Tell me at one or two small thing you've done to make your life easier

[listsandbudgets]

I've done 2 this year

1. I've unsubscribed / marked as spam from nearly all my mailing lists. Now my inbox is an oasis of calm and I don't spend what feels like hours every week wading through emails I don't want My spam file is brimming over!
2. I found a sharpie and (once I was sure they were the right way round!) labelled my double fitted sheets with side and top - wish I'd done this years ago not having to shuffle them about trying to work out which way up they go

Also plastics, kept and washed so many takeaway containers for just in case…. Keeping a couple and rest to recycling.

My top tips -

Write a list of everything you buy for your freezer/s, laminate them and pin to the front of the fridge, with the amounts you have in stock, written on at the side of each item, in white board pen. Then when you use something, knock one off! You know exactly what you've got.

Label plugs, especially if all plugged into a multi bank, makes it easy to see what's what.

Any spare leads for anything, put in a Really Useful box.

DH and I have a file box each, with personal documents in and another one, which has clear plastic document zip bags in, with all our appliance instructions in. Go through it once a year or so, then you're not cluttered with old instruction booklets. Also handy to find for when you're selling anything.

Make a foil top for jar candles, to save wasting wax. Basically, cover the jar with a piece of foil, press it round the jar and poke a large hole in the middle on the top. Lift off, light the candle and replace the foil. The wax that usually stays unmelted on the sides of the jar, melts into the candle! No waste! (Not my tip, I read it somewhere, tried it and it works a treat!

Use a hardback lined A5 notebook and if you try a recipe online and you like it, write it in the book! Keeps it all together without having to print it off and have A4 sheets all over!

I buy 500 thin, white freezer bags at a time from our farm shop and use them as little rubbish bags when I'm cooking. Onion peelings, stock cube wrappers, meat drip pads all go in there, then when I'm finished, tie it up and drop in the bin, saves the back and forth or dragging the bin over!

I inherited some unused duvet clips from my dad, to keep the corners in while putting the cover on! Life changing!

I wash down the shower doors while I'm having a shower. Just spray with cleaner before I get in, take my scrubby sponge in with me, clean down, then shower and rinse the doors with the shower head last.

I've just bought two clear plastic cupboard organisers from the middle of Lidl for my spice packets and Indian herbs and spices, to keep them all together, cos I love cooking curries and hate having to poke about! Just pull the box out and they're all there!

Fill a large pot with compost, then plant spring onion roots, celery roots, lettuce ends, carrot tops... Something will grow from them, so you get twice the amount of veg/salad for one price! I've had a couple of pots going in the summer doing this!

Love this thread OP, thank you! ❤

plastic boxes on top of the kids’ wardrobes - one for hand me down to younger child and one for charity. Chuck a clothing item in as soon as we notice current child has outgrown it, and when the box is full hah it and store in the loft / donate

We have an IKEA linen bag with handles in each bedroom - so much easier than lugging baskets up and down. Each person has their own so I often do a wash for a person, dry then put away. Then do the next person’s another day etc. Much easier than sorting it all.

Buy different, easy to match socks for each person.

I open the drawer of washing machine after every use and also keep a little hand towel to dry the inside of door and base of the rubber seal after every single wash - keeping it bone dry stops any mould. Also, don’t put washing powder/liquid in drawer - only in drum. In hard water areas, whack in a salt tablet to the drum every single wash.

Have a parcel/letter drawer with everything you need to wrap/seal/write etc.

Had my children’s names and date of birth tattooed on my forearm , great way to remember who’s birthday is when

Box to store cards and wrapping paper. Big rolls of parcel tape off Amazon in there too.

All spices in one box so I can pull out of cupboard.

Door hanging shoe storage to store spare shampoo, deodorant, toothbrushes etc on inside of cupboard doors.

Good supply of fresh permanent markers to label boxes, bin the dry ones.

Filter emails from annoying people into Gmail folders to check when in right frame of mind.. This is probably my biggest tip.

Gmail folder for receipts and extended warranties.

I labelled all the appliance chargers plugs and leads (you can buy labels for leads too).

Jars in my pantry (I use big mayo jars for things like cornflour, ground almonds etc)

the lids of my jams and sauces as my narrow fridge has a pull out shelf and I can glance down and see what everything is without having to move all the jars.

I don’t use it for the freezer (feel it’s a waste of a label). I buy Lakeland small labels on a roll for that and sometimes cut them in half to be more economical to label batch cooked food that way.

I printed off lots with my name on stuck them to my phone case (back of my phone too in case the case got lost). My tablet, etc. Then everyone else in family wanted them too

TBH I bought mine on price and the fact it came in pink so DH was unlikely to pinch it. I also looked at the price of the labels too. It was on offer so that was another plus. Wish I’d got the leads labels when I got it. I ordered extra labels that are clear but don’t use them, not sure why I thought it was a good idea. About thirty labels on a roll which is easy to change, wish I’d got two rolls of white labels now. Can’t think of anything annoying.

the app is fairly simple to use, I up and down the size of the text to fit the label, in small text I think I got three lines for DD’s porridge recipe to stick on the porridge jar as she moans when I use the wrong amounts.

Another I’ve just remembered:
[I’m a crafter and I dot all my scissors and tools with a bright yellow dot of nail varnish to make sure I always get them back when I go to clubs]

My SIL is an avid sewer.

when we go to her house at Christmas all her gifts are wrapped in Christmassy fabric bags. Once you’ve unwrapped your gift she has the bag back. Only used for gifts at her house. She says she’s added about three a year and has quite a collection now. After Christmas she stores the baubles in the bags.

basically they are drawstring bags in all sizes, some fold over with a ribbon and a button to wind the ribbon round to secure.

one year she made us all drawstring bags in a muslin fabric that was quite see through with different fabric at the top for a drawstring ribbon. All would easily hold a pair of shoes and one was larger to use as a mini laundry bag. The great bit was that being see through ‘ish is you can see what’s in them and the coloured tops helped for identification too.

I set a timer for 30 or 40 minutes and pretend that a guest is arriving last minute. I get way more done when the pressure is on as I’m a chronic people pleaser

I don't fold clothes. Everything, including towels and sheets, are hung up. Underclothes go in a bin or two. same with small towels and washcloths. guess those are folded also, but just quickly. Bedding is still folded.

I put my bills on my digital calendar along with everything else, so none are forgotten, and I am never late.

I bought tubs for storing items on the higher kitchen shelves - labeled them ‘kids medicine’ , ‘batteries’ , curry spices. Etc so now i just pull down the the tub when child has a temp, making a curry, or when replacing batteries. Those high shelves are now my friend 😂

As we buy new clothes (sale or TK Max) I've made everything non iron and qiuck drying, picked up microfibre bath towls and fleece dressing gowns and Pyamas.
Set up drying rack on wall (high level, over radiator) of dining room brought dehumidifier. Sort washing into quick dry and slow. Now In the middle of winter I can wash a load hang it on hangers and get it dry before the next load is washed (one hour). The clothes go straight in wardrobe no ironing, microfibre towels and fleeces back in bathroom or back on backs.

Everything dry in one hour ready to wear, so easy, such a time saver, so nice not to have wet washing for days in Winter, no smell no damp, no iroing pile.

Same sort of thing in summer all clothes non iron just wash and wear, but dry on outside line then.

Always try to plan big or expensive item shop, use Trolley for expesive items on offer (just saved £2 or jar coffee, £1 on bag apples, £ on cerial £1 on porridge etc). Use taste comparison website to find equally good substitutes for where shops and manufactures take the micky, cornflakes from M&S, rice crispies frm Aldi, butter from Farm foods all own label, all just as good and half the price.

Always try to do 2 day dinners, cook once eat twice (wash pans once)

Love these!

For interior design inspo, I like the website Apartment Therapy.

Otherwise, just let Pinterest do its thing - search interior design inspiration and click on pictures that you love. Not all of them will have sensible captions, but enough of them will for you to see themes - look out for ´places’ like loft, cottage, ´times’ like mid-century of 1970s, and ´descriptors’ like neutral, organic, modern, cool. You can make a word salad out this pattern and get interesting results: try cottage modern or 1970s organic and see what results you get!

Bought a thermomix and use the Cookidoo recipes to save time and plan ahead meals in the online calendar. Double lots of recipes and batch cook and freeze for days short in time.
Emptied kitchen cupboards of spare mugs - I no longer have to search for mugs as family realise if they are left in bedrooms etc.. there won’t be any in the kitchen.
All bathrooms have a cleaning box and spare refills for cleaners so I don’t have to go up and down the stairs multiple times when cleaning.

How old are your children if you don’t mind me asking? I love this idea and think it teaches them a good level of responsibility for their week and their things but just wonder how to pitch it at mine who are 9,6 and 4 (or am I being too optimistic!!)

Nominating this thread for classics.

This is a good one and amusing too 😁

Anyone who is wondering why high streets are dead, should read this thread 🙄

This is a new one from me. DM was speaking to her younger sister on the phone and texted me part of their convo. Sister bought a new model pressure cooker and says things take minutes to cook and you can do anything from a tagline, stew, cheesecake etc in there. Don’t think her sister has an air fryer yet.

I’ve got an air fryer caved and bought last year and love it. DM has neither but used to use a pressure cooker in 1970s. Can anyone tell me more about new era modern pressure cookers please?

How on earth do you hang towels and sheets. What in a wardrobe!! Cannot understand folk getting confused by a fitted sheet.

Really finding these tips useful, mine are:

Decluttering regularly to keep all random crap out of the house and using the supermarket charity bins.

Cleaning out one kitchen cupboard or drawer during clean weekly and removing stuff we would not use means never having to clean a whole kitchen again.

Not using loft other than Christmas decorations.

Using a cheap Temu labeller for Christmas present tags.

Heated rail in utility as well as tumble drier, outside dry where possible.

Weekly meal plan online shop, eating fresh ingredients beginning of week and longer lasting towards the end.

Freeze bananas going off colour and use straight from freezer in smoothie for kids.

Use physical calendar with meal plan in family area with shopping list so everyone knows the plan.

Sending out information to family member via what's app immediately for relevant club/ school/ college for them to own. Also family what's app for any holiday/ event so they have access to details.

I have greasy hair and have to wash it every other day MAX, instead of waiting until it's greasy and trying to use the dry shampoo to recover it, I put loads in before bed, no worrying about how it looks and frantic rubbing to remove the evidence just blast it it and get up and brush!
Take baby powder to the beach to remove sand form kids toes
I am very savvy where I can be, loading every last bit into the dishwasher, full laundry loads etc but I have let that go with a bit of difficulty but it works so much better, a load of laundry on every evening timed to finish when I get up and dishwasher on every morning, teens job to take turns emptying it when they get in from school before I get home from work for their pocket money.
Bought a washing machine that has auto dose (fill the compartments and it puts it in itself) now if the kids need a pe kit or something doing last minute they can just shove it in and press quick wash.
A divided laundry basket, I am very fussy and won't mix colours....ever. Used to spend ages sorting the laundry with 5 kids now they all know it's either white dark or in between, they know to empty pockets, I put a small bin next to it for this and unball socks etc, now I just grab the fullest bag and shove it in.
We go camping regularly, I have a box of everything from paper plates to ketchup sachets and duct tape, when we get back I restock what's needed and keep a list of what's in it so I can just grab it from the shed with all the other stuff and go.
Sorry no spreadsheets here just a busy working mum!

I buy 500 thin, white freezer bags at a time from our farm shop and use them as little rubbish bags when I'm cooking. Onion peelings, stock cube wrappers, meat drip pads all go in there, then when I'm finished, tie it up and drop in the bin.

What a waste of plastic. Do you not sort your garbage? You would be fined for this where I live.