Boring built ins in my bathroom

Nikki
by Nikki
I have a lovely old home with some beautiful built ins but they are BORING and they need an up do! HELP? My creativity is limited to what I see others do with boring spaces. Four drawers below and then open shelving above provide NICE storage in the bathroom. No doors hide the area though they were there in the past and have been removed by an owner before me. Again, HELP? As you can see, I am cleaning and things are not organized, but you get the drift.
  26 answers
  • Can you provide some photos? This will aid a lot on ideas to answer your questions.
  • Nikki Nikki on Jan 24, 2015
    I thought I did. I uploaded three. . . Will try again.
  • Nikki Nikki on Jan 24, 2015
    There you go! Success the second time around!
  • Carol Oswald Carol Oswald on Jan 24, 2015
    I would take down the shower curtain. Install the tension rod INSIDE and hang short bathroom curtains inside just to hide the top shelves. then I would stencil or wallpaper the walls behind the two lower shelves and put all your product in baskets to make it neat and orderly. Finally, I would treat the drawers as a dresser and decorate like some of the ideas I am linking. Paper, fabric or decals will dress up the drawers nicely! You can add molding around the edges of the drawer treatment to make the drawers look more high-end. http://hometalk.com/diy/bedroom/dressers/dresser-with-fabric-inlay-2487820 http://hometalk.com/diy/bedroom/dressers/book-page-decoupaged-dresser-143617 http://hometalk.com/diy/bedroom/dressers/diy-decal-dresser-1689317
    • B. Enne B. Enne on Aug 17, 2015
      @Carol Oswald I would do your drawer (good links) and pretty baskets idea, but instead of a short curtain, I would leave it as open storage and put a coordinating paper behind the shelves as @Lucy Nunn and @Erin Schanen suggested.
  • Nikki Nikki on Jan 24, 2015
    NICE.... I can start there. All products were in baskets, but I am cleaning and decided now was a good time to get some help with this "space."
  • Louise Kovar Louise Kovar on Jan 25, 2015
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  • Lucy Nunn Lucy Nunn on Jan 25, 2015
    There are super cool wallpapers. I'd wallpaper the backs of the shelves. Then for fun, the sides of the drawers....it would only show when you open the drawers.
  • Erin Schanen Erin Schanen on Jan 25, 2015
    I'd ditch the curtain too and just keep it as open storage. If you can spare the space that goes up beyond the door frame (but who can?), get a full depth shelf for there. Buy 1x2s cut to the length of the shelves to attach to the front edge to make the shelves look chunkier and more built in. Wallpaper in the back is a great idea, new hardware on the bottom, beautiful baskets, nicely folded or rolled towels, etc, and I think it will be great.
  • Robin Miller Cresci Robin Miller Cresci on Jan 25, 2015
    First, I would update the drawer pulls. I would paint behind the shelves for an accent color. If you go with wallpaper, make sure you buy the proper kind for a bathroom. Lose the shower curtain. Some baskets, or the cotton canvas lined baskets that are so popular right now. I would lose the clutter into the drawers. Some pretty towels stacked, with some lovely storage jars filled with necessities. And lastly, I would like to say I am jealous!! I wish I had that kind of storage in my bath!! Try this link for some lovely bathroom items for ideas; http://www.hm.com/us/department/HOME
  • Marie Cole Marie Cole on Jan 25, 2015
    Hi Niki! I see everyone is saying get rid of the fluffy curtains (they don't understand us Idahoans, haha!) and I have to agree, however, if you don't like a wide open look, go check out some sheers as there are very beautiful ones these days. I have a friend with a situation like yours. She is 10 times more organized than I am and has an eye for these things so I will tell you what she did. In her bathroom there are two contrasting colors. For shelves like these the the majority of the area is painted the lightest color the she used her darker color for contrast, such as the ledge, or like where you have a strip of wood on the side. As for the drawers, you would need to decide which looked best as a main color and which as an accent depending on the rest of the room. Remember: darker colors make things look smaller so keep that in mind. My friend is a huge believer in baskets and/or decorative boxes ( either plain or decorated..if decorated, get all the same pattern) in easy but functional sizes. She labels them in block lettering in simple terms : "HIS", "MINE", "LOTIONS", ...you get the idea on nicely cut heavy paper that is either glued on or tacked on. She mixes the basket/boxes so that it looks artful and not as if it's a store room, putting rolled hand towels here and there as accents as well as for quick grabs. Finish it and the rest of the bathroom off with new drawer pulls. If your budget is like mine this will seem a little daunting, however utilize use goods(clothing and such) stores for some of the baskets you will be putting highest up and buy newer for those more visible. Use all of coupons you can to the various craft stores when buying the baskets/boxes as this will save you tons! Make an estimated guess on how many you will need so that if you are trying to match sizes or colors you can get them. If you have too many take back what you don't need. The used goods stores won't return your money, so be careful there. to a building recycling store if there is one close by for the dresser pulls (you can always mix and match, but dot go overboard), and if you don't have left over paint from the rest of you house, I'd suggest either buying the least expensive for this job (make sure it can handle humidity), or, again check out the building recycling place..make sure you have enough! I hope I didn't confuse you too much. A couple of last things I've learned over the years: my personal preference is to put the towels and wash cloths in the drawers, instead of shelves (no one can see them messed up that way, ha, ha!). Purchase some drawer dividers not just to keep things in the drawers tidy but any small items in the baskets/boxes too...look for ones sturdy but that you could cut if you need to individualize. If you buy small containers to put things like cotton balls, q-tips, etc., in remember they have to be filled up so if that isn't your style and those are things that will tend to get scattered, assign them a box or drawer instead and leave in original packaging. Have fun with your makeover, Marie
  • Marion Nesbitt Marion Nesbitt on Jan 25, 2015
    Replace the missing doors to keep the character of your home - you could also add a mirror to the front with a bit of trim. Why have to keep moving curtains aside when you want something. Open shelving - toothpastes and all the other "stuff" in a bathroom, in my opinion, are not display items.
  • Sherry Fram Sherry Fram on Jan 25, 2015
    Take down the curtains first, then paint a bright cheery color inside the built in & leave the outside white. Put some new hardware on the drawers & add some pretty baskets or fabric bins to house all the shelf contents. Good luck!
  • Country Design Home Country Design Home on Jan 25, 2015
    Hi Nikki! My mom has the exact same setup in her bathroom, and she also has the shower curtain hanging to hide the collected stuff-lol. My suggestion is to embrace the open shelving concept, but with some style. Paint or wallpaper the back wall in whatever color complements the rest of the bathroom. Use tin pails with chalkboard fronts or cloth patterned baskets (like the kind you get at Michael's or HomeGoods.) in the upper shelves. I would replace those games with some rolled towels in yummy colors that complement the bath.
  • Tracy Tracy on Jan 26, 2015
    I would spray paint the handles first to give it a bit of pop. I have those exact same handles and my opinion of them changed when they became aqua blue! Also a great time to purge! Take absolutely everything out and put back only what you use on. Also, you don't mention what you have in the drawers. But I would put all those bottles and games in the drawers and place towels, toilet paper and larger items on the shelves. There are so many great glass, plastic, metal, fabric and wicker baskets out there. I am not sure if this is a master bath or kids bath or hall bath - but I used 3 emptied animal cracker bears (kids at them!) on a shelf in my kids bath for storage stuff and they looked really cute. Think outside the box - you don't always have spend much on organization.
  • Nikki Nikki on Jan 26, 2015
    In answer to some questions: top drawer is my daughter's and my hair care. ALL OF IT. Curling irons to mousse. I hate to look at it and all the hair bows are in their proper place. I am an organized freak and I hate errant hair bands laying around the house. DRIVES ME NUTS. Second drawer is towels. Third one down is full of table clothes, hankies, casserole covers, etc. You know, the stuff you use but rarely and WANT to save because some of it belonged to your grandmothers. Bottom drawer is my hubby's stash of extras (deodorants, razors, aspercream, etc.). He can find it and is happy he can reach it. I hide feminine hygiene on the uppermost shelves out of site cause I do NOT display some things, that is why the games are lower (10 year old can reach them). I have considered transforming my hall closet into the game/puzzle closet and putting the sheets in the bathroom. . . . . That would certainly LOOK better on display and rotate the "summer" sheets and "winter" sheets to lower and higher shelves depending on the season. . . .
  • Lindcurt Lindcurt on Jan 26, 2015
    It appears to me that the products on the bottom shelf do not need so much "head room". Could you raise that shelf up a couple of inches and maybe make it as deep as the other two shelves? Then you may have room on the side walls to hang some decorative baskets to store those extra products. 2 or maybe three on each side depending on what you can find..
  • LibrarianTellsAll LibrarianTellsAll on Jan 26, 2015
    There are a lot of great suggestions here. I agree that going without a curtain, and painting the back of the shelves, would be pretty. My biggest suggestion is to edit down the number of items on the shelves! First, move the board games to the family room. Then, grab a list of when beauty products expire (I like this one; http://www.cbn.com/health/naturalhealth/cosmeticdangers2.aspx) and throw away anything that you've had too long. If you can't remember when you bought it, you've probably had it too long. ;-) But this website can also help you figure out how old the product is, using the batch code: http://checkcosmetic.net/ You'll probably end up with less than half as many items to deal with, and that will make the shelves look a LOT more attractive. I'd using matching caddies to corral the remaining stuff. And arrange a pretty vignette somewhere on the shelves, so it's fun to look there.
    • Swan Road Designs Swan Road Designs on Jan 26, 2015
      @LibrarianTellsAll Yep, move the games. I laughed out loud when I saw those. However, in your defense I have to relate that when I was a youngster our house had only one bathroom. My family was large, 5 children, so time the bathroom was cherished and guarded. Unfortunately for me, just outside the bathroom door my parents had a huge bookcase that was filled with all kinds of wonderful books. I LOVE to read and, well, you can imagine what I would do. If I had a penny for every time I was yelled at for staying in the bathroom for long periods of time, I'd be rich. I just envisioned playing Clue or some such thing and getting lost in the, um, activity. Never mind. At any rate, I have the feeling you're feeling crowded and overwhelmed with your shelves. As you already are doing, thin out what can be relocated or tossed. Then, utilize nice baskets and decorative boxes to corral the rest of the stuff. I wouldn't use a curtain. As someone else already mentioned, you'd have to move it every time something was needed/wanted from the space. Plus, constant handling of the curtain will only mean it getting soil marks on it from hands and fingers. Imagine needing something just after applying liquid makeup. That stuff stains something fierce. Once you delegate the games to another place, you will have more real estate to play with for the rest of your goodies. Put less often used items on the uppermost shelf and work down from there. That's more efficient, rather than putting things of like size together. You'll spend unnecessary time looking for something tall with its tall shelfmates than where it is most often used.
  • Nikki Nikki on Jan 26, 2015
    Some of what you see is storage/stock pile/food supply. So I keep multiples and they are labeled as to which was bought when and expiration dates if necessary. Shelves are built in and no moving can be done. I tried that. YES -- Great suggestion. I promise to post the redo on here! It may take me a few days to get it all done though so don't hold your breath for a quick turn around. I have several irons in the fire. . . . Thanks also for websites to visit. VERY informative!
  • Belinda Todd Belinda Todd on Jan 26, 2015
    I would put the doors back up. I would buy some nice trim and put a frame on the front of the doors to give it some dimension and then paint and put some new handles on it.
  • Denise Lynch Denise Lynch on Jan 26, 2015
    Paint walls for behind shelves or use trendy wall paper or fabric to brighten it up and refresh. I don't know what the rest of your bath looks like, but I'd use bins with coordinating paper or fabric with cute little labels. You could even put the cute labels on the drawers, maybe inside a frame of the same paper of fabric. I'd use the same color elsewhere in the bath to tie it all together. fresh towels with coordinating rugs would make it a show place Oh, I forgot, between the bins leave room for a special piece of colored glass or two, candle holders, and always a live plant in a plane container. That's just a thought. Wish I could see the finished product!
  • Polly Andrews Polly Andrews on Jan 27, 2015
    Ditch the curtain. Wallpaper the backs of shelves or paint the entire inside a complimentary color to your bathroom decor. Update the drawer pulls for sure. Stash all the bathroom related stuff on the shelves in the drawers. Move anything that isn't related to the room.Store towels and washcloths on shelves in random stacks - not all in a row. Add a pretty candle or two and maybe a small mirror on a stand and a shallow basket with nice soaps (unwrapped for appeal and fragrance). A small framed print would be a nice addition as well.
  • PattyV PattyV on Feb 01, 2015
    How about a tension bar with a white curtain that would be long enough to hide the top two shelves. Then add match deep straw baskets to the bottom two shelves to hide all the stuff. Oh, and I would get rid of that curtain you have on the outside to streamline the room.
  • Trudy Trudy on Aug 15, 2015
    Lots of great answers. I didn't read all of them but I don't think anyone suggested adding ribbon trim to the front of the shelves for a fun "pop". You could also add them around a variety of different containers to help them match.
  • Wanda sinnema Wanda sinnema on Aug 25, 2015
    I'd also ditch the curtain, it makes the area look smaller and more cluttered.. I change the hardware to match the entire room, then I'd take matching baskets for all the small stuff- to keep it less cluttered-often available in sets or 2-3. I'd buy ones with cloth liners or make them if you sew. they can be washed and changed out as decor changes. M preference is white with pops of color in the liners.. a trick I have used in the past.. If you use a shower curtain ; BUY 2,, I always make a valance with the 2nd one and tie backs, or a roman shade. and make a 2nd set of liners for the baskets-seasonal or holiday is fun quick change... A few items on the drawer top for "stuff" for a mini vanity kept in a tray, since many holder homes have limited bathrooms.
  • Marion Nesbitt Marion Nesbitt on Aug 26, 2015
    Would be interested in your decision.
  • Rhonda Humphreys Rhonda Humphreys on Feb 05, 2016
    I would get rid of the curtain for sure. I also think I would change out the wood shelves. They look bowed and are a little thing. I would replace them with a thicker shelf. I would give it an overall paint. It would be great to replace them with glass doors for the shelving though it looks like it was a full door prior. If that's not in the budget then I would do what Polly Andrews suggested in the first comment and paint the wall behind the shelves a complimentary color. I would put all of the toiletries into nice storage baskets or cubes and towels up top. I think it could turn out really cute and can't wait to see what you decide to do with it. I'd love to see pictures.