And since we are on what is and what is not contained – there is a whole list of items that probably shouldn’t even be in your bathroom anyway. Especially towels. I understand that everyone hangs them there, because it’s easy, but damp towels in this damp area of your home? You are practically welcoming mildew. At that point, you would be better off selecting an area with some actual airflow.
The same rules applies to wet clothes, of course. You would think, hey it’s ok to hang wet clothes in the bathroom, it’s already wet —wrong!! To make something worse is not that hard. Hanging in a laundry room, or on a balcony, or anything that has airflow is better. The bathroom makes things worse.
You should also consider the whole electricity thing we discussed. It sounds simple to say but, hairdryers, electric razors, and any other electric item, do not mix well with a steaming hot humid structural area. Not to mention, humidity tends to be a slow going enemy. It corrodes materials and increases the chances of an electric shock. Keeping your unclean electric materials in a less damp/humid space saves you on that “oh, no” experience too.
Plants are another touchy situation. Everybody likes the idea of the little cute placed fern near the sink, influenced by Instagram. But sitting in high humidity can suffocate many species of plants, literally. Too much water in the air leads roots to rot, yellow leaves, etc. In truth, most ferns are better off sitting in a sunny window, sunset area in the living room, than kept suffocating in a bathroom steam section.
Let’s talk about the open door versus closed door…. It is less about your right of passage stepping out from a damped climate wet area to a fresh air open air. The reality is, it has more to do with cleanliness, smell control, and keeping everything where they belong. It helps to be less crowded. When you close the bathroom door, it helps keep most of the bacteria and dampness inside the bathroom. It prevents them from wandering to germify your place. And if you want, you can avoid drugging up your space for more sustainability (as you heard today). The next time you show, make the same conscious decision. Instead of not closing the bathroom door because it isn’t right, you have the option of improving your space. This way, your home does not become another wet, molded-smelling, bacteria-caking place.
