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If you give away the extras and put the new stuff out, some guest will take it, even though no one ever has before. Murphy’s Law. 
I know what you mean about having extraneous stuff taking up space, though. I’m a minimalist and it always makes me feel satisfied somehow to get rid of unnecessary things.
About kids stealing. My younger sister was caught stealing a coloring book. My older brother was caught with about 100 stolen bicycles ( a real racket) . My Mom gave my sister a piece of her mind and was going to disown my brother if he ever did anything that amoral again. I never stole anything, too chicken.
Our guests don’t steal anything except one who took a bunch of snacks back when I put them out for a few stays.
I just did a short trip interstate, stayed in 4 hotels over the course of the trip (2, 3 and 4* hotels), all of them had large bottles of shampoo/cond, two had wall dispensers. Also they didn’t have the usual selection of things like sewing kit, toothbrush, etc, you had to ask at the front desk if you wanted one of those items. I’m wondering if hotels also are getting sick of stocking items just for people to take away, the cost of those things, plus the extra time it takes to restock, must be part of cost-cutting measures.
Another thing I do is put out a wrapped new sponge for every guest. I used to remove the perfectly fine once used sponge and other than leaving some under the sink I took them home to use. I still have at least a dozen waiting to be used.
So I started leaving the used sponge out after washing it and sanitizing in the microwave and also leaving a new wrapped one. 90% of the guests just use the one in the sink. The new ones stay put and I change them out as needed. The sponges are like $1 each so I save a few bucks and the guests still get a new sponge if they want to use it.
RR
Reminds me of something that happened recently. We always have a personalized sign and fresh flowers waiting for the new guests. This particular stay, the sunflowers we usually put out were not available at the store, so my wife placed an orchid there from our home. The foreign guests thought it was an anniversary present. They even thanked us for the beautiful flower as our gift.
Facepalm.
I think that’s sweet. Better to have guests who notice and appreciate extra little touches than those who never acknowledge them, even if it wasn’t intended to be a gift.
that’s actually a great idea. I struggle with the waste of a fresh sponge for each guests, esp as my average stay is 1.8 nights. I usually use the sponge to wipe down the outdoor furniture etc so it gets pretty dirty, and then I toss it, but I still feel bad about that.
I have started leaving (gasp!) the same bar of (fancy, handmade) soap by the bathroom sink over multiple guest stays. Of course I make sure it’s rinsed and not goopy. Guests have other options – a foaming soap dispenser and body wash in the shower. No one has reacted negatively.
I was previously putting out smaller new bars of handmade soap for each guest, so the used ones were piling up in little towers in my house.
That’s just gross. The same bar of soap between guests?
A bar of soap that is washed off so there are no hairs or anything on it isn’t gross at all in reality, and not a danger to anyone. It would only be “gross” as a scientifically unsupported personal perception. I can understand that some people would find it unsavory to use a bar of soap a stranger had washed their body with, but that’s like being terrified of harmless house spiders- if someone has that perception, there’s little you can do to dispel those feelings.
I do provide little fresh bars for guests, but I often find them unused, still in the box, guests opting to use the liquid soap, or having brought their own bar soap, so I seem to be able to myself use up all the leftovers from guests who do use the bars I provide.
Thank you for sharing/gifting this.
I would have thought that bar soap was less hygienic in a shared environment, but it is not so.
The whole concept of soap is that it cleans and washes off pathogens. That’s why we were all told to wash our hands frequently with soap to combat Covid.
Before bacteria and viruses were understood as the cause of disease, rather than “evil vapors”, doctors themselves were spreaders of infection- they would go from treating or examining one contagious patient to another patient without washing their hands.
sounds like an apology was given. move on. not worth it.
Very good advice.
2020202020
I am not sure what you are referring to, this thread has drifted all over the place. If you are talking about the original post, yes the guest did apologize and I accepted it. I was just sharing the experience.
RR
My experience here in Thailand on the island of Phuket we get all nationalities all are tourist, so we learn about each ones are like, There is one nationality will take everything once I remember a full box of teabags 300 they were only here for 3 days,
I have a framed “poem” beside my basket of amenities in the bathroom. I can’t remember it exactly but something like
To make you feel your best,
Take what you need and leave the rest.
It may be useful for the next guest.
I don’t know (or care much) if it’s tacky 
I literally took kitchen comestibles out of one groups hands as they left.
My olive oil, vinegar, teabags, auger etc.
And they left a kitchen disaster behind them.
OMG! I’ve had one group take the olive oil, but I wondered if maybe whoever packed up didn’t realise it wasn’t theirs as they’d brought a lot of their own stuff. I supply very nice local brands (currently have Maggie Beer olive oil in the cottage) and I get a bit shitty when people nick them. (as mentioned in another thread, all these little things add up, I don’t need to have $10 walk out the door from a one-night stay). I provide a box of water in the fridge (cos we are on bore water) and sometimes people will take the whole box with them.