Keeping the bathroom mess-free and looking good can be difficult in a family home, but not impossible. Read on for five top tips for striking a balance between style and practicality in your family bathroom.
Organise the space
Among the most important elements of a family bathroom is organisation; without it, you’ll soon find toys, towels, clothes and more in piles around the room on a regular basis. However, if you have a place for everything, you’re less likely to discover chaotic heaps of things cluttering up the space.
Organisation is also important for setting the tone in the bathroom. If you can keep things orderly, you’re potentially more likely to be calm and less stressed out. Keep in mind buzzwords like safety, function, cleanliness and aesthetic when organising the area, in that order. It’s vital things like razors or medications are kept well out of reach, while things like sponges and the children’s toiletries can be accessed easily, along with bath toys.
Invest in durable furniture
Durability is key in a family bathroom, so if you’re replacing the suite or adding in storage units for example, take a look at hardwearing products that will stand the test of time. Solid wood is a good choice for units, while cupboards made from lighter materials are safest screwed to the wall to avoid mishaps should the children try to climb them or knock them over.
You could also give some consideration to the materials your suite will be made from – steel is ideal for the bath, as the metal is extremely durable. Steel bath manufacturers like Bette produce a variety of differently-shaped tubs with a range of features.
Keep it child-friendly
You may be keen to make the bathroom sleek and sophisticated, but your children are likely to have other ideas, and your glass tea light holders could swiftly become receptacles for bathwater in young hands.
That’s not to say that you can’t chose the decor you want for the space, but keeping accessories to a minimum can be wise. Storage caddies that are fixed to the wall can be both stylish and practical, while attractive wicker baskets can be useful for storing towels or moving laundry from the bathroom to the washing machine.
Establish a routine
The bathroom is often highly subscribed in a family home, so working out a routine for who gets to use the space, when, can make busy periods run much more smoothly and with fewer frayed tempers along the way.
Draw up routines for everyone and set limits on how long each person can spend in the bathroom during certain times of the day, as well as establishing a routine for keeping the area clean. Everyone can join in with maintaining the area’s cleanliness, with little ones helping to move clothes from the floor and put them in linen baskets, for example.
Be prepared to compromise
As much as you can set time limits and keep the bathroom as uncluttered as possible, there will be times when a little compromise is necessary. It can be hard work to get children to brush their teeth or wash their hands, and you could find that these sorts of issues mean timeframes go off kilter. Think about ways of making tasks more enjoyable for youngsters and this could mean it’s easier to keep to times and also to maintain the calmness and cleanliness of the space.
Let the children have a say in which toothpaste or handwash they can use and they may be more inclined to use it, while games like seeing how much tidying can be done in ten seconds makes mundane cleaning jobs more enjoyable for youngsters.
Leave a Reply