Spring Cleaning Your Vanity

Despite the weather we are having, spring is just around the corner! Check out my latest post for Susquehanna Style Magazine. I include tips for (spring) cleaning out and organizing your vanity, and how mine looked before and after! Enjoy!
It’s that time of year again… time for some spring-cleaning! With the start of a new season in the near future, this is the perfect opportunity to dive into areas of your home that you have been neglecting. I always love to do an overhaul of my closet. It is nice to get rid of things that are just collecting dust (and to make room for new purchases). One place that I always seem to neglect is my bathroom vanity. The countertop is always a mess, covered in makeup brushes, makeup bags, and hairspray bottles. Why don’t I just put them away? Simply put, there is no room under the sink for them. That space is filled with so much junk. It is filled with more makeup bags, shampoo, skincare products, rollers, and other products that I had to have and never used. Just like food though, beauty products have an expiration date. Bacteria can start to grow. Now is the perfect time to clean out, throw away and reorganize your bathroom vanity.

Here are a few tips to get you started on your organization and cleaning:

1. Purchase Tupperware containers. They are great to line your drawers and keep things organized. 2. Over-the-door jewelry organizers are great to store frequently used makeup. 3. Over-the-door shoe organizers are great to store hair products and hair tools. 4. Opened mascara or eyeliner over 6 months old needs to be thrown out. 5. Unless you sanitize them frequently, makeup sponges need tossed after a week. 6. Lip products are good for about a year. Anything older than that? Say bye-bye. 7. Nail polish over a year old should be tossed. The pigment starts to separate and break down after about a year. 8. Any type of pressed or loose powder (eye shadow, face powder) has a shelf life of two years. Anything older needs to be tossed.
Take a look at my vanity before.

I wasn’t lying, was I? Filled to the max with too much. My countertop looks like that every day too because I don’t have anywhere to put it all. So, I did a major overhaul and went through everything. I ended up with a garbage bag full of products and makeup that was either past expiration or not used.

I purchased a Tupperware drawer and some wire racks and drawers. Knowing what to get as far as storage is a bit of trial and error. I didn’t know what I would need or what would fit under the sink. I bought several different options and ended up returning what didn’t work for me. Here is the end result.

I kept items that I use daily (like face wash) on the countertop so they are easily accessible. Other daily products were moved to the vanity but with easy access.

Having a place for everything makes me feel so much more organized. Here’s hoping I can continue this organization!