I am the relatively-neat daughter of a super-neat-and-clean mother - and my own daughter is a slob. So I’ve lived the spectrum!
Being relatively neat is all about little habits.
I make my bed every day. It’s nicer to get into it at night, and it instantly makes the room look under control. Conversely, an unmade bed instantly distracts in an otherwise neat room.
I pick up the living/family room every night. It takes – maybe – ten minutes. But that ten minutes every night means these rooms never really get trashed. They may be dusty, but they aren’t messy. Which makes them really easy to really clean when the urge strikes.
I also always clean up the kitchen. Always. I learned the hard way how disgusting it is to waddle into the kitchen in the morning (I’m not a morning person) desperately in search of coffee, and be greeted by unwashed plates and pans crusty with leftover food. Anything that makes mornings more bearable is worth doing.
Finally, it helps to be into instant gratification. I love how just one swipe of a wet wipe brings shine to a dull bathroom faucet. How all it takes is rinsing those scrubbing bubbles to make the shower tile look sparkly. How freshly laundered towels make an even modest bathroom look luxurious.
I AM bad at some housecleaning stuff. I tend to stash too much stuff in the basement. (Cleaning it out before we downsized three years ago was a nightmare my family shudders at to this very day.) And I don’t do windows. I don’t do windows and I’m too cheap to have them done, so I live with dull spotty windows and I’m OK with that.
No doubt it goes unnoticed by my sloppy daughter and drives my mother crazy. Such is our spectrum
We just moved everything we own from one house to another. Clutter is everywhere! Unbelievable. I saved listing photos from both houses - to remind us of how neat an uncluttered house can be. Luckily for me, my Mr. the construction supplies hoarder is now on board with throwing stuff away or returning extras to HD.
Now excuse me… have to get another drywall project going. Did I mention how I hate patching drywall? Mr. loves moving electrical around. Aaaarrrggghhh!!!
Thanks @katliamom, I dunno. But I decided that I don’t want any tchotchkes in my kitchen! Off with their heads! Another box packed to go to goodwill. To really appreciate that less is more, you have to move every friggin’ piece of it with your own hands. If we ever have to move… only the cats and their toys are moving with us.
IME, the best way to reduce clutter is to have a place for everything. About 20 years ago, I finally figured out that I could use a basket to store bills, health care statements, etc., to get them off the kitchen counter and to consolidate them until I’m ready to deal with them. Duh!! So easy, and so organized. I also realized that they invented file folders and file drawers for a reason. Now I have a place to store things like the receipt from the folks who trimmed our trees and the receipt from the folks who repaired our hot tub, so that next time I can find them and not have to rack my brain to remember who they were.
One fabulous thing was provided to us when we moved into this house five years ago: The painter had created a list, room by room, of what paint was used for each part of the room – trim, walls, ceiling. So as we were renovating the house, we could easily match the old colors and not have to repaint everything.
I guess I’m in between. I dislike clutter and most of my house is neat and tidy. I do, however, stash stuff in the basement/garage and am in the long process of working through it and purging after many years.
As far as general pickup and other tasks, I don’t enjoy housework because I find it so dull. So, I set the timer for 15-20 minutes and force myself to work diligently for that time period. Repeat 3 or so times per day. It’s amazing how much you can get accomplished in 15 minutes if you set your mind to it because you know it is just for a limited increment of time. Try it if you haven’t and you hate cleaning like I do. It’s pretty painless that way.
As far as mail coming into the house, I do sort immediately over the recycling bin and 90% of it goes in there.
I use a basket also for bills and things I need to deal with ASAP. It sits on a shelf in the desk in our “office.” I bought. basket for H, too, but the desk still has his stuff all over it. I keep the door closed in that room.
I have a file box for important papers like dogs shot records, insurance, car stuff, etc. it’s in the closet in the office. Receipts and paid bills go in a big shoe box in another closet. I go through iit every January and shred. I know I really don’t need to keep most of that stuff at all but do it just in case.
I shred all junk mail I’m immediately. I my shredder.
I guess the only way I found to keep up with paperwork is to force my self daily. Recently, I was lazy for a week twice and I hated myself each weekend staring at the pile and consuming my day. I have a stack of mail I have for H each day and through the years he has adjusted to doing his daily. It used to really pile up. I also have a Hon file cabinet that is invaluable as well as the shredder. I really don’t mind cleaning but it is done in small spurts, as I feel like it, usually several times a day.
We are slowly, very slowly, getting rid of things we simply do not use or need any longer. Our house is not clean or organized, and it bums me out.
We just hired someone to help us deep clean the house, one little area at a time. So, we are forced to address the “stuff” in that area before it’s cleaned. I did the dining room last night, so good news, we can have Thanksgiving Dinner in there.
Some of our stuff problems are not-yet-started projects, and partially-finished projects (old home, never ending renovating).
@doschicos I’ve used that timer trick, and found it amazing. Of course, then I forget all about it. I’ve recently started using a ToDo app on my phone and that is helping me follow through with small tasks and giving me a sense of accomplishment.
Fortunately both H and I are basically on the same page for neatness and clutter. I do the house cleaning (vac/dust/kitchen/baths) thoroughly once a month now (used to do it every two weeks years ago) with just the two of us and no dog. The day I do it I am particular about messes, dirt… Around the time for cleaning I figure that stuff will get taken care of and effort shouldn’t be expended. We run the dishwasher when it is full (therefore rinse things) about every 4 days (no pots/pans). The day or so after we hand wash stuff- keeping it clean!
There is that one small counter space things get placed that need to be dealt with, plus our desks. H has a lot of stuff/junk I would get rid of, sigh. We are organized, but not overly obsessive. Library books are in piles on a credenza and those to be returned piled on another table. A few books and magazines being read end up in various places. Of course shoes are not worn in the house (custom both H and I grew up with)- hall closet plus flip flops/sliders near 3 doors for going outside (don’t want to have to go to other part of house just for shoes).
Organization and having stuff out of site is the way to go. I don’t like glass fronted cabinets or open shelves in the kitchen. Having plastic baskets in drawers helps- especially in the catch all/junk ones.
Reminded of sharing a small bedroom growing up. I liked my half of the dresser top sparse and my sister would constantly overflow to my side- had to keep moving the junk over. Our mother was a sloppy housekeeper while my father would make us clean things up if someone was coming to the door for a reason. Once he was on his own (mother died at 53) and he had to do his own cleaning the dust piled up… So much easier to make others do the work. Son is a slob. But- he doesn’t live with us.
Do you need to get the Bona system, with the wet/dry mop or is the Bona spray cleaner good with a different brand microfiber mop? I currently use diluted vinegar with essential oil for the wood floors with a microfiber cloth mop.
The e-cloths. Are they all the same or do different colors signify different uses? Target knock offs good?
I spray Bona from an old Method sprayer (which I like because the bottle is clear) and use a $5 Target microfiber mop. Cleans just as well as the fancier mops.
I’m an organizer and a neat freak. I’m hard to live with, and I know it.
One tip for eliminating clothing messes and getting kiddo dressed quickly and drama-free every AM was buying one of those day-labelled (Monday-Sunday) cubby things that hang from the closet rod and filling each with an outfit for that day (or allowing kiddo to fill when he got old enough). Never any question about what to wear; kid just got out of bed and put on whatever was in that day’s cubby. Because I bought the thing when he was a year old, he never knew any other way to get dressed. His hamper was next to the hanging cubbies, so clothes went into the hamper at night, and the process repeated the next day.
Unfortunately, DH was too old to re-train though I threatened to buy him hanging cubbies as well. I did put a basketball hoop above the hamper in our closet to encourage him not to leave clothes on the floor. Eventually, his aim improved and the problem was solved.
@ChoatieMom - I would say you trained him pretty well… I love the basketball hoop idea. That’s one I’m going to file away for future use and I may have to suggest it to my S’s girlfriend, too!
my shredder.
I love the basketball hoop idea. That’s one I’m going to file away for future use and I may have to suggest it to my S’s girlfriend, too!