If you’re on a mission to declutter your home – whether it be to prepare for downsizing, or simply to experience the many health benefits that living with less can provide, chances are you’re looking for storage solutions and clever hacks to make the decluttering journey all the more fruitful.
Decluttering is best tackled one room at a time, and when it comes to the bathroom, it can be a real struggle trying to find space to store everything neatly. Thankfully, there are a few solutions that will make your bathroom look like one you’d find in a magazine — neat, tidy and organised to within an inch of itself.
Before you begin the process of organising, make sure done a proper clean out. There’s no point making things look pretty if you’re just putting more unnecessary stuff back in. Do a proper cull of all of your beauty products and toiletries and throw away anything that looks a little worse for wear or that you no longer use. Makeup products have expiry dates, so be sure to bin anything that you’ve had for too long. As a general rule of thumb, powdered products such as blush, eye shadow and pressed power last 1-2 years, foundation lasts 6 months to two years, lipstick is good for up to two years, while mascara should be replaced every three months.
Bathroom drawers and cupboards are notorious for accumulating clutter. Whether it’s hordes of makeup that you’ve collected over the years or cupboards brimming with multiple toiletries and beauty products
With a little organisation, your bathroom can be transformed into a space where everything is easy to find and you no longer have to wade through piles of product to find your hairspray. There are a number of things that are designed to make drawers tidier. Invest in a bunch of drawer dividers, which you can pick up from Kmart for a few dollars, and start sorting your products into similar categories. For instance, store lipsticks and balms in one, while posers and compacts can be kept in another.
These fit neatly into the bottom of drawers, and make everything more visible upon opening. Make sure you measure the size of your drawers before you go shopping, because the dividers come in various lengths and depths.
If you’re lacking on cupboard storage space, baskets are a great solution. They can be stored underneath the sink and filled with anything from clean towels to neatly-stacked toiletries. Storage ladders are another great alternative if you have limited cupboards. Invest in a nice timber version with shelves that can be stacked with baskets and decorative pieces such as an indoor plant, and makes a nice statement in itself. If you have space, a mirrored medicine cabinet above the sink serves two purposes – you can use it as a mirror and it also provides plenty of hidden storage.
Small bathrooms can easily feel cluttered if you’re adding shelves or baskets on the ground. Instead, install some shelving on the walls. Be it floating shelves or a proper timber shelving unit, wall storage creates additional space for storage without reducing the floor space of your bathroom. Fixed to the wall, they can be used to store any number of things – from folded towels to hairdryers and appliances.