Latest news with #bathroomstorage
The Sun
6 days ago
- General
- The Sun
I'm a mum of 12 – £4.50 IKEA buy is a live-saver for our busy council house bathroom, it lasts forever too
A MUM-OF-12 has revealed the bargain IKEA buy she swears by to keep on top of the busy family bathroom. Zoe, 47, and Ben Sullivan, 50, and their bumper brood make up one of Scotland's biggest families. 3 3 The pair are parents to Elizabeth, 20, Olivia, 18, Noah, 15, Eva, 13, Toby, 12, Agnes, seven, Joseph, six, Flo, three, and two sets of twins, Charlotte and Isabelle, 17, and Leah and Erin, nine. They live in a six-bedroom council house in Burghead, Moray, where they regularly document their hectic lives on their YouTube channel. With 14 people sharing two bathrooms, Zoe said she has to clean the space "all the time". And storage for everybody's toiletries can be a nightmare. In a short social media video, Zoe said: "We were in desperate need of some new bathroom caddies. "I had these metal ones which have been okay. I got them from B&M, but obviously because they get wet all the time they rust really easily and they don't stick all that well." The mum then stumbled across the perfect £4.50 buy from IKEA. Hailing the TISKEN basket with suction cup, she said: "These are great if you don't want to drill anything into the wall, especially if you are renting. "We've got a lot of stuff in the bathroom. There's a lot of people and this is our main bathroom. "But once you stick those things down, they are not going anywhere. "They're plastic so they don't rust, easily cleaned just and they they're massive. They hold so much." IKEA bosses say the caddie "puts things within easy reach" without having to drill any holes into your walls. They add: "The tight-grip suction cups won't let go of smooth surfaces like glass or tiles – unless you want them to." And Zoe isn't the only person raving about them, with the handy gadget racking up five-star reviews on the website. One person said: "I was concerned about it staying put, due to only the suction hooks that hold it secure against the surface. This is unbelievable secure. Brilliant." A second wrote: "Bought these because all the metal ones I have bought have rusted. Basic but holds a ton of products. Very secure when installed. We have some texture on our tiles and it's still very secure." Meanwhile, a third added: "Bought this for all the bottles that drive me mad in the shower. "Hubby was skeptical,said wouldn't hold etc but he's been proven wrong, so strong and stays out even full of bottles and no chrome to rust either!"
Daily Mail
14-06-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
You're organising your bathroom cabinet wrong! Expert reveals the surprising items you should never store in there
Most bathroom cabinets are a jumble of half-used shampoos, forgotten Christmas bath bombs and ancient first aid kits. But there are a number of items you should never keep in this part of the house, according to an expert. John Horner, Managing Director at luxury bathroom retailer 34 St John, warned extreme humidity and temperature changes in bathrooms lowers the shelf life of expensive products. And millions of people currently keep them there without a second thought. 'Many people don't realise their bathroom is actually one of the worst places to store their expensive cosmetics,' he said. 'The constant moisture and temperature changes can break down active ingredients and even promote bacterial growth.' His most urgent warning regards suncream, as storing it in your bathroom cabinets could leave users completely unprotected against harmful UV rays. 'Sunscreen molecules can become unstable when repeatedly exposed to heat and moisture cycles,' he said. 'This means your sun protection might not work as effectively, potentially leaving your skin vulnerable to UV damage.' The expert stressed keeping SPF products in cooler, drier places, especially during months when they sit unused before being needed again. 'If your sunscreen changes colour, separates, or smells different, it's time to replace it immediately regardless of the expiration date,' he added. It's also bad news for anyone who likes to display their favourite perfumes and aftershaves in the bathroom. 'Perfume bottles might look attractive on bathroom shelves, but the fluctuating temperatures and humidity levels cause the fragrance compounds to break down much faster,' Mr Horner explained. Heat and moisture change the chemical makeup of perfumes, causing them to oxidise and smell completely different from what you originally bought. 'Store your fragrances in a cool, dark place like a bedroom drawer instead. This simple change can extend their life by several months or even years,' he added. Meanwhile, products with natural ingredients and minimal preservatives face the highest risk from bathroom storage, with many becoming useless within weeks. 'Natural skincare products often contain fewer synthetic preservatives, making them more susceptible to bacterial contamination in humid environments,' Mr Horner said. He suggested keeping these items in a bedroom drawer where temperature stays more stable and moisture levels remain much lower than typical bathroom conditions. 'Products with ingredients like vitamin C, retinol, and probiotics degrade quickly when exposed to moisture and heat,' he added. 'You're essentially throwing money away by keeping them in the bathroom.' The final product he advises keeping out of the bathroom is makeup – especially powders and items without airtight seals. 'Makeup brushes and sponges stored in bathrooms become breeding grounds for bacteria, which you then transfer directly to your skin,' he explained. 'This can lead to breakouts and infections.' The bathroom specialist advised creating a dedicated makeup area away from bathroom humidity, cleaning tools regularly and binning products past their expiration date. 'Most people don't realise that makeup has a much shorter shelf life when kept in bathrooms,' Mr Horner said. Products containing vitamin C, like this Medik8 serum and Garnier brightening fluid, degrade quickly when exposed to moisture and heat 'Mascara, for example, should be replaced every three months, but even sooner if stored in humid conditions.' Makeup manufacturers test products under perfect laboratory conditions, not the steamy environment found in typical home bathrooms where hot showers create tropical-like conditions several times daily, he said. 'The safety assessments conducted for cosmetic products assume they're stored properly,' he added. 'When you keep them in a bathroom, all bets are off for their effectiveness and safety over time.' Tips include checking bathroom cabinet contents every few months, moving sensitive products to better locations and taking extra care with natural formulas that contain fewer preservatives. How can I tell if my suncream has broken down? 'Sunscreen which is degrading may have a different texture – it could be runnier, lumpier, and split,' aesthetic doctor Ed Robinson told the Huffington Post. 'If the formula has changed consistency, it may also apply unevenly, leading to patchy protection,' he added. A rancid smell or darker or yellowish colour usually means your sunscreen isn't as able to do its job as it should be, too.
