Stylish Bathtub Toy Storage that Transforms for Guest Luxury

Bath time with a toddler is so much fun!  At almost 15 months old, Beckett is now really starting to enjoy playing with toys in the tub, but with that comes the challenge of storing all those toys.  There is a small bathroom right off of Beckett's nursery, but it only has a shower. That means that bath time occurs down the hall in the bathroom attached to our guest room.

We have plenty of storage space in the bathroom cabinet, but the problem was that by the time the tub toys finally dried, and I got around to putting them away in the cabinet, it was time for another bath.  As a result, the toys ended up living on the edge of the tub most of the time.

I had been searching for a new tub toy storage solution - one that would allow the toys to be quickly picked up and put away after bath time, even when still wet.  While shopping at Ikea a while back, it occurred to me that the Grundtal rail system could be just the answer.  I liked the coordinating white plastic Grundtal containers that are made to hang from the rail - but at $10-$16 each they were more than I wanted to spend.  After a bit more searching around the store, I discovered that the Rationell Recycling Bins also fit onto the Grundtal rail, and at only $3.99 each they are a much better deal (these bins are no longer showing up on the Ikea website, but the Colorado store had a large inventory just a month ago).  Update:  These white bins are showing up on the Ikea website once again, but are now being called the Rationell Waste Sorting Bins.

We decided to install the Grundtal rail just above the tiled tub surround, making sure it was positioned such that when hung from the rail, the bottom of the white bins would just overlap the top of the tile.  Scott started by inserting an anchor and screw at the top left of the rail, then, after leveling the rail, he marked the locations for the remaining three screws and finished the installation.  

Because we want to be able to put the toys away while they are still wet, and allow them to properly dry, Scott used a small drill bit to drill numerous holes in the bottom of the bins so that all the excess water will drain right out.  

Once holes were drilled in the first bin, we hung it from the rail and filled it full of water to test it out. We discovered that because of the angle at which the bins hang, some water was pooling along the front edge. Scott drilled one more row of holes right along that bottom front corner of the bin and that easily solved the problem.

Once all the holes were drilled, I hung the five bins from the rail and quickly realized that while they were perfectly functional, I wanted to add a little something-something to make them prettier.  I decided to add fun bath related words to the front of the bins, and settled on: splish, splash, wash, bath, and scrub.  {Click here for details on how I made the labels} 

With the bins labeled, I hung them back on the rail and filled them with all of Beckett's tub toys, as well as baby shampoo, body wash, and wash cloths.  Quick, and simple, but oh-so-stylish tub toy storage!

The bins hang securely on the rail, and are very light weight and easy to lift off.

And the bins provide ample storage for all of Beckett's bath time toys!

By installing the rail just low enough so that the bottom of the bins overlaps the tile ensures that we can put the away wet toys and the excess water will drain out without getting anything wet that shouldn't be.



I love our new bathtub toy storage, but best of all, when we have guests visiting, the Grundtal rail can quickly transform from toddler fun to guest luxury!



When friends come to visit, we want them to be comfortable and relaxed in the guest bathroom, and while bath tub toys are fun, they don't exactly scream relaxation.  So to transform the rail for guests, we can quickly stash away the bins of toys in favor of more grownup bath time essentials.

Since the guest bathroom doesn't have a towel bar, the Grundtal rail provides the perfect spot to hang a towel by the tub.  One Ikea Grundtal S-hook holds a loofah, while two more S-hooks hold a Polytherm Shallow Basket from the Container Store, which provides ample space for a bar of soap, body wash and lotion.   

And there you have it... the solution to our bathtub toy storage challenge that also met the requirement of being stylish enough for guests.  Here's the complete transformation: