“Where’s the bathroom?”–It’s the first question a guest will probably ask when they visit your home. Apart from whatever your entry room is, the bathroom is what’s going to make the biggest impression on your guests, whether they’re a friend coming for lunch or a relative for an extended stay. Having a bathroom that is inviting is an important way to make anyone feel welcome.
WELL-STOCKED SUPPLIES: Remember when everyone lost their minds and attempted to buy a year’s worth of toilet paper? There’s just something about having an abundance of supply that keeps one at ease. For the guest bathroom, it’s not just toilet paper. It’s keeping all the amenities in stock–soap, towels, lotions, bandaids, tampons. Think about all the things you use in a bathroom, and have them prepared. But what constitutes enough of a supply? We recommend “the heir and the spare” rule; have an item ready for usage and an untapped one on hand. For example, have an open multipack of toilet paper ready for immediate usage and then a sealed multipack also stored away. While on the mention of supplies, it is recommended that all items either be easily noticeable or accessible to avoid any awkward questions of “where is X?” or “do you have any Y”.
GET RID OF THE GRIME: If the guest bathroom isn’t just your regular bathroom doing a little bit of moonlighting, there may be a chance you haven’t checked it for dirt and grime in a while. Even if the room isn’t getting regular usage, it doesn’t mean it isn’t susceptible to accumulating dirt and grime. It’s important to regularly keep an eye on it, as you would for any other room, otherwise, you may just find yourself with a lot more than you would care to bargain for. For helpful solutions to a quick bathroom clean-up, check out the link here.
NEAT AND TIDY: I don’t know about you, but when it comes to clutter, my mind mentally winces. Apart from the designated clutter corner in my home office, seeing clutter anywhere immediately instigates cringey feelings. Walking into a guest bathroom where everything is haphazard is a great way to make someone feel uninvited. It gives the feeling your treading into someone else’s space rather than being allowed your own. Cleanliness not only offers a piece of mind for visitors, but if they’re longer term visitors, then they’ll need space to put out any extra toiletries and other personal care items they may have brought with themselves. So, before guests arrive, always make sure to check that all loose and unneeded items are carefully stored away.
SMELL GOOD: Never, ever, ever, ever, EVER, underestimate the power of a good scent. Like a film score cues to feel a certain way when watching a movie, so does scents cue to certain feelings when in a given space. Lots of places do this: stores, restaurants, theme parks. Yes, part of why you like DisneyLand is because The Mouse knows the value of having “Smellitizers” in creating an enriched experience. For the bathroom, you want calm, but not sterile scents. Lemon is good to convey cleanliness, and lavender is great for creating calm, or check out this link for more scent ideas
One of the keys to making your home an inviting place to be is to keep the bathroom as accessible as possible to your guests. It’s a great way to display attention to details and your attentiveness without any direct intervention. So, before guests arrive, try going through our handy listicle here and check to see if there’s anything you need to do for a more inviting experience.
If you have more ideas, feel free to share them in the comment section below!
