People Are Ditching Bath Mats for This (Wait Until You See It)

Here at Apartment Therapy, our editors have discovered plenty of ways to make a bathroom look and feel so much more luxe (curtains, anyone?). It’s rare that my colleagues are shocked by an ingenious bathroom design tip, but a recent Instagram post making the rounds on social feeds has pleasantly surprised us all.

One Instagram user suggests heading over to the rug section of a home retailer when it’s time to replace your bath mat — not the bathroom aisle. The specific tip will create a homier feel in your bathroom, and make the space feel so much more elevated than before.

“Don’t even think about shopping in this aisle for bath mats and shower curtains,” Isabella Diane, an Instagram creator and interior designer based in Los Angeles, said in a recent video while standing in HomeGoods. “Instead, get a runner rug that fits the space proportionately.”

In another video Isabella notes that you can find runner rugs of various sizes at most home stores, including Walmart. If your bathroom is a bit wider or longer in its layout, a standard runner rug should be able to cover most of the space — including the floor in front of your shower, toilet, and vanity. For smaller bathrooms, shorter runners can give you great coverage in front of the shower or vanity (where you need that cozy feeling most).

“They will instantly elevate your bathroom, I promise,” Isabella said in her video.

Because runner rugs come in so many different patterns and designs, they’re more stylish than regular bath mats. And as they’re often used in mudrooms or in front of front doors and kitchen sinks, runners can be just as absorbent, depending on the model you choose to buy.

If you want to snag Isabella’s exact look via her Instagram videos, Walmart’s runners come in a variety of different sizes, too. You can find an option that works best for your layout.

So instead of picking up a bath mat that just isn’t making the cut for pure aesthetics alone, opt for a runner instead. Like Isabella said, it’ll instantly elevate your bathroom — and give it that cozy finishing touch a bath mat could never bring to the table.