When your bathroom cabinets are busting at the seams and your shelves are spilling over, it's time to get organized. Try these four easy organizing steps to bring some order to your chaos.
When your bathroom cabinets are busting at the seams and your shelves are spilling over, it's time to get organized. Try these four easy organizing steps to bring some order to your chaos.

1. Clean and Clear

Remove everything from the drawers and cabinets. Toss out all old and unused or out of date products: Make-up, hair care, lotions, medicines (check expiration dates). Remember, "When in doubt, throw it out!" Move your medicines and vitamins to the kitchen. The moisture and heat from the bath will ruin them.

As you sort through things, take the time to evaluate whether or not you really need each item. If you have kept perfume samples, and cosmetics that are the wrong color, now is the time to throw them out or give them away. If you aren't using them why keep them?

Wipe out the cupboards and shelves. Clean off the counter top. Replace the shelf paper on the shelves and in the cabinets if needed.

2. Only the Essentials

The next step is to organize your belongings. Start by putting back only the essential items that you use every day. Put them in locations where they will be easily accessible. Try to store what you can under the sink in plastic bins. If you have the room, give each family member their own plastic bin to store their toiletries.

As you arrange your counter top, try to put out only the things that you will use on a regular basis. If you can get away without anything on the counter, that is even better. There will be less to clean.

If you have decorative items, now is the time to review their relevancy. If you don't really love them, replace them or remove them all together. There is no sense in having things you don't really love in your home; especially if you need to clean them.

3. Making Families

Categorize your shelves and drawers by creating families of like items: shaving products, hair styling, makeup, nails, personal hygiene items, first aid, medicines, etc.

4. Relocate the Excess

Make sure that only items that belong in the bathroom are in the bathroom. Transfer cleaning products to a caddy and store them under the kitchen sink. Store surplus toilet paper, shampoo and seasonal items, such as beach towels, tanning, or sunburn lotions in the hall closet or other location.

4. Storage Ideas

Make use of dead space. Try using any or all of the following organizing ideas: wall mounted cabinets, carts on wheels, hooks on back of door, shower caddies, coat rack, hanging mesh bag for holding children's bath toys, wall mount hair dryer and curling iron, drawer organizers.

Once your bathroom is organized, sit back and admire your work. If you make this an annual project, your bathroom will always be a joy to use. Now go take a bubble bath. You deserve it!

About the Author

Martha Matthews is the Editor of Christian-Homemaking.com, a web site with resources dedicated to Christian homemaking. In addition to her web site, she also has a popular free monthly newsletter for Christian wives called The Wives of Excellence Newsletter. To subscribe send a blank email to wivesofexcellence-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. Or visit our web site at http://www.christian-homemaking.com/newsletter.html