DIY Bath Caddy

My house was built over a hundred years ago, and my bathroom is…not large and by that I mean it’s slightly larger than closet sized. There is very little space to move around in there- mostly due to the large claw-foot bathtub that takes up the entire west half of the room. However, there’s something quintessentially San Francisco about a claw-foot tub; I’m a fan, so I’m totally okay with the trade-off. I also like to read in the tub though, which is a quick recipe for disaster so lately I’ve been mulling over an upcycled tub caddy.

The one I have in mind is planks of wood, so it should be pretty easy to duplicate but there are a few tutorials I’m kicking around. If you would also like to class up your bathtime, here’s what I’ve been looking at:

Etsy, that sexy bitch, is responsible for the version above (if you can handle the $130 price tag). However, putting one together yourself isn’t so hard: buy planks, measure tub, cut and sand planks, nail planks to support beam along the underside, seal with Tungsten oil. I think I could knock that out in an afternoon, if I already had the supplies ready.

Another version is a ladder style caddy, which can be made entirely from repurposed wood (if you’ve got skills, and tools) or upcycled from something with slats (think step stool or kitchen stool).

You can also opt to reclaim a solid piece of wood, like a cabinet door – or if you prefer the ladder style caddy, a ladder or step stool with a fruit box on top of it – and sand and seal it. If you took shop class, or are comfortable working with wood and saws and machinery, there’s an Instructables tutorial for one with a slight lip so you don’t have to worry about knocking anything in.

Images courtesy Etsy seller PegandAwl, Curbly.com, Instructables.com