Not Open Shelves: A Space-Saving IKEA Find For Storing Toilet Paper In A Small Bathroom

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Bathrooms don't always give you much room to work with, making it a challenge to fit all your everyday essentials. One such essential is toilet paper. Sure, you could store your spare rolls on an open shelf and call it a day. But what if you want to keep them out of sight? In that case, IKEA's NYSJÖN High Cabinet may be worth checking out. According to reviews, it offers a sleek, narrow solution for storing and concealing extra toilet paper even in the tiniest of bathrooms.

The beauty of this storage cabinet is that it's under 12 inches wide and 11 inches deep. Plus, it's over six feet tall, providing plenty of vertical storage space. This ensures it takes up very little room and fits in small corners that would be too cramped for a standard-sized cabinet. It also includes four adjustable shelves, so you can store other items besides toilet paper. "This cabinet holds more than you would think in a small footprint," one happy customer wrote. Several other reviews did wish it had more shelves, but if you're mainly using this bathroom storage idea to stash toilet paper, it should provide plenty of space to keep multiple packs dry and dust-free.

Upgrading IKEA's NYSJÖN cabinet into small bathroom toilet paper storage

It's easy enough to stack spare toilet paper rolls on top of one another on the NYSJÖN's adjustable shelves. However, even though they aren't open shelves, you may want the cabinet's interior to look presentable. Consider placing baskets that are slightly smaller than the cabinet's dimensions, such as the UBBCARE Set of 4 Storage Cubes, on each shelf. Then, tuck the toilet paper into these baskets for added organization. This also makes it easy to rummage for a spare roll without knocking over the rest of the pile. 

If you don't care to clutter your cabinet with baskets, you can invest in a grippy, non-slip shelf liner, such as the StaHom Shelf Liners. Besides adding decorative appeal to the shelves, these liners create a more reliable surface for stacking toilet paper rolls. The textured surface helps hold the rolls in place when you grab one off the top, and it keeps other stored items from scuffing the interior shelving, as a plus.

Once this cabinet is optimized for storage, easily upgrade the outside the same way you would remodel any other bathroom vanity cabinet. Coat it with waterproof paint to give it more color or to emulate a textured material, like solid wood. You could also swap out the minimalist hardware with a more ornate cabinet knob, change the feet for a sturdier base, or add DIY trim and paneling to jazz up the exterior.

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