Between The Studs Storage - Adding More Storage to the Master Bathroom

Our vanity sits between two walls.  It is not a large vanity for a master bath, but we really don't need more than what we have.  I wanted some extra storage on the wall, but didn't want it to take up too much space or stick out too far.  So a between the studs storage unit seemed exactly what we needed.

This is what we had: two glass shelves mounted on the wall.  They worked well, but they impeded on space by sticking out into the room.

I have been looking at "between the studs" storage for awhile and think it is a great use of space.  I still haven't decided if I love it, but I think that is more a matter of me tweaking the trim work I put on it rather than the storage unit itself....at least I hope so because I don't want to regret it all together and put the drywall and shelves back up!

Here it is now finished and in use: It looks like there are two built-ins because of the mirror.

And here it is again:

What do you think?  I haven't fallen in love with it yet.  I am hoping it is a matter of tweaking the trim work that is surrounding it and not the unit itself...

What do you think it needs?  I have already played with the trim work and can't figure out how I want it.

Example #1: I first stained the entire unit - big mistake - it looked like a big brown blob in the room. In this picture it it doesn't look half bad, but when you walked in the bathroom it was the first place yours eyes (maybe just  my eyes) went - I felt like it stuck out like a sore thumb.  Maybe because in the mirror (which is straight ahead when you walk in) makes it look twice as big.

Example #2: I painted it white (the whole thing).  And then quickly realized I didn't like that either and started stripping it before I took a real photo of it all white.  I probably made my decision too quickly here.  I wish I would have left the outside trim white and painted the inside the color of the walls before I started stripping, just to see what it would have looked like.   Because now I am wondering...

Example #3: I realized I liked other built-ins when they blended in more with the surrounding with a little pop of color in the trim (white or stain).  So I painted the entire inside the same color as the walls and decided to do something else with the trim.  So I ripped off most of the trim and started over...

Current: I replaced the side trim with smaller pieces and painted them the color of the walls so that the unit would almost disappear into the wall.

I still don't know if I love it...   :-(

#4: An option I haven't tried yet:  Paint the trim work white and leave the inside painted the wall color.  or stain the trim around the sides the same color as the shelves and leave only the inside painted the wall color.

My Inspirations (+ many more on Pinterest):

Inspiration A: diyhomepin.com

I liked how these shelves float and are not too bulky looking

Inspiration B: bhg.com

I liked how the shelves coordinate with the other wood elements in the room

Inspiration C: manditremayne.blogspot.com

I liked the trim on this and how it is bright white along with the spacing of the shelves

 Inspiration D: awesomehomepins.com

I like how the wall units coordinated with the cabinet below (I also have a wood cabinet below)

I have several more "Bathroom" inspirations pinned on Pinterest:  Check them out here - I like all the images for different reasons.

So what should I do?  Help and suggestions are appreciated!  How can I make myself love this unit?  What does it need?

I would HATE realizing that it was a mistake and taking it out and replacing it with drywall/shelves again.  Mostly because of the work it would take - I despise repairing drywall - it is so hard to make it look perfect again...

Learn to Build a Storage Unit like this:  Here is the Tutorial!

Chunky Floating Shelves - A Tutorial

To start building the shelves you need to measure your space and first figure out how long you would like the finished shelves.  That is what makes DIY projects the best - they can be built to suit your exact needs!  The shelves in our bathroom are 38" long.  I will provide the measurements I used to build these shelves that are a finished size of 38" long by 4" chunky (wide) by ~10" deep.

Materials for 1 shelf:

• 1 - 4' 1x6
• 1 - 8' 1x10
• 1 - 6' 1x3
• Countersink Drill Bit
• 2" Flat Head Screws
• Finish Nails

Tools:

• Drill 
• Table Saw (or have the store cut the 1x6 for you)
• Mitre Saw (or have the store cut the boards for you)
• Stud Finder
• Hammer
• Level

Building the Brace:

The brace is built from the 1x3 board.  First cut the 1x3 to your desired shelf length - this will be your brace body (38" for this tutorial).  Next cut your "legs".  There are 5 legs for our brace (see photo above) each 6 1/2" long.  Screw each of your legs into the 1x3 board you cut to 38" (your body) using a countersink drill bit.

The countersink drill bit will drill a pilot hole into the wood and create a larger hole near the entrance so that the screw head sits inside the board.  If you look at the photo above, you can see the top hole has been drilled and the bottom hole has been drilled and the screw has been attached.  The screw head is sitting into the wood.  This is an important step because this brace needs to sit flat against the wall.  If the screw head is sitting away from the board then the brace will not be stable.

Hint: When attaching the legs to the back brace it is helpful to use 90 degree braces.  It is not necessary, but helpful.

Building the Shell and Attaching to the Wall:

Cut your 1x10 board into two 38" sections.  These will be your top and bottom shell.  Attach one of your cut 1x10 boards to the bottom of your brace with finish nails.  You will nail from the bottom through the 1x10 and into the legs and body of your brace.

Find the studs in the wall where you would like the shelf to hang.  Screw the brace into the studs.  It is helpful to first screw into one stud.  Then level the shelf with a level and screw the shelf into the other studs.

I was able to find three studs behind where the shelf would hang.  I first screwed the shelf into the most center stud and then leveled the shelf and screwed into the two outer studs.  You want to screw straight through the body of the brace and into the wall studs (see below photo).

Attach the top 1x10 board.  Use finish nails to nail the top board in place just as you did the bottom board.

If you have a helper like I usually do, then sit back and watch them for a bit.  It is fun to see what they pick up on from watching you! :-)

The total "chunk" or width of the shelves was almost exactly 4".  Measure your shelves and rip the 1x6 board to that width (or kindly ask the store where you bought the boards to do it for you).  Cut the ripped 1x6 board (now it is exactly 4" wide) to 38" long.  Attach this board to the front of your shelves using finish nails.

If you look closely in the photo above there are finish nail holes in the board that are minute.  They almost go away once you stain and finish the piece.

Below are my two shelves ready to be finished (after of course removing the items on them).  :-)  

To see how the shelves were stained, finished and decorated check out these two posts:

Chunky Floating Shelves and Adding Storage to a Small Bath

and

DIY Chunky Floating Shelves - Final Photos with Shelf Vignettes

DIY Chunky Floating Shelves - Final Photos with Shelf Vignettes

The shelves are done and decorated!  I am in love with them!  I had a hard time photographing them - my lighting wasn't great.  What do you think?

For before photos and planning of the shelves click here: Chunky Floating Shelves

Here they are without any items on them yet:

And here they are loaded up with supplies and "spa-like" items.  :-)  The tall container on the left top shelf contains a candle.  The aged bronze container next to it holds extra toilet paper rolls and then a clock and a photo of Jonathan and I on our wedding day.  On the lower shelf there are extra towels (I wish I could say they were plush, but they aren't...we need new towels) and a small basket containing feminine care items.

Option #1:

Option #2: Instead of the clock, there is a picture hung on the wall and a mirror on the shelf.

Which vignette do you like best?  Option #1 or Option #2?

You can see that they are next to the shower/tub area of the bathroom:

If you continue to scan right in the room, you will see our vanity below on the right.

The only thing we have added to this area of the bathroom (below) are the glass shelves on the wall to the right.  I am not a huge fan of those shelves, but they work for now...

This shot is taken from the doorway into the bathroom (see the door on the right of the photo)

Remaining on this bathroom "To-Do List" is:

1. Frame the mirror above the vanity
2. Replace or find a way to update the light above the mirror
3. Possibly build a different shelving unit between the wall studs where the current glass shelves rest.

Next Post: Tutorial to make your own Chunky Floating Shelves

Before:

After:

Option #2:

Option #1

Close-ups and Detailed Photos:

How have you added storage to your bathroom?  Would you consider making floating shelves?

One more question:  Do you think I should add a third shelf?  I am torn...

Chunky Floating Shelves and Adding Storage to a Small Bath

These shelves are now finished and styled.  To see them click here!

Our Master Bath is pretty small when you compare it to Master Bathroom's in newly built homes.  A master bath (or "ensuite") wasn't an important component when checking off "must-haves" while house hunting.  If the master bedroom included an ensuite, then we were getting more than what we needed.

So hurray for a master bath!

Our master bathroom was probably the most updated room in the house when we bought it.  It had new tile, a new jacuzzi tub, adequate stock cabinets and new countertops.  I love the tiling job in the bathroom - they did a great job choosing neutral colored tile while adding detailed trim tile.  The photo above shows our toilet sitting next to the tub/shower....pretty bare and in need of some jazzing up!  We really could use more storage in the bathroom and above the toilet looked like the answer.  Who couldn't use more storage in their bathroom?

...Well, maybe these people...

Traditional Bathroom by Seattle Kitchen & Bath Designers Kayron Brewer, CKD, CBD / Studio K B

So until the day we have a bath like the one above, we needed another solution...

There were a couple things I knew that I wanted: 

1.  Floating "Spa Like" Shelves - Who doesn't want there bath to look "spa like"?

2.  Custom Built - They would need to be custom built because I wanted them a specific length

3.  Substantial - Not thin pieces of wood that looked flimsy  

I was inspired by these DIY'ers and bloggers:

Chunky Floating Shelves:

From Desert Domicile

"Full-Bodied" Shelves Over Toilet:

From Bower Power

So with the above inspirations and DIY plans in mind I started building.  Actually, I put Eliana to work...       Just kidding, but she almost has the hang of it after watching me project after project.  She put the screw in backwards, but has the general idea of how the drill works.  Good Job Eliana! 

I will post detailed directions on how I built my floating shelves with lumber, cut list and dimensions soon!

I got the skeleton of the shelves onto the wall and was happy with the placement and size so far.  I then added fronts to the shelves (and got to use my new table saw to rip these pieces to the exact size I needed!)  Then added painters tape and started mapping out how to finish these - stain or paint?

 I placed a few items on the shelves to get an idea of how they were going to look finished (and because I was excited with how they were turning out).  I ended up deciding to go with stain - I fell in love with those inspirations photos above so why change it up?

I started with dark walnut stain.  Not dark enough...

So for the next layer of stain I applied Red Mahogany.  Getting there, but you could still see too many knots and grain in the wood for what I wanted...

So then I moved onto PolyShades.  I had recently read an article at Young House Love on how they had used PolyShades on their updated bathroom vanity, kitchen cabinets and stairs with success so I decided to give it a try...

Much better!  I used PolyShades in American Chestnut Satin:

The can recommends at least two coats so after a second coat I got exactly what I wanted!

They are currently drying upstairs as I write this post.  I can't wait for them to finish so I can remove the tape and start styling them.  I will post the finished project and a tutorial on building floating chunky shelves soon!