The IKEA Kitchen Essential That Doubles As The Perfect Sink Organizer

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The sinks in your bathroom and kitchen see quite a bit of action on a daily basis, and as a result, the areas around them can quickly become cluttered. Dish sponges, soap bottles, and hygiene products can all contribute to a messy environment without a good system in place. Luckily, one simple way to restore order is to hang up an IKEA BEKVÄM spice rack right above your sink. At just under seven dollars, it's generally quite affordable. This small wooden shelf has a clean, elegant look that matches all sorts of interior design styles. That said, you can also apply wax or another kind of sealant to change its appearance, plus protect the surface against water splashes or wet items.

Organize your kitchen sink by filling your BEKVÄM spice rack with sponges, cleaning cloths, and your drain stopper. Everything you need for doing dishes will be close at hand — and off the countertop. In the bathroom, you can use your spice rack for washcloths, perfumes, or soaps instead. The front bar on the spice rack makes a convenient spot to hang a hand towel, too. Overall, this fixture can easily help tidy up some of the most-used zones in a house. And of course, it's also a great way to turn the dead space above your sink into useful storage.

The BEKVÄM spice rack has a fairly basic design, but that just makes it easy to alter. Before you hang it up, you may want to think about how you're going to protect it from water, which it's inevitably going to come into contact with if placed next to your sink. Coating it with wax is one of the best options to both change its look and add a protective layer. Some Feed-N-Wax Wood Polish by Howard Products, for example, will darken the shelf and bring out the elegance of the grain. Wax is also a good product to have if you're planning on refurbishing your wooden furniture.

If you don't want to work with wax, consider staining your new sink shelf instead. Lightly sand the piece before you begin, and use a cloth to wipe away any excess liquid. The stain won't provide quite as much protection as wood sealers, but it will leave you with a beautiful finish that catches the eye. A layer of varnish on top, though, will help guard a newly-stained shelf from scratches and spills. Another alternative for bolstering the durability and beauty of your spice rack is tung oil. To use it effectively, you might want to learn how to properly apply tung oil finish to your wood project. Also note that you may need to keep reapplying this product every half-year to a year.