Have you ever tried to purchase an item for your home only to be completely paralyzed with indecision? I spent the last 4 weeks shopping for the new accessories for our master bathroom – cabinet hardware, a light fixture, robe hooks, soap dishes, rugs, and towels – and struggled to make final decisions. I know, I know… first world problems. But if you are conservative when it comes to spending money on yourself, you can likely attest to the fact that the struggle is real.
It’s been 10 or 20 years since we’ve moved into your home. Things are feeling tired, dated, or may even be leaking, broken, and need replacing.
We have tried to re-fresh with paint every few years, but the paint is no longer cutting it. It’s time to go a little deeper and replace some carpets, countertops, appliances, tile, light fixtures, and faucets.
We’ve been thinking about taking on these larger projects for a few years. Even gotten a few extra miles out of the items we have. But it’s time.
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Time for an Update
We calculated the costs, itemized which project we’ll take on first, and saved our pennies.
The first project was actually decided for us out of pure necessity – we had a leak in our bathroom.
But we saved for this. We’re ready to spend a little money on the house, which we really haven’t had to do any major repairs over the past 10 or 20 years. We’re a very practical household. Our purchases are primarily necessities – food, clothes, utilities, kids sports and schooling even.
Does any of this sound familiar?
In addition to fixing the leak, we’re ready to update our bathroom and buy a few pretty things for the home we plan to spend the next 20+ years living in.
And knowing how long we lived with our current decor, our choices will be ones we will look at for a very long time; so we want to LOVE every home decor item we choose this time around.
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How to Choose Towel / Robe Hooks
There are a quite a few decor items we had to purchase for the bathroom update, but let’s focus on just one of those to walk through the process. Let’s focus on the towel / robe hooks. It seems like a small item, but to me, anything I permanently affix to the wall and look at every day for the next 20 years is a significant decision.
Prior to this, we had two towel bars – one hung in the shower and the other outside the shower. The one outside the shower fell off the wall every few weeks because of the constant tugging on it. We wanted to avoid this aggravation in the future so we opted for towel hooks instead.
I begin researching online – watching bloggers who have done similar projects, checking out Pinterest, and shopping Amazon, Wayfair, Target, Home Depot, and other retailers.
If you read my master bathroom update post, you’ll know that we opted for polished chrome fixtures. You can see the full master bathroom update HERE. Polished chrome has NEVER gone out of style the way other finishes have and I absolutely love the way it shines.
Knowing which finish you want is half the battle.
Decision #1 made: The FINISH
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Even though polished chrome is the least expensive of all the finish options, the towel / robe hooks actually vary tremendously in price. They ranged from about $8 to $118.
This is where my practical side had to step in. While I wanted a beautiful, well-made hook that would last, I did not need to spend a week’s worth of groceries on two hooks that would be hidden 95% of the time by towels.
I suggest you decide how much you’re willing to spend and search only within your price range.
Decision #2 made: The Price
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From there, I chose several shapes and narrowed the choices down to my favorite 5 polished chrome towel/robe hooks. You can see them here and if you click the image you can see where to buy them.
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There was just one problem…
I loved them all! The modern, the traditional, the round, and the square. They were all so bright and shiny and pretty.
For a few weeks, I became paralyzed with indecision.
I absolutely drove myself crazy trying to decide on the perfect hooks to hang our bath towels. I knew the polished chrome hooks would sparkle like jewelry on my walls. Just like the perfect pair of earrings, if you choose the wrong ones, it can completely ruin a look!
To best coordinate the towel / robe hooks with the other fixtures already in my bathroom, I decided it would be best to choose a hook with a round base. The sink faucet, hand towel bar, and toilet paper holder all had round bases.
Decision #3 made. The BASE SHAPE
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Then I drove to Lowes and Home Depot to look at and feel the weight of a few of the hooks in my hand – as if they gave off energy and I would sense the perfect one. Believe it or not, this actually did work. When I held the Moen towel / robe hook in my hand, I knew it was the ONE.
The Moen hook had a nice hefty weight to it. I felt as though that if it had this extra weight, then it would be better made and adhere to the wall better than our old, very light-weight towel bar that used to fall off the wall.
Final Decision #4 made. The WEIGHT
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If you’re frozen with indecision while trying to choose decor items for your bathroom, I suggest inducing a little practicality and taking the decision step by step just like I did here:
The solution is simple…
- Choose the finish
- Set a price range
- Coordinate the shape with other items in the room
- Consider the weight (how well the product is made)
And if you’re still stuck… just choose!
If you really do love all five of those towel / robe hooks you put in your shopping cart, then you will love any one of them that you bring home.
Mary says
Vicki, I just finished my bathroom and went through the whole process of choosing finishes for my accessories. I chose brushed nickel because it gave a bit of warmth to the stark white room. But you are so right there are so many choices out there it is mind-boggling. The biggest problem for me is finding a toilet paper holder that will fit in a very narrow space. Your bathroom is beautiful and I envy you all that space you have.
Vicki Blazejowski says
Thank you Mary.I bet your brushed nickel fixtures are beautiful too. You could get creative with the toilet paper holder and hang it vertical instead of horizontal. CB2 has some with small bases. I also shopped Amazon, Wayfair, DecorPlanet. Would love to see what you come up with.