What about something like this? Something recessed and built out a little bit:

And then something recessed-only on the left:

If it were mine, I'd keep the vanity. But, if you want a more open feel, a happy-medium might be a vanity with open shelving or storage underneath.
NOT this exact thing (and obviously narrower than this), but a la


*You would have to be comfortable with open storage.

OR (less desirable)


OR a floating vanity might work -- but care will have to be taken to match the style of the existing bathroom.

All wonderful ideas, my favorite is the long skinny cabinet to the left. I never would have thought of that. Thank you so much!!

The best use of storage by far, in a bathroom, is to invest in a large DEEP (5"min) medicine cabinet.
I do not like drawers. These med cabinets hold everything from shampoo to make up and are easily
seen. If you have room for a triple sized high one, you'll be amazed. but look at your wall space and see whatever you can put into it, and make sure its deep.
I never regretted doing this , and its in my master bathroom.

Can I achieve a 5 inch depth by recessing 3 inches and having 2 inches hanging outside the wall?

also even though the walls are only 4 inches approx., these deep medicine cabinets are designed to come out a bit, and come in all shapes. I'd put them on the wall above your sink and get rid of the towel rack. Towels can be put on back of doors and on other walls. Or folded.

yes...i have done this in all my bathrooms. checkout the medicine cabinets they have. it does not look like anything is hanging out at all..you don't see it.

A floating vanity opens the space but includes storage, a basket can go below it.
Between the studs mirrored medicine cabinet

too funny--we just took out our pedestal sinks to add the storage of a sink w vanity

look up washstands (like in restoration hardware) w an open underneath storage to create the feel of being open--you will still have a LITTLE storage

WOW! Love the yellow, black and white. I have an IKEA sink and love it!

Your bathroom is adorable!! Mine is tiny too, with a pedestal and no storage. That organizer idea is fantastic!

@AMN where can I get the vanity shown at the Volunteer Park Residence?

instead of a pedestal sink, what about this washstand style? And the semi-recessed medicine cabinet above as shown by AMN at the top of discussion. You still need a place to hang a hand towel and washcloth and these stands give a place for that.


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question.. what is that you have on the floor? is it some kind of mat?

In addition to the shoe organizer, we went with a small recessed medicine cabinet from Kohler. It's fine for the basics. I love the washstands and the open vanities, but we were space challenged, all of them were too wide for the space. And Suzy, the floor is our tile, a matte black hex (unless you are looking at the green fuzzy rug in the first set of pictures before we gutted the bath).

Our downstairs bathroom has the same layout. We created a shelving system in the wall cavity across from the sink and put custom doors on it.

Amn - can you come to my house and redesign everything? Love your ideas, especially the 1st one. I have a built in recessed shelf in my basement bath as shwn below. At least ut gives a chance to add some personality with art and accessories.

If you need to, it is possible to squeeze a little more storage space over your toilet.

gmacrandall, In my daughter's apartment with very small bath, she used a shower curtain that had pockets on the shower side. She placed shampoo, conditioner and all her shower stuff in them. It was clear (like a liner - which is how she used it). You could take it down, wash it on low and re-hang. ...Just another storage idea!