Jill, I keep a decorative tray of paper handtowels in the guest bath. I have a cloth towel there also, but that's just for dh and I. I think they sell paper hand towels now at Walmart, but online you can buy the most beautiful colors and patterns to match any bath. And as soon as company leaves, almost before they're out the door, I put the cloth towel in the dirty clothes so neither of us uses it. I'm with you, it grosses me out. My DIL does the same now. Cam, I bet it's the perfume in the liquid soap. Most of them are scented so I wonder if you tried scent free it would be okay? I say this because one day my ds (in high school at the time) showe me his hand and they were peeling really bad. Then I saw him sprinkle his cologne in his hands and not washing them afterwards, and we figured out it was the cologne. It was kind of a funny moment. Last year I tried to save money by buying a name brand liquid soap from the grocery store, after using B&BW for so long, and they don't even compare. So I went back to B&BW. With just the two of us, they last quite a while. Except my SIL always begs for a bottle when she comes over. lol

OJ, if you put your soap there, there could be quite a combination of aromas! I won't go into detail! :) "Bar at sink ... bar on tub." Typical OJ.... always hanging out at the "bars". Wildchild, yes I know about the thoughts about potential bacteria and I use several containers. When one is done it's washed out and dried, then refilled. An occasional bleach rinse in there to sanitize it. (Yeah, I'll risk the world imploding and my house flooding from using bleach! ;)) One point, the value of it, watch your bar soap too. Many suggest opening them up and let them dry out to last longer. Not sure if it's a moisture in there or what but they claim the bars will last longer if you do. Can't confirm or deny since the last bar of soap I bought was Fels Naptha to try out on laundry stains. And there's controversy out there about antibacterial soaps. Some think we're killing off too many germs and bacteria. I used to think that was paranoia, but I'm starting to think there could be some truth to that. Looking at how Norway has essentially obliterated MRSA and how many times I see the "pristine" homes have sick people in them where someone who isn't afraid of a little dust does fine, it makes me wonder if there isn't some truth to that theory. I guess I aim to keep my home clean enough to be healthy, and not try to be sterile, unless I'm doing surgery!

Three decades ago when liquid soap for home use was "new", I would save bar soap slivers and small hotel soaps and make them into liquid hand soap. Now it's less expensive, and less mess, to purchase gallon jugs of liquid soap (Sam's Club and Big Lots are good sources). For foam dispensers I use a 1:3 mixture of liquid soap and water, so we use all foam dispensers for even more savings. The recipe I used is very similar.... Homemade Hand Soap 11 c. water 1 bar soap (or enough slivers to equal the same amount) 1 T. glycerin optional - 10 drops essential oil Grate soap on a box grater, microplane, or in a food processor. Bring 4 cups water to a boil. Add grated soap and stir to a boil. Add grated soap and stir until it melts. Add glycerin. Add remaining water. Once cooled, add essential oils. Let mixture sit overnight. Place 2-cups (at a time) in a blender. Mix well. If you want thicker add 2 more T. glycerin and allow to sit for a few hours. To use in a foam pump dispenser, add 1/4 c. homemade liquid soap and water to fill the bottle. You can add tea tree oil or grapefruit seed extract, or other essential oils like Four Thieves for additional anti-bacterial protection. HOMEMADE BODY WASH 1 c. Suave Shampoo ("flavor" of choice) 1/2 c. water 3 T. table salt or Epsom salts Whisk until frothy. \-Grainlady

Cool! I'd like to try the purple green and gold thing myself. Maybe today. I'm about to get started - weather's nasty and I had enough parading last night. BTW-Does your mom live in New Orleans? you said in the other post that she sent you some beads. Magi