8 Items Pros Say You Shouldn't Store in a Bathroom

People with small bathrooms often comment saying that they wish they had more storage for products, but as it turns out, not everything should be kept in the bathroom after all. We asked professional organizers to share the items that actually should stay out of the bathroom and be stashed somewhere else. Some of their answers may surprise you.

1. Jewelry

It may seem like common sense to store all of your baubles in the bathroom so that you can easily access bracelets and necklaces while getting ready for the day. However, Megan Tevlin of The Organizing Blonde advises against this practice. "Jewelry should never be stored in the bathroom, as the humidity from the shower promotes tarnishing and discoloration," she says.

2. Extra Toiletries

Extra toilet paper, shampoo, makeup wipes, you name it—none of these need to live in the bathroom. "There should be one dedicated area for backstock so everyone in the house can re-up when needed," Kait Hilton, of Life in HARMONie, says.

3. Large Appliances

Hilton says that when organizing bathrooms, she often comes across appliances such as humidifiers, heaters, and carpet cleaners. Hilton advises that these items should be stored elsewhere like a linen closet so they don't take up too much space in a bathroom with limited storage solutions.

4. Makeup

If you use your bathroom mirror to get ready for the day, it only seems practical to keep your go-to makeup supplies nearby, right? Think again, says Xiomara Romero of Lilly's Organizing. "If possible, makeup should be placed in a cool, dry place," she says. "Most bathrooms can get hot and humid, especially after a shower, and can wreak havoc on makeup."

It may be time to set up a vanity or small getting-ready station in your bedroom instead. Romero suggests storing your makeup as far away from your shower as possible and to place in an air-tight container as an extra measure to prevent humidity from damaging your product. Whatever you do, though, don't allow makeup to clutter up the counters in your bathroom. "I am a firm believer in keeping the counters as clutter-free as possible," Shantae Duckworth, of Shantae-ize Your Space, says. "If you can store makeup, dental supplies, and other items elsewhere that would be great."

5. Medicine and Supplements

If you're used to storing vitamins and the like in your bathroom, maybe it's time to pivot and place them elsewhere—like your kitchen. "That is where you are more likely to take them with a glass of water," Susie Salinas, of Systems by Susie, says. "Create a wellness cabinet, complete with your supplements, vitamins, protein powders, and everything used to make daily smoothies."

It's smart to keep extra medicine on hand so that you don't have to dash out to the drugstore the minute you feel a cough coming on. However, it's best to store your cough syrups somewhere else, in line with the National Library of Medicine's guidelines. "Medicine, ideally, should be stored outside the bathroom in a linen closet with low humidity and relatively constant temperature to retain its potency," Tevlin says. Hilton also believes that storing medicine outside of the bathroom is best, but can also be beneficial in other ways since having them in a common area allows everyone to have access to it when they need it, without having the wait for the bathroom to be vacated.

6. Razors and Tweezers

Keeping an extra razor within arm's reach of the shower may seem like a smart idea, but you're better off leaving them outside of the bathroom. "Extra razors should be stored outside the bathroom to avoid rusting," Tevlin says. Michele Vig, of Neat Little Nest, also advises that tweezers should be kept elsewhere. "What we’ve noticed is the size of the bathroom and where the shower is matters," she says. "The smaller the bathroom, the more steam builds up in a small space so you might have fewer challenges if you’re in a large-spaced bathroom."

7. Books and Magazines

Many people keep these by the toilet, but Romero advises against doing so—for a good reason! "The humidity levels in the bathroom can cause pages to stick together and have mold set in easily between them."

8. Clothes

You shouldn't store clothes in the bathroom—even your pajamas. "Due to the presence of moisture, storing clothes is a no-no in the bathroom," says Paige Stuart of NEAT. For the same reason you don't want to keep books and magazines in your restroom, the last thing you'd want is the excess moisture to cause your stored clothes to grow mold.