Simple things that make your life so much edit?

[LeonoraFlorence]

Every night my phone battery would be low and without fail I’d be sitting awkwardly at a funny angle on the couch trying to look through Mumsnet whilst it charged plugged in. DH ordered me a charger for about £10 with a cable over 1m long and it has changed my life! What other small things have made your life much more pleasant?

Phillips Hue lights - I wake up gently to a nice simulated sunrise. And then I've got timers to have the other house lights go on and off according to our routine. And they're bright in the morning and warmer in the evening too.

Free audiobooks via the library.

Double the number of lunchboxes to make two at once = half the time spent 👍

Washer-dryer. Much hated on MN but means I can put dry dirty clothes in before I go to work and come home to dry clean clothes (in the winter, in the summer I hang them before I go to bed and take them in when I get home the next day 😲)

Keeping all my loose change cash in a hidden compartment in the car, after I realised that I really only need actually money for paying in car parks. Also means that if I forget my card/purse, I've got enough money on me to pay for small items (although I do have to go back to the car to get it).

Ditto having a bag of dog poo bags in the car (come in handy for carrying all sorts, not just dog poo - picking blackberries for example).

Yy to 2 metre charging cables. Pop out bins in the kitchen cupboard means prep mess can be brushed straight off the chopping board. Face flannel per person per day, cuts down on pimples. Chopped frozen onions and other veg: they might be 2x the price per weight, but they don't rot in the cupboard.

I bought those clothes peg bags to put all the dog poo bags in.
I have one by the front door, one by the back door. Doesn't matter what we are wearing or which door we leave by, we can just grab a handful as we leave.

Separate washing baskets. My stuff goes in one, DH's another. Then when he puts a load on, he can just do his own without the risk of him inadvertently ruining one of my delicate or expensive items.

No kitchen bin.

Cordless vacuum.

I have just ordered a plug socket with USB charging sockets - thanks to whoever mentioned those.
Mine are freezing - onions, lemons (sliced ready for drinks) baked potatoes (cooked just need reheating)

Oops posted too soon!
Always have a couple of firelogs -the ones where you light the paper, just in case I run out of kindling or fire lighters
Citronella tea-lights when sitting in garden - keeps bugs away

Laundry bags. Net bags I put socks and bras in. I have never lost a sock in my life!

Teaching my DS(12) and DD (9) how to sort out loads of washing. They do it for me now.

Head set for my smartphone. Let's me multi task with calls while doing something else.

Using the library for ebooks, audiobooks, PressReader and more! You can get kids comics too.

Using money dashboard app to see the breakdown of my spends

Checking out the added benefits of amazon prime! Free library books and a music streaming service too. (The basic one which is good enough for me)

A Post-It pad on the fridge! I add things when we run out and get them in the supermarket on the weekly shop. No more running out of mayo or carrots.

Colour coded socks, navy blue for DD, grey for DS, black for DH and patterned for me. I buy loads of pairs exactly the same so that we don't have any odd socks.

When we revamped the kitchen I put all the cutlery and crockery into drawers at the end of the units, beside the kitchen table. If we need an extra spoon or whatever the person sitting nearest just opens a drawer and takes it out, no need to get up from the table. The dishwasher is on the other side of that set of drawers, so emptying the dishwasher takes seconds as each drawer is right beside the equivalent shelf of the dishwasher. So pull out bottom layer of dishwasher and bottom drawer, transfer over plates, next one up transfer over cups and glasses, top layer/drawer transfer over cutlery.

Prime, precut liners for sandwich tins, preloved Kenwood KMix, silicone spatulas, bake o glide liners for baking trays. Mostly baking related.

Welltidy tell me about these stacking ironing baskets please?? I’m forever emptying my solitary basket out each time I have a different pile of stuff needing washing/ironing/putting away (I suppose I should really just iron/put away the contents straight away each time

@RemusLupinsBiggestGroupie the reusable liners were just in Tesco...

Thanks, Horse.

I'm loving how many people are focusing on socks! :)

Plain I think beatable is the word I should have used, not stackable. To be stackable, I suppose they should have a lid. Mine fit inside each other when they’re empty.

Mine don’t seem to be made anymore. The manufacturer is Curver, and I got mine at Tesco a few years ago. Mine are super sturdy with reinforced handles and they hold a lot as they are wide and long. I’ve googled and this is the closest I can find to them.

Mentioning socks has made me remember how incredibly useful I find this sign for the laundry room

I have an app that I can pay for car parking on. It’s amazing as I never carry cash so normally don’t have change. Plus it means I can increase how many hours I want without going back to the car if I end up staying out longer than expected

I don’t even worry about matching up socks any more, I just wear mismatched ones. I tend to wear ankle boots in winter (which is when I wear socks) so nobody ever sees.

Cordless Dyson.

HIVE to put the heating on without getting up or before I get home.

Sky Q - it’s great for recording things and pausing and so easy to use.

Netflicks - we each downloaded films before holidays and DH said it revolutionised flying lol.

Clinique Chubby stick (a honey neutral shade). I have one in my main handbag and one in my make up bag. I wear it on its on own for slight colour to my lips.

Chargers in most rooms.

Portable chargers for when on the move.

A garlic press whereby I don’t have to peel the garlic beforehand.

Separate toiletries in gym bag.

P20 suncream on holiday. It’s non greasy and you don’t have to reapply it.

My kindle for holidays I can read umpteen books without carrying large books around with me.

SNAG tights are a game changer if you are tall and or plus size they stay up no bagging and last for ages really comfortable and I can wear dresses again at last.

Always keep a small hand cream, a packet of paracetamols, a pen, a small notebook and small packet of paper handkerchiefs in my hand bag.

Small shopping list pad to carry round with me shopping and easily tick things off.

Internet banking.

Several pairs of reading glasses left in sensible places (including a pair in the car).

@horse4course what are the reusable baking mats/liners made of? So you use them instead of parchment and they are just as non-stick? My life would definitely be easier with those .

My sad contribution is a big Ikea clothes horse that gets 2 loads of washing on it or 1 load plus a couple of flat handwashed jumpers. Every time I use it I practically sigh with contentment.

two hoovers up and down, although I am not foing the stairs so often maybe I need 3 with a wall mountd one for the stairs...

Having an Everhot oven - its not massively electric hungry considering and is ALWAYS on - cakes in 15 mins.... slow roasts and casseroles, I love it and think it does reduce hassle and stress - you don't have to think about temps for cooking its just on and you move things around to be hotter or colder, cooking by instinct is less stressful and I don't burn as much as you need to pay attention

keeping a roll of smaller bin bags in upstairs bathroom for upstairs bins

I have a toiletry bag with a set of everything in useful for trips, gyms etc

head towels - ones that wrap round your head but are smaller than full towels so a) it doesn't fall off so easily and b) not so much to wash and dry etc

Using baskets in the food cupboards - makes them easy to clean and sort as you pull them out.

divided tin basket for eating outside - holds condiments and cutlery/serviettes etc and quick and easy to fill and transport in one go and same in reverse

I invested in a cup measure - gives you access to US recipes too

@horse4course sorry I just saw you replied to that already !

oh yeah last set of prescription glasses in car in case of incident with glasses (so not the latest the ones before - as they would still make me legal)

And to go along with the everhot oven the reusable bacoglide things - you slap on top and a) NO PAN needed for anything from eggs to steak and b) no need to clean oven or pans as just the sheet to clean which is truly non stick

My Phillips Hue lights. I love them so much and love telling Alexa to switch the lights on and off.

Also my Nest thermostat that we just got. Love being able to set the heating to come on when I’m at work so the house is nice and cosy for coming home. And as above ‘Alexa set Nest to 20 degrees’ is fab.

Can someone PLEASE tell me how to get free audio books without being scammed £9.99 a month by Audible

You overpaid for that cable but yes the long ones are fabulous