DAY TWO: BATHROOM ORGANIZING TOOLS
Once
the bathrooms have been cleaned out, it’s time for lunch. Be sure your
helper takes out the trash and finds a spot for the products you wish
to share. My best advice is to share it with her so it all leaves
today. Discuss with your helper which organizing items you think you
need. Get her feedback. Make a list. Take a day to shop for these items
yourself if you enjoy this process. Or you can ask your helper to shop
for you and schedule a return date. The final option is to order what
you need online. It’s all going to depend on your individual needs,
your interest level in products, your area, and how you are feeling.
Don’t forget to add up the projected total and be sure we’re honoring
your budget. Here is a lit of organizing tools:
• Shelf liner for the drawers; use the thick washable liner you got for the kitchen.
• Small containers for the drawers; use acrylic here as it’s easy to keep clean.
•
Grid totes to keep all related products corralled in one area. Look at
your categories of products and decide whether you need the small
square or the rectangular size.
• Possibly
a container for cleaning supplies under the sink. You can use a grid
tote or one of the containers designed for toting cleaning products.
The big concern, as it was in the kitchen, is your pipe configuration.
Take note!
• If you and your partner use towels only once, is there room for a hamper in the room? It’s certainly preferable to the floor.
• Clear, acrylic countertop organizers for items you feel you must have at hand like makeup and cotton balls.
• If you like lots of perfume bottles out, keep them on a tray so there’s no bleed-out over the entire countertop.
•
If you have shelves that will hold supplies but they will be on view,
use small wicker or rattan containers. Be consistent. Different styles,
colors, and fabrics will give you a less-thanrestful visual.
Some
bathrooms have shallow drawers and you can store an entire category
there with ease. In most cases you’ll have deep drawers, and inserting
grid totes will make your storage more efficient. For example, let’s
say you have beautiful hair and every day you deal with mousse, gel,
spray, etc. Instead of constantly bending down for each product, take
out a grid tote that has everything you need to do your hair. Use this
for any large category of item that gets used each day. Grid totes are
easy to wipe out and keep clean, which is why I like them so much for
the kitchen, laundry area, and bathroom. They also come in many colors,
which means your products can be in white totes, your spouse’s can be
in blue, and your baby’s supplies can reside in green. And you thought
organizing by color only worked in the closet! Organizing is really
part of design. Have fun with this part of the process.
BABY BATH ITEMS
While you are out shopping for containers, don’t
forget to have some for baby-specific items. Here’s a list to help you
get ready to greet Baby in organized style:
In a small grid tote keep:
• 1 bottle baby shampoo
• 1 bottle baby lotion
• 1 container baby powder
(You can of course keep the shampoo in the shower caddy if you want it with the ones you and your partner use.)
You may need to purchase a baby
bathtub in the event you didn’t receive one at your baby shower. This
item takes up room but is a necessity for Baby until he can sit up
unsupported. Store it in the tub or lean it against the shower wall.
(Many parents bathe their baby in the kitchen sink.)
If you intend to bathe Baby in
your regular tub, have a pair of kneepads on hand. You can buy a
special mat in baby stores that’s specially made for protecting Mom’s
and Dad’s knees next to the tub.
Purchase a few baby washcloths.
You can have one in the bathroom and the rest in the linen closet or
wherever you store your towels.
You’ll want a few containers for
inside the baby’s bathroom drawers. Start with one to hold his
fingernail clippers and his hairbrush.
Have two hooded towels: one for
the linen closet and the other for the bathroom. You can hang it on a
decorative hook so it’s handy.
Finally, don’t forget to create
a staging area near the area where you’ll be bathing Baby with
someplace to sit down and all the supplies you’ll need to dry off,
groom, and dress a slippery naked babe who just got out of the bath. A
note: Sometimes you may prefer to wash your baby on the counter and
other times the bathtub may be the most appropriate place. For example,
the kitchen counter is a great place to put Baby’s bathtub because you
won’t have to stoop over to use it, but sometimes the kitchen might be
drafty or you might be in the middle of cooking dinner when Dad wants
to give Baby a bath. The tote will give you the flexibility to bathe
Baby wherever it makes the most sense.
You’ll want to line Baby’s
bathroom drawers and have some small drawer containers to catch the
miscellaneous items that will be stored here. Keeping related items
together saves you time and energy. It also makes you feel very
powerful. Just as fumbling and searching make you feel demoralized. I’m
repeating myself I realize but until you experience this for yourself
you are likely to doubt the importance of categories.
