Ways to Upgrade Your Toilet + A Roundup of Favorites
I’ll admit, this is an odd topic for regular conversation, but after the guest bathroom reveal last week, there has been a lot of talk about my toilet, of all things. Haha! I’m serious. I’ve been answering tons of toilet questions lately and thought a post was in order. Lots of you loved how I upgraded the water closet space, so I wanted to share some additional ideas and tips for doing just that. I also took some time to roundup my favorite toilets for every style. Click through to read all the riveting toilet material (HA! but really).
First let’s chat about ways to make a standard toilet look more interesting and custom… because who doesn’t want a toilet that feels like it belongs in a fancy hotel? I’m going to copy my brainstorming list below- these were the thoughts that crossed my mind when designing the guest bath water closet:
- Swap the standard lever.
- Opt for a classic shape that fits the home’s aesthetic.
- Trade the toilet seat / lid.
- Change up the color (black toilets are making a comeback).
- Upgrade to a soft close seat.
- Consider efficiency.
- Bring in matching fixtures (the TP holder, etc).
There are a LOT of toilet options on the market and shopping for a new one can be a little overwhelming. To make things easier, I broke down my favorites in the roundup below… I categorized the toilets by function & style:
classical // transitional // art deco
modern // shaker // mid century
traditional // budget // dual flush
wall hung // tankless // smart
Obviously I landed on this option for our guest bath and we installed this one in our previous home. There are things to like about each of them- and the style really suited each home. You should also consider the size and seat shape. If you’re working with a tiny space, a round toilet bowl is a major space saver (like our last bathroom), or if you have the room- an elongated seat is ideal and said to be the most comfortable.
Our previous toilet had top controls with dual flush technology that was really nice. It fit the budget, had a soft close seat, and was basic in a good way.
Another thing I consider is cleanability. I clean the bathroom pretty frequently and having a toilet that is easy to scrub saves a lot of time.
You can see our previous toilet (above) had lots of lots of curves and plumbing to clean around, but the new one (below) has a nice flat skirt that should make cleaning much easier. That was something I really wanted this time around.
I thought I’d reallllly miss our old bathroom, but after finishing the guest bath- I’m just excited to have another beautiful space. Plus, this renovation still has 3 more baths that need an overhaul- one being the master suite, so there is plenty to look forward to in the coming years.
As always, I’d love to hear your questions or comments below! Hopefully this will help you choose the perfect toilet for your rump to rest upon (omg- too far?). Haha! I’m clearly in a mood today and am in need of the weekend. We’ll be working on installing hardwood floors, so look for that tutorial soon. Emmett and I also need to film our guest bathroom video wrap-up with our after thoughts. I’m really looking forward to that! Stay tuned. Happy Friday friends!