15 Clever Bathroom Organization Ideas for the Easiest Mornings (2024)

It’s 7 a.m. and you just silenced your alarm clock and stumbled into the bathroom. And as you perform the wondrous feat of making yourself presentable for the day, an inconveniently placed jar of floss picks gets knocked to the floor while a missing towel has you daubing your face with toilet paper (and it’s single ply). It’s time to reclaim your morning sanity and declutter and properly outfit your bathroom space.

But how to begin? Y. McFadden Interiors’ Yvonne McFadden creates spaces that are as prepossessing as they are functional—a combination that she believes hits the sweet spot in good design. “The beauty of a bathroom vanity should be considered not only in its outward design, but also in the details within each drawer and cabinet,” McFadden tells ELLE DECOR. For clients’ smaller items that have a way of getting lost at the bottom of drawers, McFadden suggests utilizing an integrated pullout tray in the top drawer to make sure everything has a home and is easily accessible. Similarly, hidden storage, adjacent to the vanities, allows for quick access to everyday items. There is also a whole range of ingenious hacks for the bathroom that don’t come with their own built-in drawers, from rolling carts to free-standing cabinets to matching jars that won’t be countertop eyesores.

Rethinking your morning madness? The following 20 bathroom ideas, pulled from the ELLE DECOR archive, demonstrate that a serene powder room is not only enviable but achievable. And with just the right amount of folded towels or matching baskets, clutter can be nothing more than a state of mind.

1

Secret Wall Storage

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Organizational mastermind McFadden installed a few brilliant no-show storage options to this lovely bathroom in Atlanta, Georgia. Look closely and you’ll see a secret cabinet that is flush with the left wall for an easily accessible, barely-there nook. Beside it, a tall wooden cabinet has been given its own custom cutout for a space that is as seamless as it is generous in cabinetry.

2

Washroom Trolley

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Make use of that unused blank space with a chic rolling cart like in the powder room of this charming Manhattan home. You can roll the cart and its contents to the tub for easy towel access or to the mirror to do your hair. We especially love the vase and florals atop, which create warmth and a fitting tie-in to the antique floral wallpaper.

3

Vertical Towel Rack

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The aesthetic heavy hitter in the light-and-bright bathroom of this Manhattan abode? The brass industrial pipe towel holder that is equal parts form and function. The vertical installment is ideal for a compact space, offering both visual intrigue and easy access to a post-shower dry-down.

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4

Basket Break

The powder room in this high-contrast Los Angeles house offered an opportunity to riff on the black and white color scheme, here with cabinetry, wallcovering, and baskets that are a carefully tempered combination of blacks and grays. The baskets, perched at the ground level of the cabinetry’s bottom nook, offer easy access to items guests might be reluctant to rummage around for in the drawers. At the same time, they offer a welcome visual break from the monotony of the upper drawer repetition.

5

Vanity Views

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Avoid the headache of cosmetic clutter in its varying tubes, bottles, and brushes with a chic bathroom tray that keeps your essentials accessible. In this charming Tudor house, the main bathroom’s relaxing Deco-inspired countertop features a luxe black tray that frames an assortment of high-end salves.

6

Tabletop Repository

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This delightful tub-side table in the vibrant bathroom of this Victorian townhouse offers everything one would need amid a bathtime retreat—all at arm’s reach. Whether you’re a candle connoisseur or like a place to set your jewelry down before the plunge, this charming wooden stand aims to please.

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7

Hanging Dispensers

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This tailored Brooklyn townhouse is a master class in compact living. While this statement jewel box of a bathroom is lacking in countertop space, a clever wall mounted holder offers a smart solution for that necessary hand-soap inclusion.

8

Vibrant Vestibule

In this very pink Greenwich Village studio bathroom, the only design battle between designer William Cullum and partner Jeffery Rhodes was over which version of pink the walls should be awash in (answer: Schiaparelli pink). The striking laundry basket on the other hand? An easy agreement. For a simple solution for post-shower towel placement, opt for a laundry basket that is part art, part towel cache.

9

Tactful Towel Placement

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There’s something satisfying about a row of neatly lined towels, which this spa-like Miami Beach sanctuary has taken full advantage of. In this steel and glass bathroom, a black floor-to-ceiling shelf is unencumbered by nothing more than neat, hotel-worthy folded towels. Located just a foot away from the bathtub, no swimmer will have to look too far for plush, post-bath comfort.

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10

Classy Caddy

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Who says organizational products can’t double up as decor? The bathtub tray in this classical Seville, Spain, pied-à-terre will instantly elevate your daily soak. While the clawfoot tub really steals the show beneath antique chandeliers and French sconces, this sponge depository is quietly there, dripping in modern luxury and fully at your disposal to house already-used bathtub items.

11

Freestanding Function

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To make up for the limited storage space in Academy Award winner Marisa Tomei’s Manhattan apartment, an Empire cabinet lined with Cole & Son wallpaper was added.

12

Multipurpose Furnishings

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This chest of drawers, fitted with a bespoke sink, brings an unusual sense of hominess to this Menorca, Spain, villa’s bathroom. Whether you use the storage for towels or your whole skin-care-products collection, this charming furniture piece is a visual moment that is sure to keep your belongings neat and tidy.

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13

Coordinating Bottles

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Showers and tub surrounds are a catch-all for shampoo and soap clutter. Transferring your products into a matching set of bottles can be an easy way to elevate your bathroom look. Plus, curating your selections keeps you from keeping around unnecessary products. The bathside bottle arrangement in this Washington, D.C., home is a stellar example.

14

Sculptural Storage

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French architect Jacques Grange’s Paris apartment boasts a metal étagère that is as artistic as it is functional. It boasts an iron frame within which items can be easily accessed and is topped with an elegant sculptural figure. A large woven basket beneath the sink, meanwhile, makes for an added repository. This is minimalism-meets-maximalism at its finest.

15

Books in the Bathroom

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This bathroom throws out the rulebook entirely on what storage options a bathroom can provide. In the primary bath of a French countryside duplex, floor-to-ceiling galvanized-iron bookshelves are accessible by way of a metal library ladder. Because sometimes a nice soak necessitates a good story.

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Rachel Silva

Assistant Digital Editor

Rachel Silva, the Assistant Digital Editor at ELLE DECOR, covers design, architecture, trends, and anything to do with haute couture. She has previously written for Time, The Wall Street Journal, and Citywire.

15 Clever Bathroom Organization Ideas for the Easiest Mornings (2024)
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