What is ONE item that changed dramatically and surprisingly your home life for the better

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Looking for inspiration to start the process of tidying up (all aspects of) my life.
I already posted another thread related to this.
As an individual, I am very organised and perfectionist. I love order, cleanliness and tidiness. BUT, my house/ life rarely looks the part. I want to sort out my life once and for all so that it is always either spick and span or easily back on track.

On this thread I'd like to ask you what is ONE item (big or small/ expensive or cheap) that, when you acquired, changed your home life for the better so dramatically and surprisingly that you honestly wonder how you were able to cope before it graced your life.

The make-soup-from-scratch people are the ones who make me laugh. Just why? 😆So much easier to open a tin!

I'm no cook from scratch purist but I do think tinned soup tastes like shite.

Ooh, I agree with the rice cooker and the Meal service (currently green chef, this also taught my daughter to follow a recipe and cook). I don't know how i lived so many years without a dishwasher.

@isthismylifenow it is so genius that I wonder why it is not widely used in the world? It is a no brainer. If my kitchen weren't already bursting with appliances I would have bought one. I presume you're from South Africa? If so, I honestly didn't know you had an electricity problem. So much sun could be used to generate electricity. I heard about the water problem though; that's a tough one.

@PrettyMaybug what @ThatFraggle said. Do you seriously think it's the same or as healthy as the ones made from scratch?? Next time just try to read the ingredients and see if it's as simple as you think. I like ready made and pre prepared too but not as a default. Chopped onion/ garlic/ tomatoes are helpful though.

@Puffthemagiclizard Well, I don't see a laundry function on mine- it has a on and off, timer and continuous mode.
It does draw lots of moisture from the air- but the air feels cold when it does, and I don't feel that it dries my clothes any quicker. A I supposed to have the radiators on at the same time?

Having central heating installed. In winter, the whole house seemed much bigger as no areas of it were too cold any more.

@piddocktrumperiness I've got a Russel Hobbs one and it has a laundry mode, the air it pumps out isn't cold, it's marginally warmer than the room generally. If I happen to have the heating on it dries quicker yes, but it's absolutely not necessary. I've got a full load of towels and bedding on there now, no heating on, and it'll be dry in a few hours. Is yours like a proper knee high big one with a 2 litre tank, or is it smaller?

2p cleanser -
Basically this is a brand name for electrolysed water. You add salt (some also add vinegar) to water and pass a current through it. This produces HOCI - hypochlorous acid - which is many times stronger than bleach, but very gentle.
In fact, it's so gentle at some concentrations it can be used for wound cleaning and dental hygiene.
I adore it and wish I was a chemist so I could understand more about it. Use it for all dusting, baby's highchair, cat bowl, car, lightswitches etc. All it takes is 4 mins and some salt to make more.

Where can I find instructions on how to do this?

@ThatFraggle you buy a bottle that plugs in - Google any of the terms I've used and you'll find it :)

That would freak me out wearing someone else's socks!

Heated airer.

Separate duvets on the same bed. DH, who feels the cold and steals the covers, has his own high-tog single duvet. Perimenopausal me has a thinner wool double duvet. I also like nicer bed linen so I can choose my own and be extra fussy. I swear this is the secret of a successful marriage.

Getting a new kitchen fitted and having all of my base unit kitchen cupboards taken out and replaced by drawers, apart from the corner unit, which now has a carousel instead of shelves. I have eight deep pan style drawers and three shallower drawers. All of my baking ingredients are in one, baking tins etc in one, pans in another, crockery, plates, bowls etc live in another. No more scrabbling around trying to retrieve stuff from the back of a cupboard or having to remove most of the stuff from the inner sanctum of the corner cupboard for something that was usually right at the back, It is so easy now, just open a drawer and there it is. Saves me a lot of time an effort.
The kitchen planner put a floor to ceiling cupboard in a dead space behind the kitchen door, it’s 80cm wide and about 20 cm deep, it houses the cordless Dyson, booze bottles, tinned food and other crap, it makes the kitchen so much tidier.

Air conditioning (doubles a heater so can turn it on in one room without heating the whole house), air fryer & Pyrex dishes

Thank you @Ladyofthelake53 I will have a look at them.

This is my favourite ever thread!!! ❤️

I echo a few previous posters:

• cordless vacuum, used to have a Dyson but now have a Shark. Love them both but the shark has two batteries so I never have to wait for it to charge.
• curtains at the front door keeps the warmth in. I think they were £5 off Marketplace but so their job perfectly!
• slow cooker plus only the pots and pans I use, ie a wok, small frying pan, 3 saucepans ranging from big casserole size that fits in the oven to small. Very space saving and means I bought good quality over cheap quantity.
• sodastream, we drink gallons of sparkly water
• nespresso machine, likewise we save a fortune on takeaway coffee

After reading this thread I would like an air fryer but don’t feel I know enough about them. Would the Ninja be good for a family of 4??

Could those raving about the air fryers please say what model they have? There seem to be several

I am a bit of a gadget lover myself, but I made space for this 😀 I saw in the link upthread someone had theirs stored in a drawer, what a fabulous idea (if you had a drawer spare that is).

The electricity issues are worse that the water issues at the moment. We were in a really bad drought situation, but that is somewhat better now. Being in a hot country, unfortunately we have to been cautious about water usage all the time. Our electricity, just a disaster. We are currently on slots of going out in two and four hour slots, we do have prior notice so just have to be as ultra prepared as we can. Hence my wonderbag being used a lot. Yes I am in SA, and they are very popular here, used a lot in rural areas as well, many families still cook by means of making fire. And they keep things cold too, so they are used a lot in the summer for picnics etc.

I don't know why they are not as popular elsewhere either, although if someone is handy with sewing I think they are easy enough to whip up. My older one was filled with polystyrene beads, the newer type are foam chips.

(currently have a mutton curry in mine, put it in last night whilst making last nights dinner, so looking forward to dinner lol).

Just love this thread btw. 🌼

Surprising ! difference to our life was hanging a double width very heavy, ceiling to floor curtain at the front door, absorbs any draught, noise from outside, muffles noise inside, now our long hallway feels cosy warm and snug.

This very week, a heavy metal sink strainer in the shower - you will be amazed how much hair is captured - long haired daughters especially.
Good quality knives, make life easier, efficient, satisfying, a daily joy to use.

What a great thread OP, learnt a lot, thanks.

I pretty much always cook from scratch. I do use oven chips and sometimes things like pastries or pies (my mum would have cooked those from scratch too)
And I use short cuts. Discovering lazy garlic was a revelation.

It just doesn't take much time. Most meals are made in under 30 minutes.
Some made earlier in the day and then put in oven or on low heat to cook slowly, eg casserole/chilli/curry/ghoulash.
Some made and eaten straight away eg stir fry or even sausage and mash really only takes 20 minutes.

I do buy quick meals when dh is away, a sort of time off from cooking.

They are rarely as nice as home cooked (mind you I make amazing curries). Some things are better, fiddly things that I wouldn't bother to make like spring rolls or samosas.
But at the end of a week of off-the-shelf meals I fele bloated and a bit off.

I have this one by Tower. I love it. I can cook a medium sized chicken in the large drawer in about 45 mins.

Following a tip on here I bought a giant roll of Kirkland tin foil from Amazon and it's lasted for months.

My friend bought a giant Costco commercial cling film thing. It lasted two house moves and three kids. I think the youngest was in school by the time it finished. But it needed its own special corner in the kitchen. I think it was like what they wrap suitcases in at the airport.

I can find the fire ones but not storm ones what did you type in xx