Streamlined Storage

Hey everyone!  Is it just me or does "2014" already seem to be zipping by?  I guess that means we must "make hay while the sun shines," as my sweet grandmother was so fond of saying.  In my first post of the year, I shared some goals and plans for our home, and I'm happy to say we can soon check one of those goals off the list -- adding easier access storage to our home.  If you've followed my blog for awhile, y'all know The Man is a skilled craftsman/woodworker and there are not too many ideas I come up with that he cannot bring to fruition.  What has become more evident over the almost forty-five years of marriage and our growing "older" together, is that we don't always have to say the words or ask the question.  We can read that furrowed brow, the sigh, or the groan of frustration -- I am master of that one; well okay, I've got them all covered!  What I'm saying here is that we try to make life as good as possible for each other, but The Man is way better at it than I am.  Don't get me wrong, I am not a complaining or nagging wife, but I do have issues.  Two things come into play here -- I'm very OCD when it comes to order in our home, and I have a very bad & painful arthritic back (wow, does that ever sound "OLD!")  Because of the back issue, The Man has set about making as much of our cabinetry/cupboard storage as easily accessible as is possible.  He pretty much just thinks I'm weird with the OCD things.....lol!  Anyway, on with the post of the day where I want to share some "streamlined storage" that The Man has built.  

Today I'm sharing what has taken place in our master bathroom.  I'll do another post later on to share some other areas in our home that have gotten "The Man's Treatment!"

The linen cupboard

Having moved from a home that had very little storage, I was truly delighted to see this in the master bathroom.

It's hard to see in the photo just how big this cupboard is.  Each space measures about 25"X25"X18", so lots of storage space but extremely awkward to use.

Sad but true, this is how it looked shortly after moving in.  I knew I would have to tackle this space at some point, but I just couldn't come up with a plan and there were more high-priority areas to deal with first.

When I was shopping at Walmart one day, I saw these little plastic crates in the school supply aisle and had a lightbulb moment & bought a few.

It certainly was not a perfect solution, but at least if all the lotions & potions were contained in the crates, they would be somewhat easier to access.

I had to arrange the crates around the perimeter in order to more easily access their contents.

All in all, this was not too, too bad, but still caused a lot of sighs and groans of frustration....lol!

So, last month, The Man started doing this and........

Created these -- truly things of beauty!

Too bad The Man is kind of camera-shy, because I was so excited I really wanted to take a photo of him holding his hammer and drill!

As soon as the last screw was tightened, I measured the space of each drawer and took off for the Dollar Store.  I had determined I needed 12 of a certain size basket and had to go to two different stores to get them.

Not my first choice of color, but I definitely did not want black, so red is what I got, and 

they fit perfectly.

At this point I was in "organizing heaven!"  I kept the first drawer for all the things that we use every day or almost every day.

The bottom shelf holds some First-Aid things like Ace bandages, alcohol, ice pack, etc. that we do not need often -- hopefully!

There is quite a wide recess on either side of the drawers, so The Man made a shelf on each side of all three drawers to use for extras, like soap, deodorant, etc.  This way they are easy to see and do not interfere with the rolling of the drawers.  He is just so clever!

The top part of the cupboard is now organized with our bath linens on the first shelf & easily accessible by "Shorty" here.  Our travel bags & a container of travel-size toiletries are on the top.

A bit more updating too place a couple of months ago, but with the holidays, I never got around to sharing it -- the "loo."

 

Our little room was just the typical space for the toilet but no storage for tp or any other needs.  The Man resolved that issue by adding shallow storage between the studs inside 

that blank wall space.

The frame and doors only stick out into the room a couple of inches, but provide ample space for extra rolls of tp and some "library" needs -- wink, wink!  While he was at it, he added crown molding and painted the room. 

Clean, sanitary but not pretty.....yet!

Just a few little touches and the space is much more pleasant.  We already had the little wall shelf, but the painting is from a small art gallery in Jerome, AZ that we visited with some friends last Spring.

It's actually a winter scene of Jerome, and we both love the splash of color it adds to

this little space.

Well, there you have it -- going from groans of frustration to orderly and serene.  I love our master bath now and so does The Man!  Hope you enjoyed the tour and maybe even got some ideas for streamlining storage in your home.  Thanks for stopping by and please know you are always welcome in our home.

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Kathryn at The Dedicated House for Make It Pretty Mondays
Toni at A Bowl Full of Lemons for One Project at a Time

Maria Elena at Our Home Away from Home for Tuesdays at Our Home

Marty at A Stroll Thru Life  for Inspire Me Tuesday

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