AT Europe: Paris - The End of the Bidet?

When my landlady decided to renovate the bathroom, with its pink tiles and draw-string flush toilet, the first casualty was the bidet. "You don't use that thing?" she asked rhetorically, her mouth twisted in disgust. "Quelle horreur!"

The bidet was invented in the 17th or 18th century and is the inspiration for the modern automatic self-washing Japanese toilet. But contrary to popular belief, the bidet was never intended as a substitute for toilet paper, but a place to wash your privates -- not to mention your feet and hand-washables -- between bathing.

But in the age of space-saving and quick showers, the bidet is seen as increasingly old-fashioned and outmoded in the country where it was invented. French DIY forums are full of questions discussing how to remove them, and French contractors will tell you that the demand for a bidet is less and less common with younger people. Right now in Paris, someone is ripping out a fixture of the French salle de bain, leaving it to languish on a sidewalk or in a courtyard as seen here.

- Kristin Hohenadel blogging from rue Vieille du Temple, Paris, France. She can be reached at kristinh @ apartmenttherapy . com

Comments (23)

Good riddence! :) I'm not a bidet fan.

oh, so i do, KTG . so do i.

... and if they could somehow work in "day bidet" - well, then my mind would just be blown into millions of pieces.

If they're just going to sit in a courtyard, or even on the street, why not re-purpose them and turn them into planters? More green space and takes away from the site of a piece of porcelain just sitting there...

Or build a base for them and turn them into pedestal sinks.

Didn't I just see something recently about more & more *Americans* putting bidets in their homes? This is nutty! I think if I were building a new home now I would put a bidet in the master bathroom. Maybe that's just the Euro-snob in me though, haha...
I LOVED having a bidet in my apartment in Italy. For whatever reason, no matter how often we swept, the floors would always turn my feet black so I'd wash my feet in there every night before bed.

i don't know. i just can't get into washing any part of my body in something that so closely resembles the porcelain throne.

someone better leap on this opportunity. these things can be recycled into tile.

my mom has a bidet. I grew up with it and it works great! Good for keeping things down there fresh. ;)

yeh it's funny, our high end residential clients here in america are asking for them more and more now.

I wish everyone used bidets. I think people are just lazy, not to mention dirty.

Sorry but thats the way i feel!

I was brought up using one which might have something to do with why im biased.

Anyone have numbers on water consumption? Seems like it would take less water to freshen your feet or nethers in a bidet than cranking up the shower every time.

I'm for them and amed studio is right. Great in hot weather.

Hands? Who washes their hands in a bidet? Ewwww.

Here in Brazil some old homes still have bidets. But for at least 20 years they are being replaced for douches, such as the ones in the liks below:

http://www.expambox.com.br/images/331202.jpg

http://picasaweb.google.com/parisplacedesvoges/PlacedesvogesParis75004/photo#5180406770988506658

The douche is very handy and usefull and I really missed it when I used to live in USA. They're great for a quick fresh up (and us girls know hows that's important during certain days of the month).

I guess it's an idea that should be more spread around the world.

I think Marina is describing what north americans call a hand shower-- and I agree, they are great.

Personally, I never got the hang (um, so to speak) of a bidet-- it feels like sitting on a sink and not very convenient at all. I guess the benefit is you don't have to remove your pants entirely to use it. But don't you end up splashing anyway? I'd much rather strip halfway and hop into a tub outfitted with a hand shower.

well, I don't mean to turn this into a how-to post on using a bidet. Suffice to say I always found them awkward, at best.

i saw the spray heads marina posted in private homes in india too (as an upgrade from a tap and a plastic pitcher). they were pretty handy - you get the cleaning features of a bidet, but reusing the same 'seat' as the toilet, thus saving a significant amount of floor space.

Install a bidet. Feel fresh today!

@Palmetto

Hand-washables/handing washing of clothes, not hand washing. I did a double take as well.

I like bidets. I'm all for them.

I lived in Japan for a couple of years and just loved having the built-in bidet. I was hard to come back to America and not have them. It's not a substitute for toilet paper, but after a rinse you just use the TP to dry.

Now I use the Tushy Clean: http://www.juscuzz.com/. It's awesome.

Oops. "IT was hard to come back to America..." What a typo!

There´s nothing better than a bidet.Not only to freshen up,but a warm steady shower is good to ease the cramps when you have a bad period or to avoid the effects of cold air in those zones.It´s the only way to cut the possiblity of a cystitis.Too much use isn´t good either,it changes the natural balance of microorganisms.

Here in Germany always more and more people are using "wet toilet paper" (wipes) and bidets actually offer an eco-friendlier alternative to wipes for that kind of hygiene.