The Worst Place in Your Home To Store Your Beauty Products

Old movies from Hollywood’s golden age always show their leading ladies getting ready — or “unready” at the end of the night — in front of a mirror at a dedicated vanity table, usually in their bedroom or dressing room. But these days, it’s much more common for people both on screen and off to do their skin care and makeup in the bathroom, where there’s already a mirror, bright lighting, counter space, towels, and a sink for water and easy cleanup. 

Because of this, many of us also use our bathrooms to store our beauty products, so they’re close at hand when we need them. After all, who wants to lug an armful of cosmetics or a 14-step skin care routine from room to room every morning or evening? It’s much more convenient to just stash your favorite things in a bathroom drawer or cabinet, or in one of those trendy acrylic organizers on the counter — but that may be a mistake.

Why You Shouldn’t Store Beauty Products in the Bathroom

How and where we store our makeup and skin care products can affect their potency, efficacy, and longevity. Temperature fluctuations, excess moisture, and even exposure to bright light can start to break down emulsions and ingredients (such as retinol) or cause unintended chemical reactions. Bathrooms are especially susceptible to these environmental changes, because of how — and how often — we use them. Hot showers, for example, raise the temperature of the room and increase humidity, both of which can shorten the shelf life of your products and encourage the growth of bacteria. 

And let’s face it: There’s already a lot of bacteria in your bathroom to begin with. It’s not the dirtiest room in the house — that’s the kitchen, according to research from the National Sanitation Foundation — but why risk cross-contamination or provide additional breeding grounds for germs?

What About Other Toiletries?

You probably don’t need to worry about storing soap, shampoo, and conditioner in the bathroom, especially since we tend to use up those products before they have a chance to degrade significantly, but perfume and cologne are another story. It may be tempting to display your glass fragrance bottles in a mirrored tray on the counter or windowsill — we get it, they look so pretty! — but just like makeup and skin care, they’re vulnerable to the elements. 

Heat and UV light can actually affect the smell of your perfume, which means your favorite scent could become sour, musty, or otherwise less pleasant. It also can lose some of its staying power, so you may find yourself having to spritz it more generously or with more frequency. Even worse, temperature fluctuations and humidity can lead to condensation, which may upset the chemical composition of the perfume or cologne.

Where You Should Store Products Instead

The best place to store your trove of beauty treasures is somewhere cool, dark, and dry — perhaps inside a dresser or closet. (The latter is perfect for your favorite perfume.) Atop a vanity in your bedroom might work, too, as long as you keep everything out of direct sunlight and away from heat sources such as radiators. And if you still want to do your morning or nighttime routine in the bathroom, put your products in a box, bag, or basket for easy transport. Better yet, if you have enough space in your closet, get a small cart that you can use to keep everything organized and just wheel back and forth.

Certain products — such as sheet masks, face mists, vitamin C serums, and some cream- and gel-based skin care — can even be placed in your refrigerator. (If you want to get really fancy, you can buy a dedicated mini skin care fridge.) Don’t go chilling your entire cache of cosmetics, though: Too-cold temps can change the consistency and texture of things like makeup, clay masks, and oil-based products.