What makes a home look clean and tidy?

[eversotidy]

Besides the obvious (crap over every surface, animal poo, pests) what makes a home seem clean and tidy to you? I’ve just had an afternoon free and gone all in on our bathroom and kitchen. They look great and it’s such a relief. Are there other ways of keeping things tidy or organised such that your home “looks” tidy? I’m thinking of things like a bin with a fitted lid, are those worth it (rather than an open bin at my bedside for example).

Get rid of things you don't want, declutter constantly, and avoid over-filling cupboards and drawers. I also clean every single day, one room, perhaps just sweeping the floors but something. I also use school holidays to blitz bedrooms and help the teens stay organised, we sort out clothes that don't fit, tidy drawers etc. I do the same in my room. Create calm, it's easier to keep 'calm' clean!

Edited to add: Keep your home smelling fresh, open windows to change the air, never let the house smell of cooking or old bins, keep toilets fresh smelling, and have high hygiene standards with self-care and washing clothes. Oh, and shoes— make sure shoes don't smell. The smell of a house is important, it doesn't have to be all chemical sprays and smells, just fresh smelling

Following !!

Cupboards or other closed storage rather than shelves.
Coats hung behind doors rather than on view.
Shoes put away.
A nice pot or basket for chucking things in like keys and purse.
Fewer ornaments.
Some well placed plants or a nice lamp.
More storage!

Put things away immediately after using them. Always. Every time. It's like a miracle.

Things in the right place. I admit I have a terrible habit for leaving a hair band/brush (or 10!) on top of the microwave for example.

Don't put it down, put it away! I live by this saying and it helps everything stay tidy!

Yes, the One Touch Rule, it’s a thing and it works!

I agree, and everything has a home. When you're done with it, you put it where it belongs, every time.

I also believe that when you keep your kitchen clean and tidy, the rest of the house falls in place. In my home, the kitchen is clean before bedtime, every night, without exception. Waking up to a messy kitchen is a horrible way to start the day. I also believe in the power of making your bed every morning. It does not have to be perfect or fancy hotel level, but straightening the duvet and pillows takes seconds, and it starts the day off nicely. Coming home to a tidy bed is relaxing to me.

agree with all of the above

closed storage & clear surfaces are the key, along with minimal visual clutter

having things that have to be out in the bathroom & kitchen (eg shampoo, dish soap) in simple & preferably similar containers not the visually loud packs they came in helps . Eg all glass jars in the kitchen

clean floors & clean woodwork & windows

Smelling fresh. Especially soft furnishings. Wash covers, curtains, bedding regularly. Clean hand towels in the bathroom.

Clutter free, nothing on surfaces or laying around. Everything gets laid away.

A bin on display would be a no from me, fitted lid or not. No laundry lying around or over radiators.

Obviously cleaning is important, no dust or crumbs. Carpets hoovered. No streaks or water markers on surfaces.

I hate mismatching bottles and containers so everything is decanted into matching labelled containers. It just creates the impression of being neat and tidy.

Decluttering and having plenty of storage so everything can have a home. It helps if you can train DC when they go upstairs to glance around and see if they can see anything needing to go up. Same upstairs when they are about to come down glance around, does anything need bringing down. If everyone does this it really helps. Once it's tidy it's so much quicker to clean.

I have a really tidy home but great storage and I declutter a lot

so I have magazine racks (ikea) a wall that can’t be seen for newspapers etc. I have the ikea shoe racks for hats and shoes then excess are taken down to bedrooms. A chest of drawers in the main kitchen dining room keeps school uniforms and I have a drawer for kids pens and scrap paper. Most of the house is painted off white and this makes it look cleaner. Just plants etc for decoration

I have a 1 in 1 out rule for kitchen items. A couple of weeks ago I bought a new Yorkshire pudding tray, so my old one got thrown out immediately. No just keeping extras just in case.

My home is tidy(ish) but I'm naturally messy- the answer for me was to be absolutely ruthless about getting rid of stuff. If you have limited stuff, there's a limit to how untidy it can get and how long it can take to put it all away (I know it would be much better to always put everything away straight away, I'm working on it!)

It's not like a show home by any means but my rule is that it has to be in a state where I could run around and get it properly presentable within 10 minutes or so if someone was coming over. As my tendency is towards mess, I offer to have people over a lot to force myself to keep up better habits 😆

My family are also messy and sometimes express disapproval that I don't hang onto things, but minimising belongings keeps me on the straight and narrow. When I was little, my granny used to read me a book (I think it was Frog and Toad) where one character is tidy and the other messy, and the tidy one says to the messy one 'you can have stuff, or you can have space. You can't have both!' It's very true 😫😆

As much as you can in closed cupboard - ie long bathroom cupboard with doors will reduce clutter and cleaning; storage chest in bedroom, living room to keep bulky stuff out of sight - also reduces tidying /cleaning.

Hall or entryway storage to keep coats/shoes/bags as tidy as possible. Only have out what you are currently using if possible.

If storage space is limited (mine is non existent), consider divans with drawer space, a big enough wardrobe to get as much stuff out of sight in. Regular culls of things you don’t wear, use, are finished with or are broken.

keep only things you use on a daily basis on kitchen counter. As much as possible in cupboards or drawers . Don’t keep anything you don’t use or is chipped or broken. A letter rack or notice board to keep paperwork in/on. No crap on fridge door as looks a mess.

I live in a tiny flat so keep things on display a few things I love. I have a few really big pictures, a few big plants, a coffee table with a tray with candles on and a plant. I don’t have things on display just because - I don’t keep books apart from a handful that I re-read from time to time. I don’t want books just to show i read books. I don’t care about looking cultured or ‘interesting’. .

I use the library and charity shop where possible.

I keep only the furniture I need and use. I don’t have space for anything that isn’t in daily use.

All bedding, towels and curtains are white. Bedding is seersucker so doesn’t need ironing to look nice. No scatter cushions on bed. I have olive green walls and really bright pictures and sofa cushions and throws. Lots of candles. The place looks simple, neat and hopefully cosy and inviting. I air the rooms daily and use wax melts - refreshing smells like lime/basil and mandarin in summer and orange and clove in winter .

Obviously as I live on my own, I don’t have anyone else’s likes and needs to consider, which makes things considerably simpler and easier

Straighten the bed daily
Plump cushions/throws daily
Have a shoe rack/cupboard
Small waste bin in every room- empty every other day
Wash up or dishwasher daily
Put clothes away daily

All other house occupants locked in the garden shed.

😆 That’ll do it!

Here, it’s having the right items in the right rooms. For example, not having a random tennis racket propped up against the kitchen door, a plastic bottle from last night in the living room or a bassoon or two in the hallway.

Getting rid of items you don’t need. I I’m really strict about this. We get a skip each year and regularly take several bags of stuff to the charity shop.

Storing the items you do need behind cupboards and drawers and having clear surfaces. There’s nothing wrong with precious items, endless knickknacks, fridge magnets and other bits and pieces are going to make some feel chaotic.

Not having all of your storage space full, so that if you need to store a few more items after a big sort out they have to be squeezed in or put on a shelf. Always leave a couple of empty drawers or cupboards.

Beds need to be made, curtains need to be drawn, laundry needs to be put away and shoes go in the shoe cupboard (with three teams, wow betide anyone who opens that cupboard and takes a deep breath!)

To be honest, you have got to grips with not having too much stuff and having it all put away, the rest is very easy and it’s actually quite fun. It’s lovely to be able to put a vase of garden flowers on a clear surface, for example or to lighten it scented candle on an empty shelf.

The amount of clutter or otherwise makes a huge difference to my mental health and how easily I’m able to settle down and get my work done at home.

All of the above plus open some windows.
(Obviously this is in the real world, whilst on MN all cleaning products kill you down dead, nobody washes any bedding more frequently than once a year and then in cold water and only if there are visible stains and none of their dogs stink or lose hairs!)

Like others have said get rid of clutter!
That is my current mission

My house is tidy and I certainly don’t hide my bins or store everything in matching containers.

Put it away not down… that’s the key. You’re house can be immaculate but if you’re then in the habit of opening your post over 3 surfaces and leaving your shoes and bag dumped in the hall it’s never going to look tidy for more than 30s

If you can’t put it away then you need less stuff/better storage.

Having some catch all baskets in the areas you usually accumulate crap helps balance between it being a living functioning home and keeping it looking tidy for more than 5 mins.

Single best bit of advice I ever got re house management, changed my whole perspective from battling to functional

If you have a space that’s not working for you, say you’re cluttered entry way.
Go there with a bit of paper and without doing any tidying write a list of what is there.
If there is rubbish you need a bin, dog leads, find storage, golf clubs, swim kit, winter coats, shoes

Whatever you have found there is what you are going to end up with there so don’t fight it, work out how you can store them there in a way they can be readily accessed and put back easily.

Being able to see coats hung up is not untidy… having all the coats including the winter ones you won’t use for six months and ones that haven’t fit for years piled up til the rack can hold no more and they end up on the floor is untidy

@Invisimamma : where do you put bins then? I have a small open one in our bedroom near the door and I realise it looks a bit untidy, but where else would I put it?

For everyone saying get rid of clutter, how do you do that? We periodically purge toys and clothes but with two tiny children it accumulates quickly.

Good storage solutions, owning as little unnecessary crap as possible, minimal living, simple things like throws and cushions straightened up, surfaces as clear as possible etc.

Oh it's an ongoing process for me! (I've had three under 10 and on my own most of the time, the master bedroom is an absolute pit as everything gets thrown in there but gradually I'm working my way through all the years of accumulated crap). It helps I have several local charities who come door to door when requested to collect items they can resell, so I often will just every few months bag up all the outgrown clothes and shoes, and then add anything else I can sneak in like outgrown toys, mugs, ornaments etc.