Many of those who know me, know that I am an organization freak. I like things placed a certain way and can always tell when something has been moved or changed, even if it’s just by a few centimeters!
I finally came to terms with the fact that my makeup collection needed a new home. A more loving, functional and practical space to be stored.
In my quest for the perfect makeup storage containers, I turned to the trust “Container Store” (now that’s a no-brainer!). I searched online and found these mini plastic drawers. At just $9.99, I couldn’t believe that these drawers would be the magical storage device I was looking for, so I headed to The Container Store to check them out. (By the way, for anyone who doesn’t have a container store near them, it is like the Holy Grail store for organization fanatics…my advice is to enter with caution. I never go there without my husband, because if I did, I’d spend hours just looking at containers, touching them, and imagining them in my home…not good).
I took some photos so I could show you all how everything turned out. Here is the “before” shot:
As you can see, I used to keep some of my makeup in this long rectangular basket. It worked OK, but it took up a lot of space, and it wasn’t as organized as it could be. I kind of just threw everything in there all of the time. There were no separators and I had to keep all kinds of products on the ledge (on the outside of our shower) so the area always looked messy! Plus, I had to have all of these additional storage containers for things like mascara and lip gloss. As Tim Gunn would say “Make it Work!,” and so I did…
Now, to the wonderful new storage system:
Ahhh, so organized and refreshing. Just looking at it makes me glow with pride. Now, onto the individual drawers, to give you a better idea of how I categorized everything:
The very bottom drawer contains skin creams, eye creams, spot treatments for pimples, etc. I only use these at night, so I put them at the very bottom.
This is my lip gloss drawer. Notice they are all PINK? I don’t stay from what works, that’s for sure (or maybe I’m just too afraid to try something else!)
Here are my mascara (notice my beloved DiorShow) along with some eye pencils, eyebrow pencil and eye brightening pencil.
Here are my eye shadows and my beloved MAC Fluidline gel liners (totally HG!). I don’t wear eye shadow on my lids (I use MAC’s “brun” to line underneath my eyes- it looks softer than gel liner). I only use eye shadow if I am going out, which explains my smaller collection. I’d like to start wearing it more often, but everytime I put it on, it feels like “too much” for day (on me). I always see other people who can pull it off, but I can’t seem to. I’m more of a liner girl (never leave the house without it!)
Ahhh my beloved blushes. So wonderful and again, PINK! I do have a peachy-pink in there too! The plalette underneath it is actually an eye shadow and bronzer palette. It is by Too Faced, from their Holiday collection, called French & Fabulous. I plan to review it soon. It is a gorgeous palette and it has a Marie Antoinette theme, so of course I just had to buy it!
Lastly, the top drawer contains my MAC studio concealer (the best!), NARS bronzer, my MAC quad (so far, only the “brun” e/s is in there) and a MAC Mineralize Skin Finish in “porcelain pink” (gorgeous!). I also have the LORAC Tantilizer bronzer in there, but have not used it thus far. It looks a bit too shimmery for the day time.
So that is the drawers, so far. Note that I bought two sets of the drawers, for 6 total. I just stacked them on top of eachother.
There’s a side-view of the containers. Notice I have a glass container on top containing some of my brushes. In previous photos, you can also see I have another empty glass container on the ledge, which will soon hold the Sigma brushes I just ordered (I will review them as soon as I get them). They are supposed to be as good as MAC brushes, but for much less. A lot of the YouTube beauty gurus have just raved about them, so I’m excited to use them! I ordered the set of 12, minus the brush roll because I already have a brush roll type thing I use when I travel.
Here is another close-up. I did replace my camera batter, but had to use it on manual mode (no flash) to get these photos to be clear.
I also wanted to show you all my bathroom cabinet that holds a lot of my products (hair stuff, lotions, self tanner, face masks, etc). I like that it is all hidden behind those doors, because I have a lot of products I don’t use on a regular basis and don’t want them making my bathroom look cluttered.
Firstly, here is the bottom of the cabinet. It has little cubbies to store stuff. On the very left, I keep Q-tips in a glass container from West Elm, and in the middle I keep some perfumes (D&G Light Blue, FCUK for Men and Burberry Brit). Then, I just have some towels rolled up that I don’t even use…they kind of look messy, I need to fix those.
Onto the cabinet’s contents:
As you can see, there is quite a variety of products. I used to keep my cleansers near my sink area, but in my attempts to go as minimal as possible in that area, I’ve decided to make the effort to put them away after each use. It will take some getting used to, but overall I think the lack of clutter will be worth it.
I know that some people like to “show off” their products and have them really easily accessible- and I would be one of those people, if it were not for my very limited sink space. My husband and I each have our own sinks, but truth be told, I’d rather only have one if it mean having more counter space. Our massive shower makes up for it, but I keep saying when we get a new house, I want a massive bathroom with tons of shelving and counter space.
How do you store your cosmetics? Leave me your storage solutions in the comments below! I hope this was helpful to anyone looking for a bathroom storage solution for their makeup and products. I can also do a post about my nail polish and hair tool storage if that would interest you all! I even have special drawers to store medications in! (I know, I know, obsessive!)
Thank you SO much for reading, I appreciate each and every one of you!
xoxo,
Veronika.
I'm such an organization freak, too. Good post! I organize everything the exact same way, in the same clear plastic drawers. I just did this a few weeks ago and I have been so much happier with it… rather than digging through the one drawer I had all my makeup thrown in. I keep them stacked up in the cabinet under the sink though because I hate having anything on the countertop.
Kelsey- I can't put them in the cabinet because then I'd have to bend down to get each product. I would love to not having anything on the counter, but this makes my makeup so easily accessible 🙂
I bet you'd like having your own makeup vanity, I couldn't live without one. I'm so lazy in the mornings all I want to do is sit down in front of a mirror and have all my hair and makeup items within arms reach. If you don't have the space for one now maybe you can add that to the plans for a built in (in the future) or start shopping for a pretty one!
carolina- i would definitely love to have one, especially if it was near a window!
I don't think we could build one in here, because although our room is large enough, there is not a lot of natural light. I think we will wait until our next home to do something like that.
I cannot wait for us to move so I can have a vanity area! I told my fiance it's one of the must haves for our new house.
Do you use your bathroom mirror to do your makeup or do you have a lighted makeup mirror? My vision is so bad that I have to bend over the counter the whole time I'm getting ready to be able to see myself, and it's really uncomfortable. I have decided to get a separate mirror for the counter, but not sure if an expensive lighted one is worth it…?
I actually just use my bathroom mirror- but I have to admit, our bathroom does not have the best lighting, and we are going to install brighter lights for the reason. We have recessed lighting throughout our house, and I find it to just not be bright enough in any room, but that is how the house is. We have lamps and stuff, but our ceilings are so high, that I think we need more powerful bulbs.
I would love love love to have a vanity! Or, just a bathroom with more space and light.
Ideally, I would have a bigger bathroom and do my makeup in there, and just my vanity for perfume and jewelry storage and display.
Ahhh. It feels so good to know that there are others like me. 🙂 lol. I, too, love organization, especially when it comes to products. I also use plastic containers for my nightly and morning creams and washes, but I do my make-up in our downstairs bathroom due to better lighting. This works out well anyway, because it is a powder room and has 4 small vertical drawers on the side of the sink. This works well because I placed white plastic baskets in each drawer and organized my make-up in them. It speeds up the whole getting ready process to know where everything is and not have to dig. Thanks for this post, Veronika!
Have you ever thought about doing the MAC poting? That could also look really cool and organized!
emily- glad to know there is someone else as obsessed with me!
ally- I have thought about that, but then I'd have all of these large palettes that wouldn't fit into those drawers. I already have to keep my coastal scents 88 warm palette on top of my cabinet.
Oh i really liked this post!! Please show more posts on this topic cuz organization is somethign I could use tons of help in!
BTW veronika did u ever get my comment to your OPI "No Spain No gain" blogpost?
https://veronabrit.blogspot.com/2009/10/notd-opi-no-spain-no-gain.html#comments
I laughed at all your pink lip glosses!! 🙂 Good storage ideas. I have so much makeup, I don't know what to do with it all. and it's all over the place!
anon- yes I have so many…but I havr a special place in my heart for all of them! what can I say, I love PINK!
I just found your blog and love it! I'm a total freak when it comes to organizing too! I love seeing what is in other people's cabinets and drawers. 🙂
Les- I might just do my nail polish and hair organization next. I have this awesome storage unit from target for all of my velcro rollers and brushes- it's awesome!
Thanks for the sweet comments, it really means a lot to me 🙂
Ooh Veronika I can't wait to see that Target roller/brush organizer. Mine are everywhere!
Hey Veronika! I love your blog! I've seen in a few other beauty blogs I like that they do like an "outfit of the day" type of thing. Id love to see more of your style and how you dress day to day! Even once a week would be great! Thanks!
Erin- I will definitely do that soon!
Amanda- I plan to do this…maybe not daily but definitely at least once a week! I'm going to try and get my wonderful husband to take pics before I go to work in the morning so the clothes are nice and fresh! Thanks for the suggestion 🙂 I love clothes/fashion/style so that will be a fun post for me!
I happened to come across your blog randomly and I love all of your tips and ideas! And seeing this makes me want to completely reorganize my makeup mess! I love that the storage containers are clear so you can see exactly what you have and where it is.
Lindsay- I bought them (clear) exactly for that reason! I want to know where things are have have easy access to them! The drawers and functional and look nice (plus they are huge space savers too!)
Good luck with your organization! 🙂
Hi Veronika – LOVE YOUR BLOG!!! I have it saved as a fav on delicious! Do you know if it's ok to store your cosmetics in the bathroom? I've always been terrified to do so because of all the steam and hotness. I store my cosmetics in my closet.
anon- thanks for the sweet comment.
Our home has really high ceilings, and we use the vent in the bathroom to reduce any steam that comes from our shower. We also keep the doors of the bathroom open to make sure it is sufficiently aired out. I have never had any problems with storing my makeup in the bathroom.
If you have a really small bathroom and you close the door a lot or don't have a fan, you might want to keep them out of the bathroom.
lol
LOL @ what?
Hello, i make great custom lipstick holders to help with your makeup organization if you are interested. i promise it is worth your time, my stuff is super cute! check it out, all of my info is on my blog.
Thank you for your time.
Teresa Ellis
https://teresaellis.blogspot.com/
GREAT collection btw!