- Abbey Whalen began reviewing bathrooms on TikTok earlier this year and already has over 235,000 fans.
- Whalen told Insider she was inspired after watching other bathroom reviews.
- The self-identified "shitfluencer" said she gets many comments from people with IBS who appreciate her content.
"Come take a shit with me," Abbey Whalen says, giggling, at the beginning of every TikTok.
Earlier this year, the 25-year-old from the Bay Area — whose full-time job is an aesthetic nurse — had no idea she'd be regularly filming herself using bathrooms for a massive online audience. Within months, she's racked up over 235,000 followers and become one of the biggest "shitfluencers" in the process.
Whalen is creating a space to shoot the shit about taking a shit.
@abbeywwwww Replying to @j1 PUSSY PSA!!! Sexy fish shit🫶🐙❤️ #sexyfish #sexyfishmiami #ctaswm #shittok ♬ Blue Blood - Heinz KiesslingWhalen sets herself apart from an increasingly packed field of other powder room pundits by reviewing the most ornate and exclusive bathrooms. She's visited the bathrooms of designer stores like Dior and Cartier; gilded hotels like Chateau Marmont and the Beverly Hills Hotel; and lavish restaurants like Nobu and Sexy Fish. One episode featured the infamously overpriced grocer Erewhon, which she liked apart from its "modern farmhouse mirror."
By providing entertaining commentary about high-end spots that most viewers might never have the chance to relieve themselves in, her content mixes the aspirational and the everyday.
Whalen launched her channel in early March with a report of the restroom in The French Laundry, a Michelin-star restaurant in Yountville, California. She told Insider she was inspired after watching other bathroom reviews with her boyfriend and feeling like "something was missing."
@abbeywwwww Had to make a trip to the birthplace of America💖 #erewhon #erewhonmarket #venicebeach #losangeles #luxury #abbottkinney #capcut ♬ Blue Blood - Heinz KiesslingRather than a simple "good or bad" verdict, Whalen's assessments deploy a complex metric of criteria that results in a score of up to five points (however, nothing has scored a five yet). She's essentially the Pitchfork music critic of lavatory experiences, but instead of song composition and soundscapes, she's tuning into all the accouterments of a divine dump.
At the top of Whalen's criteria is the quality of the offered toilet paper and paper towels. "You have your staples, like two-ply — Charmin has the toilet paper game locked down," she said, adding that "thick paper or cloth towels to dry your hands" also reign supreme.
Then, there are a myriad of other qualifiers: "There's also purse hooks, automatic flushing toilets, bidets, soaps — bonus points if they invest in AESOP, Diptyque, Le Labo, etc. And privacy is a big one — I think everyone prefers their own space." She said a bathroom would get bonus points if it has a separate table to put things on, like purses.
The benchmarks seem to fluctuate depending on what the facilities offer. She has analyzed the symmetry of flushes, the density of doors, and the brand, color, and shape of the toilets themselves. "The shape of this Duravit toilet made me feel kinda uneasy," she said in a review for the restroom of the clothing store Acne Studios. "It also kinda looks like Pearl from SpongeBob."
@abbeywwwww Replying to @Maggie🇵🇷 oh and the seat was heated🥹😮💨 #tiffanys #tiffanyandco #luxuryshopping #shittok #bathroomreview #nycshopping ♬ Blue Blood - Heinz Kiessling"The score is an art I'm still learning myself and my followers are quick to point out when I overrated something," Whalen told Insider.
On an August 13 video review of the Soho House bathroom in NYC, the shitfluencer gave it 4 points for its cool aesthetics and premiere toilet paper and soap. However, one fan shot back to say that they'd rate it a "3.5 at best."
Whalen's favorite lavatories so far are at Tiffany & Co.'s Landmark in Los Angeles, YSL on Rodeo Drive, and the ritzy Miami restaurant Sexy Fish, whose latrine entrance she described in a TikTok was like "stepping into a mermaid's vagina."
She thinks bathrooms can be treated as works of art just as much as an avant-garde film or song can be. "Any place that takes the time to make the bathroom experience unique or thoughtful is really thinking about the human experience," she added.
@abbeywwwww This is getting intimate. What do u rate it…be nice im just a girlie😇 You can shop @The Honey Pot Co at www.thehoneypot.co ❤️#honeypotpartner #shittok #luxurybathroom #ctaswm #bathroomreview ♬ Blue Blood - Heinz KiesslingWhalen is aware that her side gig as a bathroom influencer is inherently ridiculous. "When I remember I'm TikTok famous for shitting in public," she quips in a meme video. She's also been meta with her content by providing a report of her own bathroom.
As a full-fledged influencer, she's of course done promotional videos, and said brands have mailed her so much toilet paper that she has more than enough if another pandemic-level shortage hits.
When she began making videos, Whalen said she had no clue it would end up becoming a safe space for viewers who felt uncomfortable talking openly about lavatorial struggles.
"I get so many comments from IBS gals and guys or poop-shy people that really appreciate my videos," Whalen said. "My goal with the channel is honestly to just have fun. It's been the best time ever going around to stores and restaurants with my boyfriend to review these bathrooms."
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