DIY Over Toilet Decor Ideas for Your Bathroom
Decorating the often overlooked space above the toilet presents a unique opportunity to infuse personality and function into your bathrooms. With a bit of creativity, this vacant wall area can be transformed into a stylish and useful accent, whether your goals are adding storage, display, or simply infusing your personal style.
From floating shelves and wallpaper to lighting and display pieces, we have inspiring ideas to elevate your powder room to spa-worthy through impactful, budget-friendly toilet decor.
Prepare for Decorating Over the Toilet
Before picking up a paint brush or drill, proper planning and preparation are key steps for achieving decor success above your toilet. Carefully considering the over toilet space itself along with your goals, budget, and bathrooms' overall aesthetic will lead to cohesive finished results.
Measure the Over Toilet Space
First, carefully measure the physical parameters of the wall area above your toilet tank and bowl. Account for elements like recessed lighting, ventilation fans, or corner placement when planning your layout. Understanding the literal space to work with is key for properly scaling any over the toilet decor, including floating shelves, wallpaper, or cabinetry.
Assess Lighting and Outlets
Take stock of existing lighting conditions, which greatly impact the usefulness and aesthetics of toilet decoration. Task lighting like pendant fixtures help illuminate display pieces or storage. For electronic pieces like floating media centers, consider convenient outlet placement or installing new outlets.
Choose Materials and Paint Colors
Determine your over toilet decorating style and color scheme. For cohesion with your current bathroom style, integrate similar finishes like wood tones, metallics, or bold paint colors into new decorative elements. However, don't be afraid to use this space to showcase a unique material like grasscloth wallpaper or a vibrant accent wall.
Set Your Budget
As with any decor project, set realistic budgets before investing in materials and tools. Fortunately, DIY over toilet decor allows flexibility. Splurge on a statement light fixture or pricier floating shelf material while opting for budget-friendly decorative accessories to fill the space.
Creative Over Toilet Decorating Ideas
From a simple accent like art to more complex built-ins, the creative possibilities for utilizing over toilet space are endless. Consider the following popular decorating ideas for both form and function:
Hanging Artwork or Mirrors
For those favoring simplicity, hanging wall art or mirrors remain classic approaches to over toilet decoration. Framed artwork, floating shelves displaying decor objects, or oversized mirrors visually broaden smaller bathrooms. When styling artwork, coordinate pieces by color, finish, or themes for enhanced cohesion.
Tall Storage Shelves or Cabinets
Incorporate form and function with wall-mounted shelving or glass-fronted cabinets above toilets. Open shelving smartly stores extra toilet paper, bath towels, and toiletries for quick access. For concealed storage, glass door cabinets provide both organization and display space for accent pieces.
Plants or Floral Arrangements
Incorporating greenery represents natural, living decor for bathrooms needing a breath of fresh air. Potted succulents, trailing plants, or contemporary floral designs infuse life while softening hard surfaces. Position plants on the floor, floating shelves, or in hanging planters centered precisely over the toilet tank.
Framed Photos, Art, or Memorabilia
Make over toilet decor meaningful with framed photos, kids' artwork, signed concert posters, or travel mementos. Feature favorite people or experiences through personalized, ever-changing galleries. Arrange symmetrically for balanced displays or opt for an intentional asymmetrical composition.
DIY Over Toilet Decor Project Ideas
For hands-on decorators favoring unique DIY style, consider executing one of the following over toilet decor projects. Ranging from beginner to advanced level, these ideas add personalized touches using materials readily available online or at local home improvement stores.
Painted Wood Wall Art
Make a design statement through modern geometric wall art centered precisely over your toilet. Use plywood, paint, painter's tape, and creativity to execute abstract shapes like lines, triangles, circles on contrasting white walls. This easy DIY project looks especially striking in bold accent colors.
Fabric Pennants and Bunting
Utilize the vertical space by installing a cascading banner of fabric pennant flags or colorful triangle bunting. Custom pennant designs celebrating state pride, college sports teams, or cheeky phrases add a playful focal point. Layer bunting in complementary hues over a gallery wall for visual depth.
Framed Bulletin Board
Transform wasted wall space into an organized communication zone with a framed corkboard for tacking up reminders and mementos. Mix cork tiles with complementary fabrics like burlap or ticking stripes for added texture and to coordinate with your bathroom's color palette.
Chalkboard Wall
Make toilets more entertaining through chalkboard paint, which transforms walls into writing surfaces for leaving messages, playing games, or sketching masterpieces. Define boarders using painter's tape or frame edges with floating picture ledges. Store chalk and erasers in wall-mounted boxes nearby.
Wallpaper Accent Wall
Elevate your bathroom's style quotient by installing eye-catching wallpaper as an accent over the toilet tank. Opt for vibrant tropical prints, textured grasscloth, or modern geometric patterns suited for high moisture areas. Wallpaper offers affordable style compared to tiling an entire accent wall.
Floating Wall Shelves
Add storage and display space with DIY industrial pipe shelving, a series of unfinished wood cubbies, or sleek glass ledges. Floating shelves smartly corral extra toilet paper, candles, folded washcloths or decorative objects. Mix materials, sizes, and orientations for an eclectic look.
Styling Tips and Inspiration
When curating your over toilet decor, both big picture design strategies and small styling nuances elevate the finished look. Consider the following professional tips:
Coordinate with Overall Bathroom Style
While making a statement, over toilet decor should not clash with existing bathroom aesthetics. Echo paint colors in artwork and accessories or continue tile patterns through accents like framed mirror mosaics. Repeat colors, textures, shapes or materials already present for enhanced cohesion.
Showcase Meaningful Memorabilia
Infuse personality by decorating with sentimental artifacts, whether antique family heirlooms or travel trinkets collected on vacation. Group similarly themed objects like old perfume bottles or seashells gathered from beaches worldwide into still life arrangements or standalone focal features against neutral walls.
Uplight for Drama
Strategically illuminate over toilet artwork or shelving through directional lighting like adjustable track spotlights. Uplighting creates a focal point, casts intriguing shadows, and highlights displayed decorative objects' forms and textures come evening.
Keep Symmetrical
Allow over toilet storage solutions like floating shelves or wall hooks reflect the area's bilateral symmetry. Place matching objects like rolled towels or artwork at similar heights flanking the toilet tank. Repeat colors, shapes, and pair items size-wise for visual balance.
Common Questions and Concerns
When tackling your first over toilet decor project, logical questions may arise. Dispel doubts through insights from bath decor experts:
Is Over the Toilet Decor Necessary?
Not mandatory per se, but unused vertical space represents missed potential. Even simple upgrades like art or mirrors make better use of the area while introducing decorative cohesion. Built-ins increase storage and functionality where counter space is limited.
What About Moisture and Humidity?
When introducing decorative elements around toilets, consider humidity impacts. Choose moisture-resistant materials like metals, enameled wood, or properly sealed finishes. Avoid framing valuable art directly over exposed tanks. Improve ventilation to mitigate musty smells or damage.
How Do I Clean Over the Toilet Decor ?
Maximize cleaning ease through DIY pieces without hard-to-dust crevices or unfinished materials prone to mildew. Wipe down glass shelving using household cleaner and microfiber cloths. For wall installations, use gentle, appropriate cleaners to avoid damage.
With limitless style possibilities, over the toilet decor empowers DIYers and decorators alike to reimagine oft-overlooked bathroom space. Through creative installations of art, built-ins, greenery, and accent lighting, this transitional area can become both beautiful and highly functional.
By preparing your goals and space, leveraging storage solutions and display pieces, and styling with cohesive design strategies, your over the toilet decor is sure to realize its maximum potential. With meaningful touches or unexpected elements, utilize this vertically optimized area to infuse the personality and sensibilities that make your bathrooms distinctly you.