It's one of those little annoyances in life - for the most part it blends into the landscape of your home, but everyone once in awhile it drives you nuts. We're talking about the humble toothbrush holder. We chuckled to see an article in the The New York Times, the Great Gray Lady herself, about this irksome bathroom appliance whose basic design is out of alignment with the size and shape of the modern toothbrush - which becomes even more vexing when you add kids' toothbrushes to the mix.
When we moved into our current apartment a few years ago we were pleased that our bathroom had been completely redone after the last tenant. However, the newly installed toothbrush holder is completely useless. Not only does it not accommodate a thick-handled toothbrush (what today has become "standard" size), but it was thoughtlessly placed only a few inches below the medicine cabinet rendering two of the four toothbrush slots inaccessible.
The Times article taps into this frustration. Mother of three, Rachel Holler, has resorted to using a cup to hold her daughters' large Barbie toothbrushes, but even this isn't satisfactory, "That’s probably not the best thing when they’re all together rubbing against each other...I’m grossing myself out."
If you have a bathroom counter (we don't) and are willing to sacrifice some space on it, a cup holder is certainly an option. The Times also lists a few new designs that can accommodate a variety of toothbrush sizes.
You can check out the full article here. Do you have this problem? How have you solved it?
(Photos by Lars Klove for The New York Times.)
© 2009 Apartment Therapy
I agree!! Our toothbrushes perch precariously on too small holes; my daughter's stands in a ceramic cup
view Sofia's profile
I like Magellan's Smiley Face toothbrush holder--doubles as a travel case. Maybe a cluttered look for some people, but it keeps them separate and clean. My sister sent me some and they've been great.
view elizarock's profile
I found a great solution in Target's office supplies section: a square, steel-ish, mesh-like holder for pens and pencils. It has four cubes within the square, one for each toothbrush (or more!) and a tube of paste. Simple, modern, cheap.
view caret's profile
where is the green holder in the picture on the far right from?
view jenlb78's profile