Tips For Decluttering Under Your Bathroom Sink

Whether you're moving into a new place or have lived in your home for years, keeping things tidy and organized can be simple at first but can quickly become a mess. Since everything is hidden behind cabinets, it's as if the mess is invisible until the doors are open. Although the hardest place to keep clean is under the bathroom sink since it's a smaller space taken up mostly by a pipe, according to House Beautiful. You start accumulating so many products, hair tools, skincare, and more, that it all begins to pile up.

It can be time-consuming to try to declutter everything, but once you start and finish, the satisfaction of seeing a clean space is well worth the hours. Organizing everything into bins, caddies, or containers can help you keep everything in its place without worrying about having to deep clean it again. Here are a few tips to get you started on having a cleaner space.

Before you begin placing your items into any containers, you do want to make sure that you throw out any unused items and give your space a good clear-out. It'll give you a better idea of what items you need to replace in case some have run out of product. It's also a great time to throw out expired products you didn't know you had, via Real Homes. Regularly checking the expiration dates on your products, especially cleaning products, will be better for your bathroom. You don't want to continue using products that have expired and don't work the way they're supposed to.

Cleaning out the items you don't use also makes it easier to make a list of the things you do need for new products you'd like to try out. You always want to make sure you're keeping bathroom-related items under the sink so that you don't have random things that could make the space messy. Buying products that you truly need will prevent a cluttered mess.

Before you buy containers or bins, it's best to measure out every storage space you have under your bathroom sink. You definitely don't want to be going back and forth to the store to exchange for different sizes or purchase more if there's more room. Most cabinets measure 20", according to The Container Store, so you'll want to find out if yours is that measure or slightly different. Measuring out the space is simple; all you need is a measuring tape, paper, a pen, scissors, and a shelf liner.

Using your measure tape, measure the width, height, and depth of your cabinet. As you make the measurements, write down your numbers so that you don't forget. Once you have all your measurements written down, use those to measure out your shelf liner so that it fits perfectly. After you've installed your shelf liner, you buy your containers if you haven't bought them or start categorizing your products.

In order to be able to keep all your items in place, purchasing any bins, containers, or modular drawers will do the trick. They come in a variety of sizes so that they'll fit in your space. There are also numerous colors that they come in, so you can fit them to go with the theme of your bathroom or decorate it in a fun way. Most people go for clear containers; since it's easier to see through them, you won't have to spend a long time looking through them to find what you're looking for.

You can purchase containers from Amazon, Target, Walmart, Dollar Tree, or any other similar store. You don't need to spend a lot of money on them; they're going to be hidden anyway. Once you've measured out your space, you'll be able to know which bins will fit properly under your sink. Bob Vila suggests various types of bins or caddies you can buy to fit underneath your sink and hold as many products as possible. There are containers that can be attached to the inside wall and slide in and out of the cabinet while it's on a rail. Sometimes the generic containers don't hold enough, so using a lazy Susan can hold more and use the same amount of space.

Once you finish cleaning out your space, clean the inside with a damp washcloth just to get rid of any dust or dirt that accumulated over time. Taryn Newton suggests categorizing all your products into different sections that pertain to different bathroom things, such as shower products, cleaning products, feminine products, skincare, etc. Categorizing will make your cabinet space clean and organized. You'll be able to figure out which products to put in which containers or bins.

If you have a mix of cabinets and drawers underneath your sink, then you can divide the products between the drawers and have more storage space. Keeping your skincare in a top drawer will keep them in a good condition and easier to grab when you need them. Categorizing your items will make refilling your products painless since you'll be able to tell by the free space in your containers when you're out of something.

After categorizing all of your products, you're ready to fill them in your containers. You'll want to place all your containers in your cabinet first before filling them with products. That way, if you need to move containers around, they're not filled and too heavy to move. Cleaning products are bigger and bulkier, so you'll want a couple of containers for them so that they don't overcrowd the space.

When you're deciding on how to fit them, keep in mind to have direct access to any pipes in case you ever have issues and need to call a plumber, via Real Homes. You can keep them at the back of the cabinet so that they're not blocking the pipes. It won't be blocked off by too many products, instead, you'll have enough wiggle room. Utilizing every free space you have for your products will make everything fit perfectly, and you won't need to relocate items to other bathrooms.

The great thing about your cabinets is you're not limited to just the open space, you can use the inside of the cabinet doors as a means for extra storage if you run out of room. House Beautiful reports buying an over-cabinet storage basket that has a couple of baskets to put items you use frequently, such as any cleaning products, so that they're easily accessible. You can also use command strips that have hooks to hang any items or a hair tool caddy that will keep all the wires from being everywhere.

In order to make sure the doors shut all the way, leave space inside the cabinet so that it doesn't bump into anything or use lower containers so that the caddy or hanging items rest just above them. You can always measure the height and length of your cabinet door to figure out which caddy will work best.