Writing yesterday post about selling unwanted stuff I have realised, that we apply quite a lots of "rules" in our home about everyday clutter and cleaning. We are quite tidy couple. We have to be! With our 2 cats we do a lots of cleaning! It is easier, if there are no necessary items around the house. Everything is washable or can be wiped down. Only non sensible item in our house is the cream carpet. Oh well, we inherited it from previous owners and it will be quite a expense to change it.
Even with our "rules" we still deal some days with clutter but I am more and more ruthless about it.
We have a saying that if we don't need it than we will not store it.
Here is the list how we deal with everyday stuff, clutter and mess :-)
1. Post get sort out straight away. Empty envelope + packaging + spam goes to recycling box. Important documents goes to filling box. No leaving unopened Tax disks!
2. Damaged items are repaired, if too expensive or not able to repair - bin.
3. Dirty clothes goes only into a laundry basket. If there is "a full washing machine" then straight to the wash.
4. Clean dry clothes into laundry "plastic" basket. Gets ironed on Saturday by Rob while watching TV. (it gets easier)
5. Food & fridge get checked for "used by dates" stickers several times during a week, so we do not throw any away. I write a shopping list on Friday & checked again on Saturday morning before shopping.
6. Kitchen crockery & utensils if damaged or broken, then binned. We do not own chipped crockery as it is not hygienic (also not pretty). We are very ruthless with this. Frying pans if starting to get scratched are binned too. We do not want to eat the frying pan lining!
7. Blankets, bedding, cushions if signs of cat's hair then they are washed and "de-haired" It means that we wash our bedding pretty much every week.
8. Kitchen counters are wiped down always before + after the preparation of food, then also in the morning + in the evening. Floor gets proper clean on Saturday morning, otherwise wiped after preparation of food.
9. Bathroom gets proper scrub on Saturday + changing of towels. Wiped several times during a week.
10. House gets hoovered & dusted on Saturday and also then every 2 days. Especially living room as cats hair are the worst there. I also wipe down outside window sills and front & back step.
11. Shopping gets on the right shelves straight away. Shopping bags go back to the booth of my car as that is where they live.
12. Cards and presents are displayed for about a week (or in case of chocolate eaten the same day) then binned (recycling). No keeping cards or unwanted presents. Only breaker of this rule is the coffee machine from uncle Bev. It lives in the attic and when he is visiting it goes back to the kitchen for a day. :-) We do not have a heart to tell him, that it is not working properly.
13. Cats toys & beds. If not used for a few weeks then I will sell them or bin them.
14. Newspapers & magazines goes straight to the recycling bin after reading. No keeping anything.
15. Used & stained tea towels & bathroom towels get cut into squares and used for cleaning then binned.
16. No keeping any empty bottles. Only exception are the glass jars. Kept for freezing left overs or for binning oil. Only 2 small baskets permitted. Overflow goes into recycling.
17. Anything dirty gets straight away cleaning. Even if it is 2:00 am and I have to clean the cats "vomit" from the carpet. Learned the hard way that it doesn't get any "better" when leaving it.
18. Garden, I tidy every weekend (if it is not raining). I weed as I go. It is easier to keep it tidy than have to do a lot in one time.
19. Everything has it's place and after use it gets back. No leaving the hoover out! When the cupboards or drawers gets untidy, then I will do them one by one when I have a few minutes spares. It is surprising how much you can get done while waiting for a movie to get downloaded or while cooking :-)
20. Dishes are done during and straight after preparing a food. No leaving anything in the sink over night. Not even our port glasses! Our cats will jump on kitchen worktop & drink from the sink. :-(
21. New rule for a attic. Only staff which we use and will use goes there. Paint, winter & visitor blankets, luggage, DIY tools, ladder, Christmas decorations and Dehumidifier. Exception is for my husbands Lego, 2 large boxes of "vintage" Vinyls (from Rob parents) and empty boxes kept for warranty.
Hmm. It looks a little bit OCD :-) but it keeps our home tidy. I think that keeping a house tidy is easier than have to do a big clean up after a several weeks. Also it makes our lives easy. If somebody call that they will visit it takes only a few minutes to make our house visitor perfect!
We don't go over the top. If one of us is not feeling well than not hoovering the house or not doing a bathroom will not be the end of the world. We still find a time to have a nice glass of wine & watch some movie and cuddle on the sofa with our cats. :-)
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