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Bathroom storage can be one of the most valuable and most challenging storage areas in the home. In addition to the obvious functions, bathrooms also act as a prep area and a relaxation area so storage and organization here is key.
WHAT ARE YOU STORING?
What do you really need to store in your bathroom? Most bathrooms consist of the basics; soap, shampoo, q-tips, and maybe the occasional hair brush or two, right? Wrong! If you are like me, then that is probably not the case and you probably have enough clutter and toiletries in your bathroom to open a small store. Singles, couples and entire families usually manage to have more “stuff” then storage space in their bathrooms. So what do you do with it all after you find that shoving it under the sink isn’t the best solution?
DISPLAY OR NOT TO DISPLAY?
How you store your stuff will depend a lot on your style. Are you the type that likes everything off the counters and completely hidden, or do you like to display nice towels, soaps and other bathroom knick knacks as part of your decor? Either way, built-in storage is a great solution for both of these types. A low or full height cabinet with doors will work nicely for the person who wants to hide it all, whereas an open shelf unit can be designed to display knick knacks in a functional and well designed way. You can also have a piece designed to hide both your bulkier things while still displaying your nicer ones.
If you are someone who does not want a furniture look in the bathroom, you can build one of the walls out into the room and carve niches into it to act as shelving and storage. This carved out shelving gives a nice clean spa-like feel to your bathroom while still functioning as storage.
If built-in furniture or construction is not a solution for your bathroom, you can always go retail and buy some interesting shelving to hang on the walls to hide or display your stuff. A lot of big home retailers are creating unique shelving ideas that are not expensive and can be used to hide stuff as well as to display it.
EVERYDAY STUFF
Certain bathroom items like towels, soap and toilet paper, need to be out in the open for ease of use. Toilet paper holders have a few options. You can have a freestanding paper holder, a wall mount paper holder and even one that is built right into a vanity or wall. Which you choose will depend on the space you have near the toilet and what your preference is. When it comes to the extra rolls, some people opt to store those out of the bathroom all together, maybe in a linen closet in the hall. It can still be nice however, to have a few extra rolls handy in the bathroom itself. You can make them part of your décor by lining them up neatly on a decorative shelf right over your toilet or hiding them in a nice looking toilet paper storage unit.
Hand soap is another item that is best displayed near the sink for daily use. Some manufacturers make such nice packaging for their liquid soap that you can display it in a convenient place as is. If that is not organized enough, you can place a small, flat basket or interesting tray near the sink to hold your soap and other handy items.
Last but not least, towels to dry hands should not be too far from the sink area. Towels are one of the best things to display in a bathroom since they add a soft texture to the room. Traditional towel bars on the wall nearby are always functional and come in many styles. If your space is too tight for a towel bar, you can always try a towel ring instead. If you want to get creative, you can use a long cabinet pull the size of a towel bar across the top part of your sink vanity door. This will act as both a place to hang your towel as well as the handle to open the doors to your vanity. Just make sure that the handle it is deep enough to get the towel around comfortably. If you don’t have a vanity below your sink counter, certain towel bars can be mounted right underneath the counter for a more minimal look.
Whatever your storage issues may be, just remember to pay attention to how you live and what will please both your aesthetic principals as well as your functional ones. Don’t forget who will be using this bathroom most and make sure that the stuff stored away is still easy enough to take out and put away. You will want to make sure your bathroom stuff stays organized and making it easy for people to do so will help.
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