The medicine cabinet is a hot spot for clutter—it’s all too easy to let expired medications, face creams, and makeup accumulate in there. But if you’re just closing the cabinet door and avoiding clearing out products you no longer use on a regular basis, you’re probably enforcing unhealthy habits.
“The medicine cabinet is prime real estate in your bathroom: It can make or break your commitment to your personal care goals for tasks that happen in the bathroom,” says dermatologist Dr Cynthia Bailey. “If you have to reach behind products that come tumbling out amidst cluttered shelves, you just won’t be able to stick to your routine when you’re in a hurry.”
For instance, if your facial sunscreen—which you should wear every single day, year-round—is overshadowed by a row of dried-up nail polishes, you may not remember to apply it in the morning and could put your skin in jeopardy.
Bailey’s tip: “Arrange your products in the order you apply them from left to right.” She keeps her facial cleanser at the sink, then organises her toner, correcting products, moisturiser, and sunscreen (in that order) on her medicine cabinet shelf. “Put things you don’t need daily in storage boxes under your sink or in a cupboard."
Need a little inspiration to get your own medicine cabinet in order? We found six beautifully arranged examples to guide the way. Some are organized by category or colour, others use genius space-saving techniques, but most importantly, they’re all designed to help their owners stick to a healthy routine.
Make it magnetic.
To employ every inch of that cabinet space, do like DIY blogger Ashley Thurman and make the back panel magnetic. If you’re not very handy, you can do this simply with a magnetic paint or adhesive magnetic sheets. This way, you can use vertical space to store bobby pins or display a reminder to take your prescription.
Sort for your routine.
If you’re a makeup junkie, you may want to store your arsenal of beauty products according to where you apply them (for instance: lips, face, and eyes). Have separate AM and PM skincare rituals? You can also go that route. What’s important is organising it to suit your daily needs. Professional organiser Abby Lawson used acrylic spice racks to create this shelf-like space outside the medicine cabinet, but the same rules apply within one.
Display by colour.
Here’s one way to start each day with a smile. Admittedly, most of us don’t have products in every hue of the rainbow like Color Me Courtney does, but even a more muted palette will look pretty on your medicine cabinet shelves. If you prefer to sort by usage but still want to add a color pop, categorise by shelf and then color code each row.
Here's the right way to clean your makeup brushes:
Chalk it up.
For those trying to lose weight or be more mindful, a chalkboard panel on the medicine cabinet's inside door can serve as a source of motivation. Use this space to reinforce an uplifting mantra or track the days you've worked out. If that's not your thing, you can simply jot down items you need to pick up at the drugstore or write a sweet message to your partner, like pro organiser Janet M. Taylor does here.
Corral by category.
Try using cups and containers to keep items of the same kind (such as dental, skincare, or beauty) in the same spot in your medicine cabinet, as demonstrated here. You'll know exactly where to reach for your makeup brushes, toothpaste, or concealer when you're half-awake and getting ready for work. That organisation can cut minutes off your morning routine.
Keep only the essentials.
Don't wear a lot of makeup? Stash your little bag on the top shelf and make your everyday health products the focus, like in this cabinet. Put your sunscreen middle and center, then make sure hygiene necessities like deodorant are within close reach. If you buy items such as Q-tips or makeup remover pads in bulk, downsize them into small containers that will fit on a shelf.
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