How To Organize A Bathroom Closet
Bathroom closets are often catch-alls for anything and everything remotely related to self-care. We store towels, medicine, toiletry supplies, first-aid gear, massage devices, facial steamers, spare bed sheets; you name it. If you’re unsure how to organize a bathroom closet, it quickly becomes a chaotic mess, adding a snowball of stress to your day.
Get rid of excess clutter in your bathroom closet and pare down to just the essentials. Make a home for everything using proper storage that allows you to keep your items visible and accessible. Label everything, so it’s easier for everyone to return items to their proper place.
At its core, organizing your bathroom closet is a relatively simple process. But sometimes, you likely get so overwhelmed and stuck, you don’t know where to begin. Therefore, even basic tips and suggestions can become huge “aha” moments and the precise momentum you need to get started.
10 Steps To An Organized Bathroom Closet
Grab a few trash bags, roll up your sleeves, and get ready to change your life. Okay, that might sound a little over the top, but really, when your bathroom closet is organized, life seems more manageable. You don’t take as long to get ready, you’re less stressed, and you don’t waste money on excess products.
Plan a time when you can devote a couple of hours to the project and take frequent breaks, so you don’t get overwhelmed. Use these steps to help you hash out your plan of attack.
1. It’s Time To Take Everything Out Of The Bathroom Closet
Take everything out of the closet and lay it out on a flat surface. You can use the floor, the top of your bed, the bathroom vanity, etc. Don’t leave any item behind; it all comes out so you can get a clear picture of what you have.
This is also a great time to wipe down your closet shelves and clean the closet floor. When everything is out of the closet, measure your available space. Take note of how wide and deep the shelves are and how much space is in between them.
2. Only Keep Your Essentials
Do a quick pass through of all your stuff to pare down your inventory. Toss out anything expired, broken, or worn out. Donate items you never use and any duplicates. Look over the remaining items and be realistic about what you actually need.
Anything that doesn’t serve a purpose takes up valuable space in your bathroom closet. Plus, it’s more inventory that you have to take care of that depletes your time and energy.
3. Sort Like Items
Start making piles of similar items. Makeup in one pile, skincare in another, towels in another, and so on. Do a final assessment now that everything is in categories. This is typically a good time to weed out a few more extraneous things that are creating clutter.
At this point, throw out the trash bags and remove the items to donate from the room. Only leave what you plan to keep in the bathroom closet. Now you can get an accurate idea of what you need to organize and how you want to organize it.
4. Make A Plan For Your Bathroom Closet
By now you should have your measurements and a vision of everything that needs to go in the closet. Map out where you want things to go based on the frequency of use and category.
For example, you might decide to store your facial steamer on the top shelf because you only use it once a month. (Remember, if you don’t use it at all, it should have left the room in the previous step.) To help you decide where you should put your various things, think about your A, B, Cs.
5. Say Your A, B, Cs
Anything you use every day is considered an A item. If you use something once or twice a week, it’s a B. Items you use regularly but not weekly, they get a C. Finally, items you need to keep but only access a couple of times a year, those are a D. If any items surpass a D, then it’s best to let them go.
To put it in more concrete terms, your list might look something like this.
- A items — towels, makeup, current skincare regimen, daily medications, deodorant
- B items — hair dryer, razors, facial masks, nail care
- C items — trimmers, spare bed sheets, first aid supplies, spa devices (facial steamers, massagers, etc.), extra toilet paper
- D items — these would be things like backstock items (but only if you have room for them). Maybe you keep one or two bins on the top shelf with extra toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, etc.
6. Choose Containers Wisely
After you’ve planned out where everything will go, it’s time to decide the best way to store it. This is the step in the process when you should get any storage containers you need.
Many people start by buying containers, but this is a waste of time and money. Wait until you know what you actually need to store, so you get the correct sizes and types of bins, baskets, and shelving.
If you have a lot of room between shelves, consider stacking drawers. Clear drawers are great for keeping things visible. But if you have anything you prefer to keep hidden, opt for a decorative bin or basket. For deeper shelves, lazy Susans are an excellent way to easily access all your items.
For items you use daily to get ready (skincare, makeup, etc.), consider setting up a prep station on a tray. Keep the tray front-and-center on a shelf. Take it out, get ready, then return it to its place in the closet. This keeps your vanity clutter-free and helps maintain a sense of calm in your bathroom.
If you’re working with a smaller closet, use over-the-door shelves or a shoe organizer. Hang it on the closet door to store various bottles, towels, or other items you use frequently.
7. Consider Alternative Storage Options
Another thing to do if you have a small bathroom closet is to consider potential alternative storage places. For example, your towels could look very pretty rolled up and placed in a decorative basket next to your tub.
Maybe you can hang a shelf above the bathroom door with baskets for your back-stock items. Or perhaps you can organize a makeup drawer in your vanity.
There are all sorts of creative ways to organize your belongings, so experiment and don’t be afraid to think outside the box. The most important part of organizing any space is to do it in a way that works for you so that you can maintain it easily.
8. Label Containers
After you have everything back in its place, label all your containers. It defines homes for the items and makes it so much easier to find what you’re looking for. Labels also make it easier for everyone else in the household to put things away in their proper places.
9. Be Intentional With What You Bring Into Your Space
Once you have a newly organized bathroom closet, enjoy it. Be intentional with anything new you bring into the space. Don’t say yes to every makeup sample that comes your way. Say no thank you when your friend asks if you want their set of bath towels. Only add new items that you genuinely need, will use, and love.
10. Regularly Refresh Your Bathroom Closet
Make it a habit to do a regular tidy of your bathroom closet. It might be a quick ten minutes once a week or once a month. Evaluate what items you’re using and which you aren’t. Toss out expired items and make sure everything is in its home.
A Bathroom Closet Can Be A Thing Of Beauty
With a little bit of dedication and effort, your bathroom closet can be a source of triumph. You’ll feel so much better once you’ve streamlined the contents and simplified your morning routine. Assessing what you have, only keeping the essentials, and organizing everything in a way that makes sense to you are critical factors.
With an organized space, you save time, energy, and money, which means less stress. An organized bathroom closet can truly change your whole perspective and how you tackle your day.
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Stacy Randall is a wife, mother, and freelance writer from NOLA that has always had a love for DIY projects, home organization, and making spaces beautiful. Together with her husband, she has been spending the last several years lovingly renovating her grandparent's former home, making it their own and learning a lot about life along the way.
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