Ohmystinkinheck

… and everything in its place.

As I’m manning the details lately, one thing was driving me crazy. I was unable to use my sink in my bathroom for all the electrical appliances I was storing there. Our bathroom has very limited counter space - and when I say limited, I mean about 1 foot of counter space wedged between two sinks - and Jeff and I ended up sharing one of those sinks because all my appliances were shoved in the other.

I’ve been searching for a wall-mounted “something” to hold my blow dryer, flat iron and curling iron for a while. I wanted them OFF the counter, but not UNDER the counter, and not in the sink. Sure, I know that the bathrooms in all the magazines don’t sport the utilitarian look, but pee-shaw on that. I’ll take uncluttered and organized OVER a magazine ready bathroom vignette any day of the week.

I found a Chrome Curling Iron and Blower Holder and after bookmarking the “not so aesthetic” website for a few weeks, and not finding anything else close to what my mind’s eye visualized, I ordered it.

The holder is VERY HEAVY. Jeff had to secure it to a stud in the wall - molly bolts alone would not have kept this monstrosity from ripping through the sheetrock. After getting it affixed and getting everything set in it, I stepped back and saw….it was good. And then there was evening and then there was morning. (Can you tell we are reading through Genesis with the kids now?)

I would have preferred, and was looking for, a piece that lined-up all the holes in a straight line. That would have been more accessible, I thought. After thinking it over a while longer, I realized I don’t use the curling iron when I’m using the straight iron, or vice versa, so really the only thing I need available no matter what is the blow dryer.

So anyway, it works.
It works really well.

My next issue was make-up. I had all of mine dumped into two zippered pouches. I got tired of digging and dumping, so I went a’lookin’ for a solution. I preferred a kaboodle type of thing with a handle, but nearly every one I found looked more like a tacklebox. Granted, I’m not hurting in the makeup arena, but I must have less than most women if tackle boxes are what are purchased to organize their loot.

A couple of weekends ago we headed south to the next town over which has a Bed, Bath & Beyond. There, I found this little drawer organizer in the closet section. It is made of a sturdy, relatively heavyweight (for its size) acrylic. I can easily clean it up. I liked that it was clear and that there weren’t a dozen not-so-universally sized lipstick holes that I’d never use, and therefore, a waste of space. It was open-faced and though there wasn’t a handle, I liked it.

It fits perfectly right underneath my sink. Best yet, unlike my zippered pouches, I can see everything at once.

So now that I have my wardrobe and my bathroom tools organized, I’ll be moving on to my jewelry. Hmmmmm….

27 Responses to “A place for everything …”

1. Angella

   I heart organization. But you knew that.

   My bathroom drawer is in dire need. Wanna come over and help me organize it?

   ;)

2. OMSH

   Angella - Um…yea. Pick me up at the airport in 4 hours. I need to be home in time to get the kids from school. Shouldn’t be a problem.

   heh heh

   AS IF.

   *sigh*

3. Atomic Bombshell

   I love it! Seeing things all organized makes me want to sing out loud. Okay, so maybe I’m mildly OCD or something.

4. Jenn

   ahh I Love it! my mom has the same thing for her hairdryer etc.. very good idea! love the makeup dooda, i have mine all thrown in a drawer, not good.. i need to clean out my bill and junk drawer. i dont know about anyone else, but i start to panic when things arent organized or clean.. so everytime i walk passed that drawer i freak a lil, and thinking about it pretty much makes me skin crawl.. so after ya head to Angella’s, fly this way, heck ill babysit if you can organize those two drawers for me LOL.

5. chocolatechic

   I am with Angela.

   A place for everything and everything in it’s place. One of my life mantras.

6. Emily R

   What a timely post! I was thinking about bathroom organization just this morning, and what to do with my makeup in a zippy thing was right up there.

7. Marcie

   Wow, girl, you have a lot of makeup. *Stares at her sparse collection*

8. OMSH

   Marcie - Actually, what I have is a LOT of lip gloss. The eye shadows are individuals, so it might look like a lot, but not really. I have two kinds of powder, because one didn’t work out that well, and I LOVE me some liquid eyeliner, so I have 3 of those.

   What can I say though? I love to play with my face. hahaha

   Emily R - Get rid of the zippy thing unless you’re traveling. We must SEE to CREATE loveliness on our faces.

   Jenn - My parents (and just about every house I’ve ever been in) have junk drawers. I can’t. I’ve tried. They drive me insane. SAY NO TO JUNK DRAWERS!

   Atomic Bombshell - OCD is just fine ’round these here parts.

   chocolatechic - You can mantra with me anytime then. :)

9. Carrisa

   I bought something very similar for my makeup last month at IKEA. Only it’s not that hard acrylic material. It’s not as good of a plastic, but it still does the job. I too was tired of digging through the dirty zippered bags.

   I may need to get something like what you got for my blow dryer though. My sister is a hair dresser so I should take advantage of her discounts!

10. Jenny from Chicago

    No hot rollers but that baby is a good start. I think I will order one and take some pictures too. YOU are doing important work here my dear.

11. Kristin

    You go girl! I’d love to be more organized. I always have big plans but never the motivation.

12. BOSSY

    Aw shucks - Bossy hates it when everyone around her gets organized. it makes her feel so… would the word be disorganized? Bossy wouldn’t know - she can’t find her dictionary.

13. ByJane

    I have a thingie in my drawer for my makeup and other stuff, but, sheesh, it’s a mess. It occurs to me (usually about 1 a.m.) that maybe one is supposed to clear this out every once in a while. My mother was always “fixing her drawers”. Do you suppose this is what she was doing?

14. MammaLoves

    Shoot! Now I am the only person who uses my sink for storage.

15. Mrs. Wilson

    Oh I LOVE organizing!!! So much fun! I might need to take advantage of that link - I need somewhere to put my blowdryer so that my husband doesn’t get annoyed with it every. single. morning!

16. Liz C

    Oooooh… pretty chrome hardware stuff…. preeeetttttyyyyy…..

    I’m into Reverse Nesting right now. I look at all our stuff, and think, “Eh, we don’t really NEED pots and pans, right? The baby can sleep in a drawer–we could get rid of the crib. I don’t want to own that anymore–we could sell it.” I call it “Preparing for Christmas.”

    My husband says I’m not allowed to make any donation drop-offs without his presence.

    Isn’t it cool when those little daily annoyances can be SOLVED so nicely? And with your appliances up and out of the sink, you are far less likely to electrocute anyone, which is generally a Good Thing.

    (And you do know you’re allowed to toss the powder that didn’t work out right into the garbage, right? You have permission. Just chuck it. It’s fun.)

17. Shawna

    Thanks for posting the makeup organization picture. I can now show it to my husband to prove to him that “YES, ALL WOMEN HAVE A TON OF MAKEUP AND IT TAKES UP A LOT OF SPACE!”

    You may end up being solely responsible for peace and unity in my household. And that ain’t no small task!

18. Vanessa

    I may or may not have one (or more, but I’m not admitting to it) of those tackle box looking thangs you were talking about. Okay, so I’m a makeup whore. So sue me.

    I like that holder. I might get one and put it on the inside of a cupboard door. My appliances are always all over the place, and a mess of cords and its driving me bananas.

19. Michelle

    Hey Heather! I love your organization! It’s, so…ORGANIZED! You inspire me on many levels! Btw, what is the color of the lip gloss that is on the bottom left, in the middle of the three lip glosses? LOVES IT ALOT :o)

    Take care,
    Michelle

20. Dallas

    Ooh, I’ve been wondering if they make hairdryer holders.. I was thinking of hanging a hook to hold mine up, but that one you found works great.

21. Bella Terra

    My vote for jewelry organization goes to plastic ice cube trays. Try it!

22. Lanna

    Seriously, you have got to come up here and help me with my house before the next spawn is born. It’s already a freakin’ mess, and with 3, I won’t have a chance in hell of getting anything done. And hey, if your kiddos and hubby want to come, we’ll make room somewhere - especially if they like entertaining busy little boys. ;)

23. OMSH

    Carissa - I was concerned I was going to have to pay a hefty price tag, but didn’t think $27.00 was too bad a price to eliminate my future risks of electrocution. heh heh

    Jenny from Chicago - Nope, no hot rollers. I’m not sure I am willing to devote THAT much time to my hair…yet.

    Definitely take photos if you get one up. I love looking into others’ homes! :)

    Kristin - My motivation comes in spurts - God bless poor Mr. OMSH.

    BOSSY - Bottom shelf on the left. *der*

    ByJane - If she was fixin’ her drawers in the bathroom it could only be one of two things. heh heh

    Liz C. - Actually it is too light for my face right now b/c the soccer games this summer actually put some color on this pale face of mine. Come winter it will work - so I’m hanging on to it.

    I don’t hold on to anything for longer than 6 months if I’m not using it and it isn’t a seasonal item. We give away like crazy. Clutter makes me insane and I am not one to build up “things” about me.

    Shawna - I’d like to teach the world to sing … in perfect harmony! :) la la la

    Vanessa - If you’ve got to be a whore in something, it might as well be makeup. I want to see your tacklebox or two or THREE of makeup. How old is it? I mean, is there any GREEN eyeliner or eyeshadow in there? If so, I want to introduce you to Liz C up there … I think she might be able to help you.

    Michelle - Almay Bronze Shimmer. I have two of them. One for the car and one for here. It looks good over other lipsticks and/or by itself. Love, love, love it.

    Dallas - They also JUST have hair dryer holders. I recommend the chrome over plastic just because I don’t want to have to wait for it to cool to put it up.

    Bella Terra - I have an old tea bag “box” that works well for earrings and rings and such, but my necklaces I hang need a place. My mom gave me an idea I might go with. I’ll take photos when I get to it. :)

    Lanna - I remember when my 3 were all underfoot and not one of them independent. *Sigh* So, what do you pay your household organizer? Do you have wireless?

24. Lanna

    I can feed yummy food… have you seen my pantry lately? Yeah. As for wireless, you mean can you shop online while on the toilet? Yes indeedy. And my hubby’s an official computer nerd in addition to an engineer, so if something inside the house goes wonky (only does when TWC does something stupid) he can fix it. He rocks. Although my dad’s a bit of a doof and always has problems connecting to the network, every time he visits. We’ve lived here 4 years, and have already fixed the interference we had from our neighbor’s wireless internet.

25. Serene and Not Herd

    Our bathroom clutter problem, I think, is caused mainly by the giant 8foot long mirror. It runs the length of the counter, which should be big enough, but aint. But the cabinets are dark and below waist level, hence terrible for storage of small oddly-shaped weapons of hygiene.

    I’d love to take it out, install a pair of lovely framed mirrors, and put in some better above-counter storage. Or maybe lovely mirror-faced cabinets… sigh…

    I’m all concept and hardly any followthrough. It’s a time/money continuum problem.

26. Holley

    Mommaloves, Your not the last one. My second sink holds a set of hot rollers and the two dozen butterfly clips that go with it.

    OMSH About the jewelry, might I suggest, tackle boxes. Wallymart sells them in various sizes and they stack well on the shelf in a closet. Besides what theif would go seaching in your closet for tackle boxes?

27. Jesse

    I really need something like that. I used to have a caboodles box when I was a kid(am I showing my age?) and they are extremely huge, yet I’m sick of dumping my make up out to find something only to have half of it bounce down and behind the toilet base. Ew.