headboard fit? To give you an idea, a twin headboard is 41 inches wide, while a full-size one is 56 inches. A queen is 62 inches across, and a king is 80. If these all sound too large, something that could work, even for small bathrooms, is to repurpose an old crib if you have one from your kids outgrowing it. Most cribs have a width (or depth) of 26 inches up to 32 inches. (A baby crib is sure to have spindles, too.)

Aside from the headboard (or a footboard), all you need in order to tackle this unique way to store your bathroom towels is a drill and a stud finder. Also, for the headboard itself, if you don't have one in your home you can use, you could always see if your local thrift stores have had any donated.

Once you have your headboard (either by separating it from a bed frame, or thrifting one), it's time to turn it into a towel rack. Before hanging it up, you should customize it how you like, such as adding hangers of some kind, working with any of the flat areas. You could use adhesive strips with utility hooks, for example; even a 5-pound capacity could work for towels.

Or, you could drill hooks directly into the frame if you want a specific look or color. For example, IKEA's HÖGAFFEL wall hooks ($4.99 for three) are small and feature a black matte finish, while the BÄNGBULA hooks (also $4.99 for three) hide the screws and come in three neutral colors. Another idea is to use over-the-door hangers. Depending on the thickness of your headboard, some over-the-door hangers, like this WEBI six-hook design ($24.99), fit over doors that are 1 ¾ inches thick.

As for hanging, because it's heavy, make sure to drill into at least one wall stud, but ideally two. Studs are spaced either 16 inches apart or 24 inches apart. If you do use a wall anchor, be sure it has the correct weight rating to hold your new old headboard-turned-towel rack securely on the wall.