Life hacks, day to day time saving tips, common sense to you but not to others?

[Namechange8123]

I've had a search and can only find (years) old threads along these lines, so I've started a fresh one.

What are your day to day life hacks that make things easier? Could be common sense to you, but others could benefit?

My contributions are freezing lemons and limes to double up with your ice in your gin, layer the cot sheets in DC cot with another sheet and bed mat so if they have an accident, you whip the top layer off and don't have to remake the bed, tin foil behind the radiators...

What do you have?

A bit of kitchen roll in the bottom of your bin with a splash of zoflora keeps it smelling fresh, especially in warm weather and soaks up any leaks so easy to clean your bin.

Kallax type storage is a game changer. I have a 2 x 2 and a 4x1 in the hall for shoes, bags, hats, gloves etc. Everything where you need it but neatly away and everyone has their own cube for shoes.

One in the back hallway for kitchen stuff. Things like baking stuff, random gadgets, big pans that take up cupboard space.

And one in ds bedroom. When he wants to play with say lego he just drags that cube out, plays then puts it away again.

I use those plastic takeaway tubs as Tupperware. Wash and reuse for individual portions of stuff.

Train dcs and optimise their strengths. Ds (6) is currently in charge of loading and unloading dishwasher, dd (15) has the upstairs bathroom to keep clean, ds the downstairs loo and sink. Ds tidies the living room, dd hoovers. Ds responsible for feeding the dog and Guinea pigs. Dd does the dusting.

In lockdown I try and have 1 shitty day (mondays usually). So do a big clean, any admin jobs, print of ds worksheets, organise his school file, do a shop. Basically get all the shitty jobs out of the way then the rest of the week we can do fun things.

One for anyone who is studying.

If you have an essay to write and a few books you need to use, enrol anyone with the ability to read at a certain level, you then give them colour coded post it notes.

Their job is to look in the index and put the post it on the appropriate page.

Eg say you are writing an essay on academic attainment between boys and girls.

academic /academic attainment - pink post it
boy /boys - yellow post it
girl/girls - green [post it note

You can do this solo but it's quicker if you have helpers, one with each colour and pass the books on.

@FruitPastillesaregood

How does online postage work? I’ve never heard of this!

Go onto Royalmail.com - Click and drop. You can select what you're sending (letter, large letter, parcel) tell it the weight, it gives you your options (first, second class, signed for etc) and you choose, pay and print the label. You can then post it in a post box or take it to a post office if it's too bulky for a post box.

Oops I didn't realise @UnaOfStormhold had already answered

@Frouby damn it I just ordered a shoe rack but a kallax 4x1 would have been great as could have fit more shoes got each person in a box!!

This is exactly the thread I need to get organised in life! Thank you wonderful people

@Aria20 cancel the shoe rack, go for a kallax.

I've had numerous shoe racks. They are a nightmare. Don't fit dh shoes or workbooks or my riding boots. Don't hold bags or hats and scarves. Look untidy even when tidy. Plus in winter bits of mud dry and drop on the floor or scuff the paintwork behind shoe rack.

If you must keep your shoerack put it in a bedroom or wardrobe for not often worn shoes or winter/summer shoe storage.

Kallax for your hall. Mines long enough for a 4 x 1 under the coats and a 2 x 2 under the fuse box. 4 x 1 has everyday shoes in. 2 x 2 has 1 cube for baseball caps, ds bookbag and school bag, my running bag. Another for muddy wellies/riding boots, 1 for dhs workboots and workbelt, spare travel mug, bits and pieces he needs and 1 spare one which currently has spare loo rolls, cleaning stuff and other random things I have as spares in case of self isolation.

When you do a weekly shop, pack sideways (so the items are standing on end in the carrier bags, if that makes sense) then lay the bags down in the boot of the car, that way they can't slide around or fall over en route home and the bread/eggs/crisps don't get squashed. Only took me 20 years to work this out.

I open sealed jars by pushing the tip of a normal cutlery knife under the lid until it plops.

Currently I use Google Photos to upload DD's school work for marking. We do have a scanner, but it's so much faff!

When she wants an audiobook on for going to sleep I choose one from the library on my phone and connect the phone to the Bluetooth speaker in her room.

I usually scan and shop but if I need to use the checkout, I load the shopping on in order of where they will be unpacked. So fridge, larder, fruit bowl etc. Then pack it into bags accordingly - I do this during scan and shop too. Makes unpacking at home so much easier.

I was complaining the other day that I didn't have time to clean the kitchen floor. Then i realised that I always had to make time to clean the floor under the high chair after DS had eaten...

3 meals, 2 snacks... so I moved the high chair every time he ate, the floor was clean by the end of the day monkey 🙈

You did ask for the laziest housekeeping tips of a slovenly cow didn't you?

If we're talking lazy slovenly cow....

when my kids were young, I didn't use bibs unless they were eating something that would stain/we were out. Their clothes were going to have to go in the washing machine anyway at the end of the day, I didn't need to be washing bibs as well! Admittedly they were fairly 'tidy' eaters, but I could brush the bits off and just ignore everything else, if we were just slobbing around at home.

Banana and spag bol were pretty much the only 'instant bibbage' foods.

Keep a duvet on the back of the sofa, so when people get chilly of an evening they just snuggle under the duvet instead of putting the heating on.
Saves us a couple of weeks a year of heating bills.

School letters get blutacked onto the wall by the front door, next to the calendar, as soon as DCs arrive home with them, and regularly removed once the date has passed.

One for these strange times: clean face masks hang on a cup hook beside the front door, ready to grab in the way out.

InMySpareTime I keep throws on the back of the sofa for that reason! Not duvets, I think they look 'messy' and the dog would be all over them!

For me I wash my hair at night and put it in two plaits , small amount of serum on the ends, so in the morning my hair isn't a big frizz ball and I don't need to style it simply just take the hair bands out the ends.

vvg

My Lidl/Aldi tip: at the checkout just take 30 seconds to put your bags into the trolley, use good sturdy bags for life and square them open (can fit around 4 bags in Lidl trolley)
Open the baby seat and hang one bag by one handle on the hook. You can buy trolley dividers, but they aren't very big, bags for life are better

Then when they put things through just put into the bags instead of having to repack. Organise your shopping on the conveyor so you can put the right things in the right places but realistically it'll unless you live miles from the shop it doesn't really matter if the odd cold item isn't in a cold bag.
Baby seat is for delicate items (avocado, egg) and the one on the handle is for heavy things.

It takes a bit of practice but it saves so much time. All cold together, all fruit/veg etc all pantry, done.

ParadiseLaundry that's seriously the work of a genius. I don't have baby any more but am considering having another as the kitchen floor needs a clean.

I don't have baby any more but am considering having another as the kitchen floor needs a clean.
You can borrow my spaniels if you like-who needs a hoover when you've got dogs?

When putting away shopping take the upstairs stuff of unnecessary packaging and put it in bin and recycling before taking item upstairs.

Things like toothpaste out the box etc. It's just one less thing todo when you use it.

Cut open frozen pizza boxes to use as cutting boards for the pizzas once they're cooked

@StealthPolarBear

But you're still having to sort them into the individual baskets surely Don't all dishwashers have those baskets?

We have a dishwasher that has a top level Very shallow draw that is for cutlery, everything is laid flat with little ridges to keep things separate. It’s a revelation. I saw one at my MIL (they have some uses!) and it was a must when we needed to replace the dishwasher

@winterisstillcoming - I was amazed when I went to a supermarket with my SiL once, to first discover that everyone doesn't do this
Just makes so much sense.

@Frouby I am your twin I have this in the hall it's great my top tip to add is line your kallax boxes especially the ones for muddy boots you then just have to shake them out and don't have marks/mud in your boxes. If it helps I use the Variea lining plastic from Ikea £3 for a roll and does the boxes with ease.

for packed lunches on hot days I freeze a yoghurt. it will keep the lunchbox cool and taste almost like ice cream