Simple DIY Bathroom Towel Hooks
These DIY bathroom towel hooks are a really simple and quick 15-minute upgrade project for your bathroom. Replace an existing towel bar or add new storage with style!
I have never been a fan of towel bars…especially in a kid’s bathroom.
Let’s be real, no matter what, the towels always end up on the floor.
In our previous rental home, I had covered a dented towel bar in the kids bathroom with a simple shelf and hooks and I loved having the hooks in the bathroom.
They could easily hang the towel up. Plus we could have a couple of towels whenever we needed.
Of course, the bathroom in our new home came with a towel bar too and I tried to live with it and train the kids to use but they are only kids…
It would always end up on the floor.
YES – towel bars are great to dry the towel completely but we wash them regularly enough that we never had an issue.
So I decided to replace it with these easy DIY bathroom towel hooks. No more towels on the floor…fingers crossed!
What is special about these DIY towel hooks?
Well… it is the lazy way of doing things.
Instead of having to patch the holes left from the towel bar, I just decided to use them or cover them up with a piece of wood. 🙂
Materials needed to make bathroom towel hooks
- 1X6 board – as needed. I used mostly scraps.
- Wood stain in color of your choice. I used this stain
- Hooks of your choice. I used these hooks
- Spray paint for hooks (optional) I used Yellow, blue, and coral
- Miter saw
- Orbital sander
- Drill
How to make the DIY towel hooks
I have a full video about how to make the DIY towel hooks to replace the towel rod. As always, if you would rather read the instructions, they are below.
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How to install DIY bathroom hooks
A 15-minute upgrade project for your bathroom! Replace an existing towel bar or add new hooks with style!
Total Time: 15 minutes
Cut wood for DIY bathroom towel hooks
Cut 6″ pieces from a 1X6 board using a miter saw.
I needed 3 hooks so I cut 3 pieces.
Sand and stain
Sand each piece of wood to remove any rough edges and stain in the color of your choice.
I used a dark walnut stain because I really wanted the hooks to stand out once they were painted.
Spray paint the hooks
Drill pilot holes in the wood
Drill pilot holes in the wood based on the hooks.
Because they all need to be in the same place, I stacked the wood blocks on top of each other to drill the holes. This ensured that the hooks were all symmetrically placed on the wood.
Prepare to hang the hooks.
Remove the old towel rack.
Don’t worry about patching the holes, you are going to hang the new towel hooks right over them.
Drill through the pilot holes on the wood into the wall. If you don’t hit a stud, be sure to use drywall anchors to make sure it will be secure when you hang it.
Attach hooks to the wood
Attach hooks to the wall using 3.5″ long screws.
The screws go through the hooks, the wood and into the stud or anchor. 
Touch up the screws and hooks
Touch up the screws and any scratches to the paint by spraying a little bit of spray paint onto a paper plate.
Use a sponge applicator to dab the paint onto the screws so they blend in.
That is it!
A simple and quick project to replace a towel bar with hooks with a little bit of character.
I picked the colorful paints because they go with the colors in the bathroom rugs… and it is the kids’ bathroom after all.
But if you wanted, you can simply leave them black or paint this white and any color that works for you and your decor!
What are your thoughts on towel bars? Do you like them or hate them? Or don’t care?
More DIY ideas for bathrooms –
- Small bathroom remodel on a budget
- Update bathroom cabinets using gel stain
- Contact paper bathroom countertop makeover
Anika's goal is to inspire and empower beginners with woodworking, DIY, home improvement, and home decor ideas.
She wants everyone to unlock their creative potential and experience the feeling that comes with making something. Nothing feels better better than seeing something and saying "I can make that!"
Thank you for sharing, this is such a cute and fun design, the coloured hooks would also look great in a playroom or kids bedroom.
How cute these are. I have a Jack and Jill bathroom that I am going to try this in. So much more durable than a towel bar. And doing it this way, you can attach them much more easily to the studs so they are more secure. I did this with my TV hanging bar. I hoped it would look a little better.Of course, it is behind the TV but… Very clever.
You always come up with the best ideas. We’re renovating the second of three bathrooms in our home. This is the guest bathroom so it really doesn’t get used much. My biggest issues are 1) the towel bar is over the vanity right were the box of tissue goes so when you go to grab the towel, the tissues always get dripped on. It’s very poorly set up and the vanity is the only thing we are not changing. The toilet was changed shortly after we moved in so that will be staying as is. There is no medicine cabinet or visible storage/shelving that we could alternatively put the tissues on. Now with your Hook idea, the tissues can be moved over a bit and the towel moved forward to avoid the drips. The extra hole from the towel bar can be covered with a picture that takes up that void now.