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Is your house like a show house all the time?

119 replies

amialazycow · 29/10/2023 20:49

So I'm sitting here in my living room, I'm not long in from work and the place is so untidy. I'm fed up of being the only one that does anything so I'm just sitting down and having a cup of tea. There's just bits of shit every where. I mean it's not completely horrific but it's just not how I want it to be and I'd die if I had unexpected visitors.

Is this how it generally is in most homes when people are chilling or are people tidier than my family?

OP posts:
AnnaTortoiseshell · 29/10/2023 21:32

@Farmhouselad I think I could learn from you! Your standards sound higher than mine! We do probably have more of a ‘lived in’ vibe - a lot of older furniture which means it doesn’t all match. But I’d like to think it’s quite aesthetic and has a pulled together vibe. Plenty of arts and crafts going on as well so the table often has paint or pen on it or whatever. But I think that is part of life with kids and part of the general vibe of the place. But everything is clean and everything has its place. I can’t tell you how much I’d love to have matching crockery. If we won the lottery I’d buy a whole new dinner set.

PARunnerGirl · 29/10/2023 21:33

It kind of is BUT I have no kids or pets, it’s just me for half of the week since my DP stays in the city a couple of days a week for work and I WFH FT (so can put away washing or wash a dish here and there). As soon as one of those things changes, like I’m in the office/ travelling most of a week or I have family with kids visiting, it changes VERY quickly!

Tiredmum100 · 29/10/2023 21:37

My house is definitely not a show home. It is currently clean and tidy. But that's because I spent ALL day yesterday getting it like this. I work full time, and had let things go a bit, washing every where, kids stuff, papers etc etc...I feel better today, but it will never be show home standard and I'm alright with that!

Mumaway · 29/10/2023 21:40

That's definitely me then. I just cannot relax if my house isn't lovely, so I might as well use that time to tidy and clean. A little every day and well-trained/bribed children keeps on top of everything

NotSorry · 29/10/2023 21:40

Screamingabdabz · 29/10/2023 20:52

Nobody with a real life does. Only boring control freaks.

My mother had a show house - you are right she was a boring control freak

Mine is just normal - not a pig sty but I want people to feel comfortable visiting

justanothermummma · 29/10/2023 21:41

I love a tidy house, but 90% of the time - it looks like it has been robbed.

We live here, it's not on a Grand Designs filming schedule.

If it's easy to tidy - that helps at the end of the day when you want to settle down.

BUT, you live here, you rest here - it's not meant to look like a magazine.

TotalOverhaul · 29/10/2023 21:43

amialazycow · 29/10/2023 20:58

I'm currently looking at 3 empty ribeana bottles, some miniature hero wrappers, handful of daughters colouring pencils scattered all over living room. About 15 pages of 'art' from said daughter, an empty yoghurt pot, disheveled cushions (some on the floor) a random football among other stuff. Plus the room needs badly hoovered lol

I'm now opening wine 🍷 😂

You can tidy that lot in 3 minutes and hoover the room in another 5. Stick bottles, wrapper and yoghurt pot in bin. Stack drawings and gather pencils into a pot or pencil case. Plump up cushions. Run a hoover around the gritty bits of the floor you can see. You will enjoy the wine way more.

MumUndone · 29/10/2023 21:45

Ours is a shit heap. As soon as I tidy, it's an utter mess again. I can't keep up, so barely bother any more.

Spookymormonhelldream · 29/10/2023 21:45

Ha! It was tidy for about 20 minutes this morning after I’d done a Big Clean and Tidy. Then the kids got to work on homework/Lego/Halloween decorations, the dog ran around with muddy paws, I made a casserole et voila, shit tip.

DreamingInPhosphorescence · 29/10/2023 21:46

Hahahaha. Never.

TheSilentSister · 29/10/2023 21:50

Oh god no! Currently have my house up for sale and I've got speed cleaning/tidying down to 1-2 hrs. Within an hour of a viewing, it will look a mess again because I have pets, DC and another adult here who's untidy.
When my parents were alive, I often had them round for dinner and would do a speed clean, except for bedrooms.
I just can't be arsed to live my life in a show room. Homes are for living in, taking it easy, relaxing.
For emergency quick cleaning, buy a carpet sweepers, they make an amazing difference. Also, for worktops, surfaces, bathroom, toilets - surface wipes which you can bin. Job done.

Myfabby · 29/10/2023 21:52

amialazycow · 29/10/2023 20:58

I'm currently looking at 3 empty ribeana bottles, some miniature hero wrappers, handful of daughters colouring pencils scattered all over living room. About 15 pages of 'art' from said daughter, an empty yoghurt pot, disheveled cushions (some on the floor) a random football among other stuff. Plus the room needs badly hoovered lol

I'm now opening wine 🍷 😂

It doesn't need to be a show home, but why are there wrappers and empty bottles on the floor. There is a bin, let the children use it.

Crayons and toys fine of they are playing with it.

Hoovering a room takes less than 5 minutes.

Lizzieregina · 29/10/2023 21:52

It’s much better than it used to be, but still a long long way from being a show home!

When my kids were younger it was a disaster most of the time. I worked while they were at school and ran around with them evenings and weekends.

I never missed ANYTHING kid related so I would have more time to clean. No way. I figured some day it would be better and now it’s some day.

I just got back from a weekend away and walked into a clean house (did it before I left!) and it was lovely, but now we’re back, it’ll be messy again by tomorrow!

Sparkleshine21 · 29/10/2023 21:57

We don’t have heaps of things downstairs as it’s a small two up two down, but even though it’s uncluttered it doesn’t look super tidy as I have a mixture of wooden tones furniture, wood floors and bookshelves everywhere (I love reading!) unfortunately no light greys or white decor here as we have a dog, I dream of a white rug and pale grey sofa!

Itsbritneybitch22 · 29/10/2023 22:02

No but my friends is and she’s got 6 kids works full time and does it all herself I dunno how she does it but I love going there it’s just always perfect and reminds me of my Nans house (not decor) just the organisation and feels so calm even though it’s full of children.

Itsbritneybitch22 · 29/10/2023 22:03

Oh yes she’s VERY minimalistic apart from children’s rooms they have everything you can imagine but it’s still so tidy in their rooms.

DilemmaDelilah · 29/10/2023 22:04

😂😂😂😂😂 No 😭

Octavia64 · 29/10/2023 22:05

No.

Having three kittens and trying to renovate the damn thing does not help,

(Even when not renovating I never have a show house).

ItWorksBothWays · 29/10/2023 22:06

I was a hoarder and living in clutter and I have adhd and asd so it’s awful. But I’m now half way through my decluttering ‘programme’ (it’s taken 2 years to get to this point alone) and I’m starting to see a difference in my life. A long way to go but the house looks a lot better. Not a show home BUT if someone says they are popping round I can in 30 mins clear the junk to one room and shut the door on it and the rest of the house looks good (on the surface - not quite there with cupboards drawers etc!)

Monstermunchx1000 · 29/10/2023 22:07

Its a shit tip. I can do tidy but it takes every flipping fibre of my being. Then someone eats a biscuit while walking around, someone else drops a drink on the floor again. DH helpfully puts all the clean washing on the sofa in the hope the cleaning fairy sorts it. I bought laundry baskets but everyone must think it's a bad omen to actually get the clothes inside the basket. My parents and their spouses have show home type houses. Not me.

MRSMTO · 29/10/2023 22:09

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha

No it's not. Ever. That is all.

DelurkingAJ · 29/10/2023 22:10

Nope. But it takes about three minutes to get it to ‘I’m not embarrassed’ because I take the view that aside from old plates etc the rest is fine…it’s not dirty or unhygienic just people live here. DH occasionally gets stressed about it but quite frankly he’s as bad as the DC (and me) at scattering his belongings.

AdoraBell · 29/10/2023 22:10

Nope.

HopAPot · 29/10/2023 22:10

Yes. If that show is “Horders”.

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