How to Create Bathroom Storage with a Dresser

For bathrooms short on storage space, adding a small antique dresser is a terrific way to create a little extra room for those bathroom essentials.

In older homes like ours, bathrooms were often added many years later after the original construction of the home. These retrofitted bathrooms were carved out of old closets, small bedrooms, or even small niches located around the house. Many of these bathrooms were very tiny, with barely enough room for a tub, sink, and commode, let alone some cupboard space.

Adding a cupboard that looked like it belonged was a challenge, but we solved our storage problem with a pint size dresser that was painted to look like an antique floor storage cabinet.

Where to find an old dresser

Before buying a dresser or cabinet, you must first determine where in the bathroom it can fit, and what kind of dimensions will work. Be sure to measure a floor dimension as well as height.

Antique stores are great places to hunt for old styles of small dressers and cabinets. You can expected to pay premium prices, but they are usually in superb enough condition that nothing needs to be restored.

Farm auctions are another place to search for bathroom dressers. Keep an eye out for old cabinets that may have come out of a kitchen, barn, or garage. These can be painted up and restored quite nicely.

Don't forget thrift stores! The thrifts in my community carry the most unbelievable antique furniture finds. It's been my experience that while the larger dressers and highboys disappear quickly, the smaller dressers aren't quite so popular. When searching for a storage dresser, avoid furniture made of prefabricated or veneered material and stick with ones made of solid wood. In our town, small solid wood dressers frequently turn up for around $20.

Restoring the dresser