i absolutely love that first bathroom. and yes - set out the toilet paper! i've just spent several days with lovely friends who unfortunately keep their TP outside their admittedly damp bathroom and i got tired of always asking "please sir, may i have some more?"

My husband insists that our plunger be handy, so as to avoid embarrassment if there's an incident. Our plunger is nasty and ugly and, worst of all, won't fit in the cabinet. He grew up in really old houses in New England, and he dismisses me when I point out that with modern plumbing, "incidents" don't happen all that often.

Flowers are a good idea, I do use a lightly scented candle and I like to have lotion on the counter.

In my bathroom, I've made it a habit to always keep toothpicks, breath mints, multiple TP rolls, and matches within sight. Why make guests suffer in silence for things they might need?

Also, if you're having company over, make sure your bathroom has a working lock! Something, anything! I can't even count the number of times I've gone to the loo during a friend's house party, only to find the lock either broken or completely absent. Then panic sets in.

I COMPLETELY agree about having a lock on bathroom doors! I absolutely hate it when there aren't locks on bathroom doors. Especially when the toilet is far from the door. Makes me so nervous. Especially when it is a gathering of people - if it is just me and the people who live in the place, then they are probably used to there not being a lock and knocking first, but many party-goers will not be. One of the simplest things I suggest anyone who wants to entertain do is add a lock to a bathroom door if it doesn't have one.

If it isnt always there - add a small waste bin for the ladies. There's nothing as embarassing as when you have to ask for where to put those things.

Other than that, flowers, a nice soap and a candle are nice gestures.

gingergirl: I like the lotion idea too - but if you don't keep it in the original container, it's nice to make sure that it's obvious what is lotion and what is soap. (My first roommate had identical dispensers for lotion and liquid soap; it drove me crazy.)

I know this is obvious to most of us, but start out with scrupulously clean. All the cute handtowels in the world won't make up for crud behind the toilet. eewww.

londonverve- love your suggestions! Thanks for adding them.

Definitely agreeing with the lock issue. I stayed with a German family for three weeks when I was at school and they didn't have a lock. I was sooo glad to get home!

Tampons or pads in an obvious but hidden place. It's nice in case any of the ladies get surprised or just forget.

Matches for the unfortunate (but thankfully rare) guest for whom a reed diffuser is not enough.

A magazine or two can be nice, especially for long-haul family gatherings.

I saw this in a book once: the toilet lid covered in chalkboard paint with a cup of chalk handy. Definitely not for stuffy parties, but it looked like fun for the more juvenile/boozy ones.

I am a huge fan of the extra fem. hygene products. Hidden but available! When you are packing up that clutch to go to a party they are the first things to be overlooked.

Britomart, I too like to have a plunger handy in all bathrooms, just in case, even though problems are rare. I bought plungers that come in a steel canister to contain the eyesore - you can get them at Bed Bath and Beyond.

Umm, what are the matches for? I would not like my guests to have a quick fag in my bathroom. As the bathroom will be used more than usual during a party, some spray would be nice. Some guests may feel they do not want to leave a bathroom smelly for the next person waiting outside. If you have a second toilet make sure you point the gentlemen to it, as they can get pretty messy at a boozy party. Just sayin.'

I like to pile marbles into the medicine cabinet so that if a nosy guest peeks they fall into the sink and make a disruptive racket. Then they know I know they were snooping. That's party fun!

Violetta, the sulphur that results from lighting the match will quickly diffuse any "smells" that a gentleman (or lady) leaves behind. It's actually quicker and less abrasive to the nose than letting them spray any amount of air freshener that they wish.

One of our cats will pee on the bath rug if we leave the door open, so it is always shut. As a result, I screwed a little hook on the outside of the door and hung a little piece of flat wood left over from a cabinet project. I decoratively painted the wood and wrote "Just a Minute" on one side and "It's All Yours" on the other. The wood hangs from the hook via twine, so it's easy to flip around on the way in or out. When it's just me and my husband, we don't really bother, but it's great for when we have company.

i hate my bathroom/toilet situation. we have a WC at one end of the house that has no sink, and the (tiny) bathroom at the other end of the house. the (also tiny) laundry is next to the WC, so there's a towel rack and soap/handwash in there for handwashing. the sink has no bench and i don't particularly like guests being in my laundry.

any suggestions?

I never leave hand towels for all guest to share, that is not sanitary. I have a roll of really soft paper towels on a hook and an extra trash can for them to be thrown in so guest will not throw don't toilet. This way each guest has a fresh paper towel to use of their own.

Always have liquid soap not bar soap. On top glass shelf I use inexpensive glass jars with fem. hyge. stuff, cotton balls, hair pins, saftey pins and band-aides.

Must have a beeswax candle and fresh flowers and a hook on the back of door for the ladies purses.

Mouthwash and a few paper cups.