At the Intersection of Art, Architecture & Design

One of the frequent complaints I hear about bathrooms is the lack of attractive, convenient storage for the items we use – makeup, hair dryers, oral care products, shaving products, lotions, and so on.  Too often the items remain on a crowded vanity because if there’s a place to store them, it’s not convenient.  Of course, there’s also the problem of storing towels, tissues, toilet tissue and other bulkier items.

Create a Vanity Alcove with a Cabinet

Build a 12” deep, full-height or 72” high cabinet to create an alcove for the sink.  In this bath, the cabinet (on the right) also forms a partial wall hiding the toilet.  I put one or more outlets inside the cabinet so that hairdryer, electric toothbrush, electric razor can all be easily accessible at waist-height or above but easily stowed behind closed doors.  Makeup and other toiletries are also easily stored out of sight but still close to hand.  At 30” wide, 12” deep, and 72” high, all the daily items are close at hand with room below to store toilet tissue, towels, extra soap, extra shampoos and other bath items below waist level.  With a deck-mounted soap dispenser (not used here), you can have a convenient yet still completely uncluttered countertop.

Bath Storage - Build A Storage Tower Beside the Vanity

Create tower storage next to a vanity to serve both the toilet and the vanity.  In the bath, above, a storage tower to the right of the vanity has an alcove with shelves facing the vanity into which the countertop extends; there are 2 outlets – one at each shelf level inside the tower.  So the water pick and razor are stored out-of-sight.  A hotel-style wall-mounted hair dryer is mounted just to the left of the tower.  The door below the alcove opens so that someone sitting on the toilet can easily reach excess toilet tissue.  The doors above the alcove open so that someone standing at the vanity can easily reach items.  The shallow countertop with wall-mounted faucet puts the center mirror close to someone shaving so that they don’t need to bend forward.  The vanity itself has custom-built drawers that fit around the valves and trap – providing useful drawer space instead of less useful space behind doors.

Recess a Cabinet into the Adjoining Room

Recess a cabinet into the wall and borrow a small amount of space from the adjoining room.

Carve Out Space in Wing Wall

Carve out space in a wing wall for items often stored in a medicine cabinet..

Claim Space Wasted in the Tub Surround

Claim space inside the curve of a bathtub by building tilt-out bins into the tub surround.

Deep Drawers & Shallow Cabinets

Build drawers and cabinets alongside a sink cabinet:  In the bath, above, a 9” deep tall cabinet provides lots of room for toiletries and makeup.  An identical cabinet above the toilet (not shown) provides storage for extra toiletries.  Deep drawers provide storage for extra soap, shampoos, and towels.  Fresh towels are also available in the space under the sink.  Again, an outlet inside one of the drawers keeps the hairdryer closet to hand but out of sight.

I would love to get photos of some of the storage solutions you’ve done in your own remodels.  Contact me and I’ll give you instructions for sending me your photos.

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