Organizing Under the Bathroom Sink – 5 Super Simple Steps

Organizing under the bathroom sink is a task that’s well worth your time! It’s a small enough task to complete in under an hour but makes a big enough impact to save you so much time and energy every day.

And let’s be honest. It doesn’t take much to make a bathroom sink look like a disaster zone. Between toothpaste, soap, cosmetics, and miscellaneous bottles it’s easy to see why this area has often been deemed a “catch-all” space.

For many of us, organizing the bathroom can be quite a challenge. It’s a room with many functions and often not a lot of space. How do we organize it all without pulling our hair out in the process?

We have one bathroom for our family of six. It also doubles as my laundry room. So believe me when I say I know how it feels to be frustrated with your bathroom. Even now, I am continually looking for new ways to maximize our space.

However, I finally conquered this area and I believe you can too! Here are my favorite bathroom storage ideas that will work for any home!

Make a Plan Before Looking at Bathroom Storage Ideas

Before getting started with organizing the bathroom sink, think about these three things:

1 ) Outward appearance.

Ideally, you’ll want a clean, simple presentation. Of course, your preferences may be different than mine and that’s OK.

But I’ve found that the less things “living” on the bathroom counter, the better! I like to keep the countertop very minimal with just soap and maybe a candle on top of the vanity. Everything else is tucked away behind the bathroom cabinet door. 😉

2) Functionality.

Again, this is an individual preference. If you have no kids, you can afford to have a nice vase of flowers sitting by the sink. If you have four rambunctious children, like me, you almost certainly do not want said vase of flowers. Or anything similar.

In fact, less is better. Because the more there is, the more likely I’m going to have to pick it up/clean it/or follow up on children who are supposed to take care of it. Less really is more.

3) What needs to be stored here.

The next step to organizing under the bathroom sink is to think about what you are actually storing in this space.

Some people store extra toilet paper, cleaning supplies, towels, and other miscellaneous items under their bathroom sinks. It’s also common for many of us to keep our toothpaste, razors, or soap dishes.

However, if you have a linen closet in the room, you don’t need to store towels or larger items under the sink. Even hair tools like a hair dryer or a curling iron can go in a different storage space like your bedroom, if that’s where you fix your hair. However, if you’re like my family…a lot needs to fit under the vanity. And that’s okay!

With those three thoughts in mind, let’s look at how I organized our bathroom vanity. This includes my tips for organizing under the bathroom sink and drawer storage for makeup, hair accessories, and more.

How to Start Organizing Under the Bathroom Sink

So, this is our bathroom vanity. Pretty small for a family of 6! But, we make it work and you can too. Here’s how.

1. Use Your Cabinet Door Space

The space on the back of the bathroom doors is prime space, especially for those who have a small bathroom!

We use ours for this handy toothbrush organizing method on the door. This continues to be a fantastic way to use space and minimize the mess of kids’ toothbrushes.

2. Use Bins and Containers to Keep Things Neat

Under the sink, there’s a clean baby wipes bin (I need to dedicate an entire post to all the ways I use those handy things!) where I store lotion and skincare products for the children.

There’s also a small white bin for a sponge that Emily uses to wipe down the counter and sink each morning. We keep cleaning supplies pretty minimal in the bathroom and store them elsewhere.

That’s my mouthwash there too; it’s too tall to fit in the overhead cabinet so it’s home is down below. Nathan also has his own mouthwash (which he had just emptied last night) and that sits in front of mine normally.

I highly recommend you take this time to get your medicine cabinet organized too. I’ll show you how in a few simple steps!

3. Use the Vertical Space

On the right is a sliding basket organizer I picked up from Bed, Bath, and Beyond using a 20% off coupon. They also sell similar ones on Amazon. I love, love, love this handy little organizer. It’s slim enough to fit in the space next to the pipes, but it’s so useful!

The bottom bin holds my hair products, while the top bin holds my brushes, combs, and two taller hair products that won’t fit on the bottom.

4. Add a Makeup Drawer:

How we each organize (or not) our makeup is probably just as individual as the makeup we each wear (or not.) I’m a pretty minimal girl. I prefer to keep my routine simple and often don’t wear makeup at all. It’s not that I don’t want to – it’s just that I often don’t get around to it.

Here’s my organized makeup drawer:

One of the first steps in organizing your makeup is to get rid of the expired stuff. Click here for a simple guide to how long makeup lasts: Makeup Expiration Dates.

Once I purged my expired stuff and items I never used, I separated my makeup into two categories:

1. Makeup I wear on a regular, daily-basis-when-I-have-time
2. Makeup I wear on special occasions

I found these handy little containers at Walmart in the plastic food storage containers section. (Just $2 for 4 of them! Score!) They are perfect for stacking too and do the job quite nicely.

I store my special-occasion makeup in a closed bin on the bottom…

…and my daily makeup bin sits nicely on top. I don’t bother with a lid because it’s easier to just reach in.

The rest of my makeup drawer contains my other simple routine items:

A small bin for miscellaneous items – pencil sharpener, powder, a brush. My hand mirror. SPF moisturizer. Deodorant. Coconut oil (it’s a great natural moisturizer.)

I also bought a spice jar and use that to store q-tips (my favorite way to “erase” mistakes.)

Want to learn more about makeup organizations? Grab my favorite tricks here!

5. Organize the Hair Accessories Drawer:

I have long hair so I like to keep an assortment of hair accessories. Previously, my “hair stuff” drawer was horrible. It was packed with my brushes, flat iron, and blow dryer (on top of my hair clips and other items) and that all made for an unorganized messed.

I’ve since found a different spot for my blow dryer and flat iron. {I’ll share that in a different post.}

Here is my organized hair accessories drawer:

Once again, I used plastic storage containers. {This is a great way to make use of those containers whose lids have disappeared.}

I had some extra shower curtain hooks , which were perfect for containing my hair ties. Now, I can easily choose one.

Another container holds clips and barrettes and a small container for bobby pins.

Bobby pins used to drive me nuts. I rarely need them, but could never find them when I did. So when I found this small container with a clear lid by the spice jars at Bed, Bath, and Beyond for $1-2, I knew it was perfect.

Lastly, here is Emily’s hair accessories drawer. I found pink bins on sale at Michael’s and it’s worked really well. Emily loves being able to quickly find whatever she needs.

The last drawer in my bathroom vanity belongs to my husband. Let’s just say that it is not currently organized and that organizing and husbands are a whole ‘nother post. 😉

So, there you have it! Organizing under the bathroom sink doesn’t have to be complicated or fussy. Simply make the most of the space you have!

More Tips for Home Management:

• Organizing Essential Oils the Easy Way
• Small Kitchen Drawer Organization Tips
• How to Organize a Small Closet with Lots of Clothes
• 5 Creative and Easy Tips for Organizing Toys