If you have a surface near your front door... what's on it?

[PandaChopChop]

For no other reason than nosiness and DC is off sick watching pure shite on TV

My hallway table is currently host to:
-car keys
-pocket tissues
-toothbrush and toothpaste (waiting to go upstairs)
-phone charging cable
-a godawful vase waiting to go to a charity shop (I got suckered in at the antique shop in a haze of stress when I bought it)
-a brand new book and jar of enormous paper clips which will be donated to the schools tombola
-three old devices that need recycling

Chest height cupboard that houses the electric meter and fuse board:
-glass bowl with keys- some used, some not- and DH’s wallet.
-2 electric toothbrushes waiting to be taken to the dump.
-my pair of sunglasses and DH’s 3 pairs.
-sunscreen
-library books to be returned. That’s me, so my bedside pile doesn’t get too big.

Slightly off topic, but have you removed the 'death plug' from the orchid ? It's a piece of spongy material used to help stabilise the plant during transit. I stumbled upon a YouTube channel explaining all about it, if you're interested I'll try and find it agIn

I have a shoe storage unit. My handbag lives on top when I'm not using it.

We've got a large hallway which is a godsend after our last house which had a very narrow one.

We have a coat stand and shoe rack.
We've got a large chest of drawers hiding a multitude of crap - keys, sunglasses, dog harness and lead, winter gloves, hats etc.
We've also got a bookcase with 5 shelves which is crammed with all the books that didn't fit into our living room and study when we moved in.

We’ve got a sideboard with drawers and cupboards so thankfully the top is normally ok.

It normally has a giraffe, a zebra and an elephant (made out of flip flops washed up on beaches), a vase of flowers, a photo of the family, a piece of an old stage and a lamp on it but is currently also housing my Godmother’s Christmas present. I have seen her loads since Christmas but kept forgetting it - hence it being on the hall table to annoy me so I don’t forget it again!

The cupboards and drawers are full of shite!

We have a 9 cube painted storage unit in our porch.
3 baskets across the top layer with hats, gloves, scarves etc.
Above it small mirror shelf unit with little dog ornaments, presents from grandchildren.
On the surface.
I still hate Thatcher mug holding rolls of (clean) dog poo bags.
Wax melt burner
Incense holder
Knitted dog toy that looks like our dog.
It's always tidy.

You go through the porch to the dining room and sadly the dining table is a constant battle to keep it clear.

Vase of flowers and a selection of framed family photos.

@Chelsea26
It normally has a giraffe, a zebra and an elephant (made out of flip flops washed up on beaches)

These sound fun!

We have a dinner gong on our table. I inherited it. It was originally my great Aunt's who had a boarding house in Brighton. I like to whack it every now and then.

Just flowers and a reed diffuser.

My make up bag, a picture DP needs to hang up but emotionally can't right now as he bought it in memory of his recently dead mother, so I leave it, a notebook and a pack of his reading glasses.

Oh and frequently a cat.

Coin tray
wicker crab thing that has all our keys and other random shite in it
A plant in a ribbed glass vase thing
a dying cactus
neom diffuser
house phone (not plugged in)

Electric meter is boxed in by the door but that leaves a 1m high surface I can neither move nor totally clear. It currently holds:

Box of small paper for shopping lists.
Box for dead batteries (currently empty as DH took a load to the recycling).
Box for receipts and wallet crap to sort through when we're not busy.
House phone.

It feels tidy because it's defined zones for categorised crap.

A cat. 🐈‍⬛

Oh- it came prepared in a vase etc so no, I haven't removed anything from it! I shall have a look! Thankyou

That sounds FABULOUS @unsync

Pens
Recent post
Pens
Dog biscuits
Bon Bon dish
WiFi router
Lamp

@Chasingsquirrels I like them! They’re made in Kenya. The bloody elephant has fallen down the back again (he’s a bit wonky!)

It’s a long shelf/ top of the meter cupboard. We have on there DD’s Easter basket from last year which seems to have found a new purpose as somewhere we put keys, and a reed diffuser which I got as a gift but I find it too overpowering for the actual living space!

That’s it at the moment. But up until yesterday (when I got fed up of the clutter and sorted it out) there was a book I’ve been meaning to pass on to my mother in law for weeks now, a load of take away menus, de-icer and scraper, roll of food recycling bags, and a packet of outdoor chalk.
Plus a ridiculous amount of mail for my husband that for some reason he wanted to save from the recycling bin, but didn’t deem important enough to actually carry into the house and file appropriately.

Hoping I can keep it in its relatively clear state now, but realistic enough to accept it’ll probably be full of junk again by mid week.

We have a piano with framed family photos and a lamp on it.
I do have a habit of leaving the car keys on the piano stool but try not to for safety reasons

Coffee table book of my neighbour totoro, open on my favourite picture.

Lamp, candle, keys

Plants
2 tealight holders (rarely used because what's the point of lighting candles in the hall?!)
House and garage keys
Woolly hats
Pile of bloody charity bags, we seem to get one through the letterbox every couple of weeks!

Empty coat rail.

We have all our Christmas decorations on the floor in the hall waiting to go up to the attic.

Windowsill next to the front door has a funky shaped bowl with all our keys in plus DH's work pass, a bottle shaped terrarium and a bottle of de-icer.

Then there's two tables in the hall.

The tall narrow one has 2 photos and a cute glasses case with my sunglasses in, plus the access card for the sports centre for DD's swimming lesson. It used to live in the car so we couldn't forget it but we got a second car a couple of weeks ago and haven't found a solution yet!

The low table has 2 of my handbags on it and 2 of DD's handbags, the mail that came through the door this morning that we need to sort, and two fold up shopping bags that need to go back in the car.