DIY Under-the-Sink Hair Tool Storage
Happy Friday! We are so excited today to introduce you to one of our new contributors, Corey from Sawdust 2 Stitches. After she shared her DIY industrial style shelving, we knew that we just couldn’t live without her, so we asked her to be part of the team! Give her a warm welcome back:
Hey Everyone, it’s Corey from over at Sawdust 2 Stitches, I have a horrible habit of never leaving “well enough” alone.
For example: You can easily use hangers and totes to create a nice, organized closet… BUT wouldn’t it be AWESOME if it had built in cubbies, custom shoe racks, mood lighting and secret compartments ?! My answer is an enthusiastic YES! That essentially sums up my DIY style.
One of my latest of my renovations was the downstairs bathroom.
Allow me preface by saying, I love my master bathroom, it has a nice big garden tub, two sinks and plenty of cabinet storage. Unfortunately, I think I have “gotten ready” in the master bathr0om about 3.5 times. My “me” time starts directly after I pour the kids cereal and ends about six minutes later. Undoubtedly, within those six minutes, there are at least three major catastrophes, rendering the idea of going ALL THE WAY upstairs nearly impossible. So, I stand in the powder room, with mirrors adjusted so that I can keep eyes and ears on the kiddos. For an “organizational enthusiast” (aka OCD nut), this small space drove me crazy.
So, I present my solution to this completely made up problem. Enjoy!
Under-the-Sink Hair Tool Storage Tutorial
Tools Suggested:
- Nail gun/Air compressor
- Table Saw or Circular Saw
- Mitre Saw
- Level
- Drill
- Boring/Forstner Bit 35mm (Varies depending on Hinge, typically 35 mm)
- Screwdriver
- Pliers
- Tape measure
Materials Needed:
- Concealed Cabinet door hinges (Sizes and styles will vary depending on cabinet) Mine are 1/4″ overlay 35 mm
- 1×2″ wood strips
- 1/2″ MDF Paneling
- Primer
- Paint
- Aluminum or Galvanized Pipe
DISCLAIMER: Please note, that this is not an idiot proof project. In all actuality even bright minds might screw this up. Please be aware, all of the measurements and dimensions will vary depending on the cabinet. The purpose of this tutorial is to give a step-by-step of what I did, in hopes that others can adapt it to their own needs. That being said, lets dive in, shall we !?
Reinstall the Door
I began by removing the false front door. Many are installed with a snap-in front., I simply pried the cabinet face off. Be aware, they make a loud noise, and it scared the crap out of me!
Once the cabinet door front was off, I removed the installation hardware.
Then I removed the hardware on the cabinet face as well.
I’m not going to lie, I had never installed a concealed hinge before, and was a little terrified. I am proud to report that my mini-anxiety attack was completely unwarranted. They were simple to install , and the hinges come with clear instructions; in the event you feel a little lost.
I began by determining where I wanted my hinges placed; I settled on 7.5″ inset on either side. As always measure twice, cut /drill once.
Once I had measured, measured again, and then marked, it was time to break out the drill. NOW, these aren’t your typical hinges, and require a specific bit to install. I needed to use a Fostner/Boring bit. This bit will hollow out a circle for the hinge to sit it in. ( I wold suggest securing the hinges to the cabinet panel last, so that it won’t be in the way when installing the shelf.)
Installing the opposing side of the hinge is a little trickier. The opening of my drawer is quite small, which made it nearly impossible to pre-drill where the screws would go. Seeing as I couldn’t access the top, I drilled from underneath. ( I felt so smart when I had that epiphany. Believe me, I looked like an idiot trying to drill from the top at funky angles. )
After pre-drilling the hole, I could then install the hinge. Yet, again, I ran into the problem of not having a good angle to drill in the screw. So, I opened up our socket wrench set, and used an adapter, a thing-a-ma-jig, and a do-hicky, and some how came up with a “tool” that would assist me in putting in the screw. I am pretty much a modern day MacGyver.
CONGRATS, you have now turned your false drawer front into a fully functioning door! Take a breather, grab a diet Coke, and find something else to distract the kids, because now it’s time for part two!
Build and Install the Shelf
In the event you have a large wooden divided that sits between your cabinet doors, I might suggest doing this, it will make your life a whole lot easier!
Using 1″x2″ I constructed a basic frame that would accommodate the plumbing . Obviously, these measurements will vary depending on cabinet, plumbing etc. Most important thing when building the frame is to make sure that it is a perfect fit!
Once the frame is constructed, a paneling will need to be added. I used the frame as a template to get the dimensions needed.
Using a saw of your choice cut out the paneling. (Truth be told mine is cut out in two sections, just because I was feeling lazy. )
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT, double check that you can fit this frame into your cabinet! Mine took a lot of tweeking, twisting, reconfiguring, and possibly some lard and butter. ( I am saying that this can be tricky getting it in!) In the event you can’t , you may need to install the frame piece-by-piece. If you are able to fit your frame in, consider yourself lucky, and secure the paneling to the top of the frame.
At this point, I painted the “U” shaped shelf ( Not pictured)
I painted them in the same paint that I used to paint the exterior of the cabinets. ( You can see my tutorial for refinishing cabinets here.)
While the shelf was drying, I began installation preparations. Using a level and tape measure I marked where the shelf would go. ( It is so much easier to mark in advance, than trying to hold the shelf, shoot it in place, and hope it that it is level!) I made it so my shelf sat level with the opening.
At this point I would recruit an extra set of hands. I needed help holding the shelf , while I nailed it in place.
Theoretically it should be looking a little like this…
At this point I would like you to recall that “disclaimer” I mentioned earlier. Remember this is a cut-to-fit project, blah-blah-blah?
Ok, good, I want that fresh in your mind when I go into this next part.
Hot Hair Tools Holder
I wanted to have space for my hair appliances. I know that PVC seems to be a “go to” for hair storage in the DIY world. Which works great if you are storing cooled appliances. I wanted to be able to store my appliances as soon as I unplugged them. ( Remember I am in the main downstairs bath, and there are too many little fingers that like to grab EVERYTHING!) PVC melts at approximately 290 degrees F. My wands are about 410…. HMMM… So I used a different option. I went with a galvanized metal, which can tolerate MUCH higher temperatures.
Below you will see the space I was working with, the space was quite small and the sink bowl sat very low, which required a lot of edits as I went. To spare you all the “lessons learned” detours, I made another mock-up to demonstrate the basic idea I used when making mine.
Determine the size and quantity of the appliances you will be storing. For demonstration purposes I am just installing one, but as you can see you can adapt this to fit more.
Next I drilled out the hole that would accommodate the pipe. I would suggest a “Hole Saw Drill Bit”, in the event you don’t have one, you can use a router, or a jigsaw (take luck).
I needed something to act as a stopper for the back of my pipe, I decided on using a piece of 1×3″.
The 1″x3″ act as a stopper, and prevented the pipe from falling in. However, I wanted to make sure this sucker wasn’t going anywhere! ( I kept having these horrible scenarios run through my head that ultimately lead to my house burning down. ) So, I took some extra precautions and added 1.5″ pieces of 1″x3″ to act as a stabilizer. NOW that pipe isn’t going anywhere.
At this point you will need to determine where the “Brake” is going to attach to your bottom support board. The support board is meant to be long enough so that it will butt up against the back wall. (Another form of stabilizing). So there will probably be some dead space behind where the “brake” sits. I determined where mine would sit by measuring the length of the curling wands.
Once you have your measurements you can tack everything together. Starting with the “brake”.
Then you can attach the front plate.
As long as you have taken into consideration all of your measurements, you should be able to slide this little beauty directly on top of the new shelf! Ta da! Look at how pretty!
The last thing it needed was some form of cord storage. I used 6 basic hooks and installed them directly to the back of the door. Easy peasy.
There you have it, my solution! I no longer need to run up and down the stairs in between styling my hair, and serving seconds, then again after curling my lashes and consoling my kids, and so on and so forth, etc. etc.
And do you know what? It was TOTALLY worth it. Take luck!
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Love this? Need more creative bathroom storage ideas? Try these:
Cabinet Door Storage Bin Building Plans
ohmygosh! I saw this on pinterest and though ‘genious’ but the link didn’t work… I’m so glad you’re a contributor here now! Can’t wait to see what you have in the works 🙂
Colleen,
Dang, sorry the link didn’t work! But, thank you, I am so excited to be here! Thanks for taking the time to stop by.
P.S. Excited to read more about your projects, your site looks great!
Corey
What a great idea!! Love the idea of hiding my straightener. Thanks for the tutorial!! Pinned 🙂
Thank you! I agree, I love having everything out of site! Another bonus: I have noticed that bathroom is always clean now; score. Thanks for your comment!
What a wonderful way to make use of that space. I’m really digging the hooks to neatly store the cords. That’s so clever! I’m going to save all your ideas for my future home. I love all of your ideas and can’t wait to see more. Keep them coming!
Thank you, I’m flattered! I love the hooks too, I love it when everything has a place, and everything is in it’s place! Thanks for your comment!
now this is cool! I will definitely be doing this in my bathroom for sure! Corey I follow your blog weekly and I think it is amazing! I look forward to seeing your posts!
Thanks Laura, Bite the bullet and do it, and when you do I want to see pictures!
Absolutely LOVE this!! I hate all the false fronts in my bathrooms, this is a fabulous solution and great way to use that space!!!
I totally agree Stephanie! So much wasted space with so much potential! I think there will be some changes coming to my kitchen sink/cabinet soon…
Oh. My. Gosh. What a perfect addition to that blank space underneath! At first I was reading the stuff needed and thought like many diy projects not PVC? But reading about putting them away when they are hot makes SO MUCH SENSE! Genus lady! Can’t wait to check out more of your posts here and on your blog! Thanks!
Thanks Sara! When I first started this project I had the preconceived notion, that PVC wouldn’t melt. I had seen it all over pinterest, it must work!? BUT this has worked like a charm and can be put away instantly. Love it.
Mind=blown! This is such a fanatic idea! I always thought it was dumb to have a false drawer front there and wished I knew how to put a drawer in! Now I don’t have too! This is so much better!!!!
When I finally realized how easy this could theoretically be, I had a “duh!?” moment. They are just hinges ?! This is going to revolutionize all of my sink cabinets. Thanks for stopping by!
Great idea! How does the door close?
Just one quick suggestion for anyone else doing this: add an outlet inside the cabinet. Boom! No more cord corralling at all. I did this in my medicine cabinet so my electric toothbrush wouldn’t be out on the counter. Don’t be scared of electrical work; I mean, if the boys can do it…am I right? Home Depot’s guide book tells you everything you need to know about basic electrical work, and of course, check your local codes and turn off the breaker, etc.
Measure twice, cut / drill once.. you forgot the “ensure your measurement is correct” part. 🙂 You said you settled on a 7.5″ inset for the hinges, but your picture clearly shows you set it at 6.5″! 🙂
Great idea for wasted space! Love your tutorial too, funny but informative.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this idea so much & can’t wait to do this under my bathroom sink! Genius I say!!!