CONFESSION TIME: Show House or Slum House? (sliding scale) What drives your standards?

[bigeyes]

I have been struggling to keep on top of things in my house and I have been usng the Slattern thread to help. DH nagged me today and we've done 'crisis' cleaning together!

Whilst grumpily getting on with tasks I wondered to what extent does everyone clean or not as I can never seem to get the balance right.

Do you think standards of presentation have gone up with the advent of DIY/Decorating/House programs on TV?

What drives your standards?

[bigeyes]

C'on are you an Anthea or Waynetta?

[Lizzylou]

Somehwre between the two, if people are coming round then veering more towards the show house.
For every day, it is always (almost) clean, but not very tidy

[ComeWhineWithMe]

Anthea somedays .waynetta most days .

Somedays I am really in the mood fpr blitzing other times I just want to do the bare minimum .

Slatterns thread has helped me a lot.

[nickschick]

direct me to this slattern thread please it sounds like my kind of place

[norksinmywaistband]

Anthea here I am classed as obsessive about the housework.
Only thing ever allowed to be out of place is the DC toys, everything else is clean and tidy at all times , much to the annoyance of family and friends.
I cant even leave a clean cup on the drainer

I would love to be more relaxed about it and much prefer to spend time in other peoples more homely houses, than my own

[bellavita]

Anthea

[policywonk]

Def. more Waynetta than Anthea. The surface is usually clean, but God forbid anyone should look under the sofas or at the skirting boards.

Whenever I have a cleaning day, DS2 says 'Is someone coming over today?'. Which gives you some idea of what drives me to do it.

[nickschick]

I am forever tidying up but with 3 sons dh,fil and the blardy dog i never get to target -my friend likes me visiting her cos i tidy as i go without realising lol.

[ComeWhineWithMe]

slatterns

[bigeyes]

OMG i just googled 'obsession housework' and there was reserch came up and books and stuff, its not just me that thinks about this sort of stuff - sorry cant do the links.

I will go through a coule of weeks being showy, then be waynetta for days. I am fed up. Even though the house is clean and tidy now I know everthing is not in its exact place and there is stuff to organise - like my make up drawers and DS toy storage.

It does annoy me I spend time over this stuff wish I could be more laid back, but then waynetta comes.

I am a BI POLAR CLEANER

[norksinmywaistband]

i need a link, is there a cure

[mysterymoniker]

I don't really have any standards , randomly the entire household will pull together and the place will look half decent but mostly it's a skip . . .

[norksinmywaistband]

i cleaned all my cupboards today and did the skirting boards and windows, as i had an hour or two while dh took the dc out

[bigeyes]

Norks and bella - this is how I get, I mostly feel compelled to do that one more job, or cant go out til washer finished and ive got load hung up and next one on.

I am supposed to do

Big clean on Monday
Top up clean on Thursday

Obviously, laundry/dishes and spills as and when. But I never stick to this whether I am being anthea or waynetta.

Your middle ground folk - do you clean every day?

[norksinmywaistband]

I clean every day, yes.
Hoover through, dust, bathroom, kitchen wash floors, laundry(includig ironing and putting away)

I also clean other peoples houses.

[HelenBurns]

I feel like if I become an Anthea, something bad will happen. At the moment it's variable between tidy if someone's coming round with warning (a week at least) and terrible.

If I've had some sleep I often feel like doing stuff. Other days I will sit here unable to move.

I think because my mum's a tidy freak, I am scared of becoming like her. Which is horrid because I would love to be tidy myself.

[bigeyes]

Wey Hey......

www.femalefirst.co.uk/homeandgarden/Home+Survey-609.html

and......

women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/the_way_we_live/article3521872.ece?token=null&offse t=12

[bigeyes]

Help I want to mysterymoniker but cant help norks

Helen - two people have warned me not to do too much, one friend believes her nan cleaned so much its contributed to her poor health and passing away young!

If I am not organised and dont have clothes clean and ironed its an excuse for staying in, if cleaning needs doing I cant justify going out, if I am anthea I get delayed in getting out house.

OMG what do I sound like, seeing these things typed makes me realise I think far too much about this.

Mus stick to mon and thurs only watever state of play

[bellavita]

HelenBurns - are you a namechanger?

[naturalbornmum]

Well I do not have very high standards but I would like to! That said I have friends who admit their cleanliness makes them unhappy which I would'nt like that ..... then again my slattenly ways make me sometimes.

I am trying to be better at being tidy and clean (am doing the slattern thread - is excallent). ATM I am pregnant and the house has got beyond a joke as I am tired alot of the time. I had decided to not have anyone over until I had the baby (as I'm but that is causing me problems and infact I am now worried that one friend has fallen out with me.

[lucysmam]

Clean and almost tidy most of the time downstairs, just ignore the pile of clean towels I keep forgetting to put away! Upstairs is a whole different kettle of fish . . . It's hoovered & dusted but there's still stuff from moving scattered all over. Including my drawer unit which we haven't yet put up after 4 weeks

[naturalbornmum]

So I have decided that I only have lovley friends and they will understand if the house is a pigsty, if I keep trying to avoid having people here they will think I'm being funny.

[lucysmam]

sod what everyone else thinks! I don't honestly care if people think my house is a tip, I do what needs to be done & have the rest of the time with my family

[bigeyes]

Admire your spirit lucysmam!

Natural your first sentence sums me up, I tell you I am a bi-polar cleaner!

I have just asked DH what he thinks are acceptable: no pile sof dirty dishes, no clothes on floor, shirts washed and pressed! We agreed I would do Hwork when I stopped working full time. I used to get more done then when I had a structure and less time - you make it count I suppose.

I suppose DH doesnt count cleaning Lavs of splashes etc [blushes] and dead insects from various places as essential, or oganising ones sets of cutlery correctly

[naturalbornmum]

"I used to get more done then when I had a structure and less time - you make it count I suppose."

That is how I feel too! LOL. Last year was working and studying and seemed to get so much more done.