Bathroom Makeover

As I've mentioned before, Pinterest has pressured me into re-organizing my entire life. Enter: My bathroom.  This photo came up on my pinterest feed just when my bathroom was complete chaos from traveling for Christmas and New Year's and a shelf falling off the wall due to shoddy anchor drilling (apartment's not my husband's). The worst part? Same color scheme as my bathroom. It was telling me to shape up and showing me my inadequacy.

So now the pictures of shame.

BEFORE:

You can see the how the shelf is not above the towel rack (and how the towel rack is not really holding many towels) but rather behind the toilet itself.  All my headbands/clips that were in a basket on that shelf were in a pile on the counter and there were just too many products haphazardly thrown about! It was frustrating to even think about cleaning the counter.

I think now would be an excellent time to comment on how when I read these "organization" blogs much like this one, I'm struck by how the spaces they organize look awesome to begin with.  It makes me worry about these people.  Why do they need to exert so much control over their lives? I need to organize because my stuff is a hot mess. Anyway, back to the photos of shame (you should say that in a booming announcer voice).

There aren't even words. Thank goodness we haven't had guests over because I'm sure someone would snoop and see this secret shame.

Close up of the chaos.

 So, obviously, something needed to be done.  I was frustrated getting ready in the morning (but who am I kidding? I'm studying for the bar so "getting ready" consisted of me walking to the office in my PJs and changing around 1pm to hit the gym before lunch...). Maybe the reason I've been in sweatpants the last month is because of my bathroom.  Yeah, that must be it.

So, with about an hour of time and some new bins from Target, I got to work (on a Monday night at 10:30pm after doing a full-length practice MBE and then reviewing all my answers). I was crazed.  It just had to be done.

AFTER:

The cats keep photo-bombing.  The mirror looks strange because I blurred myself out.

I wasn't sure what to do with the new (now usable) shelf above the towel rack.  I opted for a white wire basket I already owned with rolled washcloths for color and then a flower pot (that now hosts wine corks).  I also decided it would be best to have extra tp around.  I will probably add some more decorative touches later, but for now I wanted to keep this low-budget and use what I already owned.

Again, the mirror is weird looking because I was looking rough.

What a difference, right? I bought the plastic shoeboxes from Target--set of 5 for like $7.

Each bin has a theme. From bottom to top: Makeup bags, FemHy products, roundbrushes/ hair styling instruments, and headbands. Behind those are bins for travel products and refills of things I use on a regular basis (toothpaste, etc.) The drawers hold nail polish, first aid stuff and other misc. beauty products while the bin on top has my frequently used items.

My cat sees an open cabinet and comes running. He made it halfway in before I grabbed him and undid all the nicely folded towels.  Hence, this photo on the blog rather than the aftermath of a wily kitty.

You can also see my makeup organization here. I have cotton balls and q-tips in the white ceramic containers, makeup brushes and mascara in the cup and then my makeup in the plastic drawers.

Lipsticks, creams, hair ties and hairdryer.

Close up of small drawers.  I want to get something a little more classy that sterilite, but it will have to do for now. I put a little bowl of inspiring words to make it a little less dorm room.

"The best way to predict your future is to create it."

I love seeing that quote every morning when I get ready.

I bought this espresso cup while I was in Rome following my graduation from college.  It reminds me of all the fun times I had with my cousin and is a perfect place to store my jewelry at the end of the day (before the jewelry makes it back to its home in my jewelry box... yet another thing that needs organization!).

In summary,
Cost: $25 (5 shoebox bins and the medium size drawers under the sink from Target)
Time: 1 hour+ (this is not including the several day gap between initial organization and having to wait for the apt. maintenance people to re-install the shelf).
Verdict: So much better! It's been over a week, and it still looks just as pretty. Cleaning the counter this week was so much easier too. It makes me want to reassess Erik's / the guest bathroom.