It might seem like a strange place to start. But your bathroom is the perfect room in which to begin your tidying journey.
Why?
It’s one of the easiest projects to tackle to allow you to build up your skills. More importantly, the state of your bathroom can be particularly important in terms of your well-being. After all, it’s usually the first room you enter after getting up in the morning. And the last one before going to bed. It therefore has the power to set the tone for and draw a line under, your day. It can provide solitude, space to think, reflect and focus on yourself. The average person spends 1.5 years in their bathroom! So, here’s how to make easy improvements to your experience:
- Streamline. This is the most important element initially but luckily it’s quite easy to do. The first step is emptying out all cupboards and drawers onto the floor. Also, include any toiletries from next to the shower, bath or sink. If you have an extensive medicine cabinet, you may wish to deal with the separately but the process is the same. If you find yourself faced with a mountain of products on the floor, take stock – how many do you really need? First off, chuck any that are old, don’t suit you or you don’t love or use for any reason. If there are duplicates that you can decant into one container, then do so. Only keep items that you truly gain pleasure from using or that you require to improve your life in some way. Think about whether they invigorate or relax you. Whether they have a use and crucially, will you use them?
- Turn your attention to your towels and bathmat. Are they bobbled or threadbare? We all deserve a touch of luxury and happily, decent towels are available very inexpensively. A decent fabric softener is also worth using so that your towels retain that softness. Don’t underestimate how important these small comforts are to the bigger picture of how we feel each day.
- Look at your waste bin and toilet brush. Yes, they are important too! If they are rusty, they must go. I believe metal ones always turn rusty or discoloured, even if they are stainless steel. I recommend simple plastic pieces which are easy to wash and match the rest of your bathroom décor.
- Keep surfaces clutter-free. Once you have decided what to keep, store any spare products out of sight. If there is no room in the bathroom, then consider keeping them in a drawer in another room. If you have a tendency to buy in bulk, I recommend you break this habit now. I don’t believe the money saved is worth the storage space taken up. The odd “two for one” deal aside, none of us are ever very far from a supermarket and there is simply no need to have a large stock of toiletries waiting in the wings. The less bottles and jars on view, the calmer your bathroom will feel.
- Time to think about storage. A wicker basket or other attractive box will be a suitable container for toilet roll. Consider hooks for dressing gowns if you don’t have them already. There are some ingenious plastic suction type storage devices designed to fix to tiled walls in showers or next to baths (try IKEA). These can be a very easy way to store products. Try to avoid keeping them on your shower floor since bending down to get them isn’t part of a pleasant shower experience. I don’t like metal storage containers as I feel toiletries rattle around unstably in them, plus they tend to become unattractively sludgy in no time. Keep only the items you are really going to use. What else would make your bathroom experience easier or more pleasant? A canvas laundry bag hung from a hook rather than a free standing one, to save space? A heated towel holder?
- Style it out. A lot of us put plenty of thought into the décor of our homes but the bathroom(s) can be a bit of an afterthought. Materials must be hard wearing and waterproof but can be attractive too – bamboo is a great example. Think about artwork for the walls. Perhaps a framed inspirational quote or poem? Put candles out (providing you actually light them) Ensure your towels are always matching and think about changing the light bulb to a warmer, dimmer one for evening relaxation.
Ultimately, your bathroom should be a place to decompress, disconnect, digress and daydream. Enjoy it!
Thanks so much for reading
A Tidy Mind