Design Dilemma: Lighting and Furniture Just Barely Don't Fit

I complained recently on Instagram that I had just nearly, just barely found the perfect piece to fill in the gap of space between our bathroom vanity and the wall. Why yes, holy crap I'm finally talking about the bathroom again. Haha.

But yes, I had that useless gap of space and I had been planning on up shelves but I've been lazy. I've been using up my energy reserves for other projects I've been more inspired to work on or that have needed to get worked on first.

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The more the gap sat, the more it bothered me. Until I was staring at the wicker cabinet that I was no longer sure I wanted. As soon as the idea popped into my head, I grabbed a quick measurement and saw that it would fit perfectly between the vanity counter and the baseboard.

So I dragged it outside, hooked up my paint sprayer, grabbed some leftover white paint and went to town. Once it was dried, I pulled it back inside. I tried to coax it into it's new home but I kept getting hooked on the toilet paper holder. I eventually worked my way around it, but then I ran into another problem.

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The sconce on this side of the vanity was literally less than an inch too close. The cabinet was pushing the light crooked. Gahhhhh!

Literally everything else about the fit was absolutely perfect. Even where it goes from the bottom shelf up to the upper shelves bends exactly at the window sill.

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At this point, I was too determined to make this work to move it back out. So it sat, crooked sconce and all.

Lightbulb moment: I could cut away the wicker between the two horizontal supports and that would allow for the sconce to hang.

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How To Cut Out A Section Of Wicker



  1. determine which pieces can be removed without cutting within he window of supports.

  2. remove those pieces

  3. the remaining pieces that run through both this section but also into the other sections will need to be cut.

  4. hold the pieces taught and cut with a pair of ultra sharp scissors

  5. glue the ends down onto the horizontal supports to prevent them from shifting out of place and falling out.


This little peekaboo window on the side allows for plant growth overflow and adds and really good vibe to the piece. I find it much more interesting now and my sconce hangs straight. I have a few more projects coming up for the bathroom so make sure you stay tuned. The reveal is finally coming!

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