dressing table storage help needed

[DoITellTheTeacher]

currently have stuff cluttered all over my dressing table so as part of the new year declutter I'm looking for better storage - current contents on the table are:
8 x my perfume
12 x dh perfume
1 x jewellery box
2 pots nice Laura mercier body creme
2 x face cream (one day, one night) 1 x face serum, 1 x hair serum, 5 x lipsticks, deodorant, bundle of bracelets, pile of hair clips and Kirby grips and finally a free standing dressing table mirror with necklaces hanging over the corners. oh and 2 x hair brushes. phew.
so any ideas on where to start?
my make up lives in the bathroom as better light in there - I've been looking at muji boxes but I'd prefer for the clutter to be hidden!
thank yooooo

[Deckthecastle]

You have a LOT of bottles of perfume on there! I would start there. Maybe store these in the bathroom and rotate them, keeping one or two on the actual dressing table (changing them weekly or something).

I would get rid of the dressing table mirror and get a large mirror put on the wall above the dressing table - I recently picked up a FAB one in TKMaxx. This frees up a bit more space on the surface of the table.

Are there any drawers in the dressing table that you could use for some of the other toiletries or jewellery?

Laura Ashley/ M&S/ lots of interiors websites do pretty trinket boxes/ glass or mirrored containers....

You could also get some pretty hooks/rows of hooks to hang some of the necklaces/bracelets from beside/above the dressing table?

Hope some of those ideas help. I have an area that could be a dressing table area in the bedroom of the house we are renting that is covered in clutter (interiors magazines/sewing stuff mostly) that I am promising myself if I work on this area (new year resolution) I could turn it into a dressing table too......we'll see!
Hope some of my ideas help!

[specialsubject]

20 bottles of perfume, and he has more than you do? Wow.

most of them will have gone off, especially if in the light in clear bottles, so chuck those and the problem will be solved. Actually I found that perfume went off after two weeks anyway - no smell left - which is why I gave up on it. (makes sense I suppose, that's the definition of 'volatile')

lipsticks could stand in a square box to hold them upright.

only one pot of 'creme' at a time. They are all the same anyway (you don't need different face and body), so put all but one away until you have finished the first.

jewellery hangs on something; look on ebay for jewellery trees, there should be plenty about at this time of year, ditto the charity shops.

[harbingerofdoom]

My dressing table is rather cluttered too OP but I don't keep any perfumes on it as it is in a bay window. The light (and heat in the summer) damages perfume.

Does your dressing table have drawers?

Jewellery box could be moved to mantle shelf/bedside table.

My problem is the hair dryer,complete with diffuser,that I can't find any alternative space for that's sensible.

[DoITellTheTeacher]

ooh thank you for the responses - when I say dressing table it's actually a chest of drawers

I know - tell me about the perfume - the things is we both wear all of them regularly so it's hard to consign some to the bathroom. they're all still boxed so I was thinking about perhaps getting some a nice narrow shelf to store then on...

I was thinking about getting a mirror on the wall, but I like having a standalone one as I can move it closer to see when I'm doing my hair - ailing old eyes aren't as good as they were!

Will have a browse on Laura Ashley etc and see what I can come up with.

[harbingerofdoom]

I think that it would be lovely to have a narrow shelf (out of the light) to hold your perfumes. A great display.
BUT you must be strict - my nice little shelf is now full of cough mixtures etc and my perfumes are being pushed out

[DoITellTheTeacher]

I've just bought a metal spice rack thing for the inside of one of the cupboard doors which double up as storage for medicines - it's genius as you can see exactly what medicine you have without knocking them all over - so at least medicine storage is sorted!

[DoITellTheTeacher]

oh and my hair drier etc lives in a jute shopping bag under the bed if that helps?

[Castlelough]

Harbingerofdoom what about a nice decorative hook or two on the wall or on the side of chest/dressing table so you can keep hair dryer plugged in and on hand, but off the surface? Mine has a hanging loop (between the handle and the cable) built into it that I only noticed recently!

[Castlelough]

DolTellTheTeacher a shelf sounds perfect!
You must be very neat and tidy really to have all the perfumes still in their boxes, and organised to manage to wear all of them regularly! I tend to wear one for ages and forget about the rest til I unearth one by accident. That's it! I need to make this my January decluttering project. Must get me some makeup storage.
By the way, if you put in make up storage or dressing table in the Mumsnet search engine there are lots of interesting threads especially in Style and Beauty!

[HalfMumHalfBiscuit]

this is handy for make up storage. caddy

[DoITellTheTeacher]

ha ha - no not organised at all - I just like wearing a different perfume depending on how I am feeling, what the weather's like etc!
that caddy looks handy - half my problem is dh's perfume - need to get him to find somewhere else dir his collection to live

as a temporary measure I have,checked all the random free sample creams etc that appear to have also accumulated in s corner! I've also found a nice bowl which I can use for hair clips etc til I find something better.

[Castlelough]

I saw a very nice wooden double shelf spice rack today in town and since this thread all I could think was 'ooh yes that would do nicely for my lotions and potions and tubes of makeup'. There was also a wooden cutlery tray with 7 segments (I was thinking of my eye shadows, makeup brushes etc) Had to force myself away and purchase the sensible Kilner jars to sort out baking ingredients instead.

What have you done to me?! I am developing yet another homewards obsession!

[EmpressMaud]

I have a glass dressing table tray for perfume. One of those old fashioned things. Everything else is stored in the dressing table drawers.

[Castlelough]

homewares I mean...