To ask for your easy life hacks?

[Polkapjs]

I need easy ways to make life easier and help me get my life in order in all areas

Tonight have have used a garlic press with an UNPEELED love of garlic as recommended by Jamie Oliver. Genius.
Give me yours that don’t involve needing stuff I don’t have but help make stuff a bit easier or cheaper?

When baking potatoes chuck extra in and then freeze them.

polly what a fab idea!! Never would have thought of that - and I buy ready frozen potatoes!!!

I find my staff make life easier. The chauffeur to take me shopping, the housekeeper to organise the house and of course the cleaning staff. The butler takes care of the wine cellar and decanting and letting the vintage reds breathe.

The stable boy and manager look after the race horses and the estate manager takes care of the gardening and manicuring of the hedges, I do like my topiary.

(The above is all lies.)

Rubbing alcohol will take sap off the car. Wipe while sap is gooey with a throw away paper towel-don't get it on you. Wipe spot with cotton ball or small throw away rag and alcohol. Wipe again with throw away rag and alcohol. Rinse off with water. If there is a haze-wipe with alcohol again. Works great even on dried on sap.
Don't use bar soap in the bath/sink because it has hardeners in it and they collect in the tub. Use liquid bath soap and you won't have a ring.
Thanks for the great ideas!

hang a ring pull over the hook of a coat hanger, then use the ring pull to hang another coat hanger on to double the space in your wardrobe.

RenoSusan we don't have rubbing alcohol here in the UK, but we can buy surgical spirit which is quite close.

Sorry its taken me a while to post the pics this is my spice and garlic in oil selection.
they keep for months . if you just want a mild flavor just use the oil , if you want more umpf use the powered garlic too .

Oh and i drained two diff washing up liquids in to the little pump bottle ,

I second PP using jars for left overs , I also keep marg , ice cream , yogurt tubs for sauces stock and left overs.

Whilst having a hot shower, hang your creased clothing in the bathroom somewhere close (but obviously not too close that it'll get wet) and the steam will straighten it out without the need to iron!
Soak a cloth in distilled vinegar and wrap around the taps, leave for 30mins or more then wipe away or give a good scrub with an old toothbrush, makes your taps look brand spanking new.

Vacuum plastic storage bags for any unwanted clothing or bedding, saves space in wardrobes!

Fatherfintan your a genius. I've been grating ginger then freezing. It's daffy messy and lumps together.
I'll do it your way 😃

Keep cereal fresher and close ace real box by...

1. On one long side of the box fold the flap on the inside.
2. Take the sides of the box and create creases in the middle, towards the inside of the box
3. Take the flap from the remaining long side and fold it into the box.

Really hard to describe but here's a pic off the internet

Barmcake pizzas,
great if you are peckish but dont feel like cooking much or a good way to get the DCs interested in cooking and they are much more likley to eat food they have made .

you need ;
barmcakes cut in half
tomato puree
Italian seasoning,
veggie cut up small , peppers mushrooms onion etc
left over cooked meat .
grated cheese

toast the bottom of the barm cake turn it over then spread tom puree and get the DCs to add there own pizza toppings and pop back under the grill for a few minuets .

Its a good way of using up slightly stale barms and them bits of veg lurking in the bottom of the salad draw. and only cost a few pence per pizza

Baking powder and bleach mixed are brilliant for cleaning mould on tiles. Leave paste for 30 mins and rinse!

Trying this tomorrow.

My keeping the house tidy mantra is don’t put it down, put it away.

Use spray bottle in place of washing up bottle fill half with washing up liquid and half water

Declutter, massively, and review quarterly. Put it in your diary. Most of us have far too many possessions. If your cupboards are full of stuff that you never use you can't put things away which means cleaning takes 3 times as long and no-one can ever find anything.

I am a big Kon-Marie fan but decluttering will never be a one off task in this house.

I also try to finish a chore completely so if I wash up, I dry and put away, when the drier is finished I fold and put away etc.

If you spill raw egg sprinkle salt on it. The egg will solidify so you can just pick it up.
Use fresh bread to pick up broken glass, you’d be amazed how many tiny shards it picks up even after sweeping well.

Before I go to bed I lie out my clothes for the next day (inc bra, pants, socks) - saves me a decision and time the next morning.

I screenshot important emails on my phone so I have them to hand in a folder in my photo roll, saves scrolling through my inbox when I need them and doesn't matter if I don't have signal (good for click and collect codes, appointment info etc).

I use the iphone notes app for lists - I have a 'to buy' list, general things to remember list and a fun one for books I want to read/things I want to watch on netflix.

Always carry my big water bottle with me and fill up on the go, stops me buying drinks on the go and has been a lifesaver in the heat!

Keep coriander fresh by putting it in a big glass of water, and covering loosely with a plastic bag, the kind you put supermarket veggies in, put in fridge. Will keep for a fortnight. This only works if you buy the coriander with the roots on. Change the water weekly.

Grate the coldest possible butter with a box grater into flour for scones, then do the tedious rubbing in bit.

For those who do iron, do two things together where possible (if you do two tea towels together, the bottom one will usually come out pretty much as good as the top one)
Stand on a cushion or pillow for ironing
Use clear plastic bags (big ziplock or those clear vacuum bgs) for packing for holidays - one for undies, one for t shirts etc - stops everything getting stirred up in the suitcase if you tend to just dress out of the suitcase rather than unpacking
Use same tip for moving - separate kitchen stuff into whatever category makes sense to you (table silverware, cooking utensils etc), run it through the dishwasher on the hottest possible wash, and bag up. Makes unpacking much quicker at the other end.

@ElfrideSwancourt Amazon pay a poultry tax, ruin our economy. Please try and use another company.

My hacks: never leave a room empty handed. Never stop tidying. Use a plant sprayer with bleach and hot water on mouldy tiles.

My kids get so many birthday presents that I just can’t keep them all. They now get to choose 5 presents to keep. The rest either get recycled for their friends birthdays (stick a label on it with the name of the person that gave the gift. You don’t want to give it back to the same person!) or they are used as a reward.

If you are like me and like crease free bedsheets, Iron them on the bed. Takes just a min and saves all the faffing around!