Continuing with our weekly organizing series, today we’re going to talk bathroom organizing! Time to pull out all those old products, clean the drawers and purge grungy towels. I’ll give you tour of my bathroom and share a printable checklist to help organize and minimize your own bathroom.See my kitchen organizing post here.
Organizing series
This bathroom is a little dated and needs some love (hello, caulking that has turned brown!), but at least it is neutral and has good structure and space. This beauty is similar to what I have in mind. (By the way, I have hundreds of other bathroom inspiration pins you should check out too!)
But I’m working on seeing the beauty in this house, not just all the projects I would like to tackle! A master bath remodel is a long way out, so I will be grateful and love what I have.
The question is how much elbow grease do I want to invest here when it will all go away eventually. Should I frame the mirrors and re-caulk everything for a few years time? I don’t know.
Ok, enough of my chitchatting, let’s get on to the organizing!
Towels & Linens
We didn’t have a linen closet in our last house and we don’t have one here. The plan is to put shelves over the toilet for them like we have done before, but right now they’re in baskets. This leaves no room for the random towels or wash cloths that tend to linger in the linen closet. I don’t exactly want to look at that orange and brown floral towel from who knows where out in the open.
We each have a spare sheet set in our closets.
Limit towels and linens.
• Get rid of towels and wash cloths with stains, frayed edges or don’t belong to a set. (I’m also told you can donate unwanted towels to animal rescue shelters.)
• For now, we will limit ourselves to six towels in the master bathroom and two for each kid. (That’s not counting beach towels.)
• Throw out sheets that are dingy or are no longer used.
• Rotate the towels so the get the same wear and will eventually all be ready to replaced at the same time, keeping the set the same.
• Limit to two or three old blankets for picnics or “tents” with the kids. Why do I keep them all?
Add over the door hooks for convenience. These were $5 from Ross Dress for Less. I even hang them over the kids’ towel bars, because kids will never use towel bars. Ever. Maybe, occasionally they use hooks though.
I like to use gray hand towels to makeup stains!
The towels are from Costco and the rug is from Urban Outfitters.
Vanity
Set out everyday items in a pretty way so they don’t take up cabinet space.
I put my makeup brushes in a fancy glass and keep a few pieces of everyday jewelry in a ring dish. They sit inside a dollar store tray.
Yardley soaps from the dollar store and lavender soap from Whole Foods are stored in a simple glass canister. I typically go for bars of soap in the bathrooms because they last longer than liquid soap and cost less. Any my kids can’t waste it all!
Pretty perfume bottles or a makeup mirror would be nice sitting out too. See my glamorous bathroom accessories post for more ideas.
I found that chair by the dumpster and gave it a makeover!
I added some battery-operated fairy lights at the bottom of the vase for a relaxing glow for baths.
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Drawers
This vanity is a little odd. It has one very long drawer. So I used a drawer divider and plastic trays to organize it. I’ve had the makeup tray for years and everything else here is from the Dollar Tree!
Once I got honest and put only the makeup I wear regularly in the drawer, it was easy to see and keep organized. I store the makeup I wear only on occasion in another container, under the sink.
Purge the products
• Throw away all the older or expired bottles — perfume, makeup, masks, nail polish … That will get rid of more than you think!
• Clean makeup brushes avoid bacteria and skin irritation.
• Pull out makeup only used on occasion out of the drawer and put it in another container nearby. Then you can simplify everyday makeup and see it easily.
• Limit yourself to 2 sets of shampoo and conditioner. And subsequently, only buy another set when one has run out.
• Limit yourself to 2 or 3 hair stylers — curling irons, hair straighteners, hairdryer, etc.
• If you haven’t used anything left in the last 6 months, get rid of it.
When to throw makeup away
- Lipstick: one year
- Mascara & liquid eyeliner: 3 months
- Cream eyeshadows: 6 months
- Foundation: 6 months
- Powders: 2 years
- Pencil liners: 2 years
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All the trays except the one with makeup are from the Dollar Tree. Here are some similar ones online for convenience.
Favorite makeup
My beautiful, always-put-together friend Stephanie teaches us all about actual affordable makeup in this post. Man, she’s good!
Under the Sink
After I used up and threw away products I didn’t use, everything fit easily under the sink. And if it still doesn’t fit, then that means more has to go. Get ruthless!
I sort of went crazy in my house with small, clear storage boxes from the dollar store. There are definitely more beautiful storage containers out there but I prefer these because I can see what’s inside without having to open them. Also, you can’t beat the price. These are things that I don’t use every day.
Under the sink, I have containers for:
- hair accessories
- nail polish
- not frequently used makeup
- feminine products
- other (crest white strips, tanning wipes, eye patches …)
Beside the containers there is a basket of products I don’t use every day — hair products and a mask.
Use a caddy for everyday products to prevent leaving everything on the counter.
And finally, I’m trying something new and it’s working out well! I bought this caddy on clearance and Target and am using it to put all my everyday products and stick it under the sink. This keeps me from always leaving all my products out on the counter all the time!
When I get out of the shower, I plop this on the counter, use all my products and put it back. It’s even helping me remember to floss!
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The Man side
Marcello’s side is very simple. He doesn’t need a lot or keep a lot, so it’s easy.
Everything here is from the dollar store, even the trashcan.
Printable checklist
Click image to download hi-res version.
Check out my Ultimate Planners!
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Organizing series
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Genius idea to put your everyday items in a caddy!
Thanks, Christine! I didn’t know if it would work, but I’m still using it!
Excellent article and wonderful information. Such an informative post you share. Your explanation helps me more to renew my bathroom.
I came across your article about organizing the bathroom and I think it’s great! Thank you for putting all of this together–it’s really helpful.