How do people manage to have such tidy, beautiful houses?

[carrotsandcelery]

I have being doing flylady (ish) for well over a year now.

I have developed some basic routines for the morning etc so I get through the basic jobs required to run the household. eg the dishes and laundry are under control, the bathrooms are hygienic etc. Despite this the house never looks lovely really.

For short spells I can maintain the house such that I am not totally mortified if someone comes by unexpectedly. I can't keep it going indefinitely though.

Am I just a lazy mare? Is there a secret trick? Does a nice home require constant motion, or constant nagging, or throwing out everything I own?

Where am I going wrong?

but as a visitor I like people more if their house looks lived in, piles of ironing and a bit of dust!

obv is its an invite round for a special dinner or something a bit of spruicing up is nice, but if it just popping round for something I think more of people who live a bit like me!

I think if you clean as you go you have less work because there is no build up or time wasted cleaning thick dirt/mess. If you can get in the habit of making beds first thing, hoovering every day, mopping floors, wiping surfaces, shining mirrors, putting everything back in it's place once its used, leaving nothing lying around, putting a few washes on daily, throwing out rubbish, straightening cushions/throws/photo frames/towels/bath mats/hall mats etc and every day picking out a couple of jobs and getting them done, you're house will always be clean and tidy or at least 5 minutes away from it.

You don't do it all at once, 30 seconds here, 2 minutes there, an hour.. it all adds up.

It would be very hard if you live with messy/dirty people though, some people can turn a room into a bombsite within seconds.

I agree with bobble, thats how i run my house. It not always immaculate as i have two pre school children. ( if you looked you would see bits and bobs that need doing, however It is always visitor acceptable.) I wouldn't be embarassed to invite you in.

Yesterday when a friend rang to say she was 15 mins away. I had time to wipe kitchen, bathroom and mop kitchen. Making my house look really nice.

It is all the little things that do it. Tidy rooms are fast to clean. Had i not been tidy, it would have taken 15 mins to tidy alone. ( how i lived before)

I dont understand why anyone would want to keep there house "visitor ready"?
Just dont be lazy and keep on top of the main things,as you said,make it look lovely if and when you have the time!

and as for putting kids toys in bin liners and threats....for gods sake!I would hate to live in a house like that!Surely the kids being able to play is more important than it being tidy?

I would love a tidy house and indeed my house is not 'visitor ready' and i would literally be mortifed if someone popped in. Don't get me wrong i like a clean kitchen and bathroom but I struggle with the clothes and toys the washing the ironing the storage and putting away. everything else really

It is a small house and there is no more room for storage (under bed, attic, gargae and cupboards full-no room for more cupboards) yes i have had the clear outs and still nothing so now i am stuck with needing laundry bins to be half full all the time just cause it is more storage.
How do people have a job, children and cook, taxi and maintain a social life of children and (if lucky yourself) and have that tidy lived in look house???
Cause now i am thinking i should put my insomina to better use and tidy!!

The rules:

1. A place for everything. If it does not have a home, it needs to go.
2. Every time you leave a room, remove what doesn't belong there. Train kids to do same with their stuff.
3. If you don't have enough storage you need to get rid of stuff.
4. Do not buy unless there is somewhere for it to live.
5. Justin Case does not live here. If you don't use it seasonally/monthly/weekly/daily (as appropriate) then get rid of it.

I think it's mostly about allowing things to leave your house and not feeling guilty about it. Some things are not worth ebaying. If it costs more in hours spent creating listings, shipping, packaging etc then it isn't worth doing and you're better to charity shop it or throw it.

The problem for me is tidy house equals shouty mummy and I am trying to stop being a shouty mummy so am trying to let things go a bit. Its not easy with 5 children 6 and under, to have a visitor ready house I would have to follow the kids round all day and nag them constantly (something I am trying to avoid with no luck at the moment), and where I am doing up the house I have less time for cleaning anyway.

I'm the opposite - tidy house means happy mummy, and untidy house means stressed-out mummy.

I keep the house tidy by:
-having a cleaner twice a week
-culling tatt unwanted toys
-having certain areas be no-toy areas
-having children and a husband well-versed on my opinion on tidiness
-cleaning up as the mess is being made
-ample and efficient storage
-having a personal philosophy of never leaving a house untidy

This does not mean that every room is spotless - my elder son's room is a (relative) disaster zone, but that is his personal area and out of my sight. The playroom remains tidy because my younger son is as tidy as I am, and enjoys organising and tidying up.

I have concluded that keeping a smart elegant home is VERY BORING INDEED. Constantly worrying about the next dirty dish, wiping every surface. I just do a blitz when I can be fucked and try not to mind the mess when I spend the odd hour just doing nothing. If you have kids, you really do seem to need to be moving constantly in order keep the house tidy, kids fed, laundry done, and yourself and DH fed. And it turns out I like a bit of time to myself, so my house regularly looks less than perfect.

I do of course get manic when people come round and I can clean the kitchen diner very quickly indeed when the need arises.

Thankfully I am a good cook so most people don't seem to remember how messy I am when they come round....

imo the way it is done unless you have a cleaner every day is spending your evenings cleaning and tidying instead of drinking wine - the choice is ours I guess

I have always had a tidy house - I like a bit of order in my life. Obviously, I am going to be the millionth person on the thread to mention storage but it is true. If you have and use a good storage system, half the work is done.

Children's mess is dealt with easily - Who's mess is this? Put it away now.

I have lots of routines, eg all pots and pans go in the dishwasher before dinner is put on the table, then everyone plonks their own stuff in there afterwards. The last one to finish, puts it on. My youngest could put the tablet in and press the button when he was two

I dont see kids toys as mess really,but i suppose it depends on how many toys your kids have?Most of my kids toys live in the dining room/playroom,there two big wicker baskets of wooden train track and one of duplo,a storage unit for musical toys,marble run,lego,some wooden baby blocks,and another storage unit for art stuff.In the loung they have a little mini sofa and another couple of wicker baskets for Maxs octonauts things and dressing up stuff.Their rooms are only for sleeping.

So i think storage is only an issue if you have loads of stuff,i try to keep toys to a reasonable amount,and i actually dont see toys on the floor as mess,most of the time they are half way through playing with them and will come back to them later.I find as long as i keep on top of the lundry,loading the dishwasher,cleaning the bath room and hoovering then the house is acceptable to me,and should be to anyone else!

Also i find that if you live in a horrible house it doesnt matter how much you clean it!We used to live in this awful rented house that was really dark,it had loads of dark wooden built in furniture and horrible carpets and scratched floors,i used to clean like mad to get it looking nice but it never did.This house is very light and airy and our things are nice so it always looks nice.

fluffygal.

"It's not easy with 5 children 6 and under,to have a visitor ready house..."

Gets my vote for quote of the week!!!

Our house is a clean and tidy house, always, it's my clean freaky way. I do everything as I go along so it never seems that I have to do a huge clean or that I spend more than an hour a day cleaning.

In our house, a clean and tidy house is a happy home.

skinny was I stating the obvious? [Wink]

Clean as you drink wine?
Certainly works with the ironing ....I can rattle through an enormous pile whilst knocking back a big glass.

In answer to the op's question- because they know you are coming round!

I love clean and tidy. . HOWEVER, with a 2 year old DS, dog & messy DH it is no easy task! I work full time & fitting in around my shifts & days off I rarely sit down & chill unless house is tidy. Like most other posts, everything in my house has a place, if it doesn't find one in a few weeks it's binned, my living room is a sea of toys however they are stored away at the end of every day in various boxes, wicker baskets, drawers etc. I have a cream carpet ( bought before the child or dog!) and it is often hoovered at least twice a day. In addition to that normal chores, dishes, toilets, wiping, dusting, laundry etc are done without question. Grew up in a messy house do dunno if that has made me super tidy but i absolutely can't stand mess, don't mind children mess as long as its cleaned up once they're in bed. Slightly worried however as when I was pregnant my nesting became an obsession & bleach was my best friend. . Am now 6 wks pregnant again so am trying to prepare myself that it may not be quite so easy to have a tidy house as well as a toddler & new baby. . Eeek!!

Gah! Why does being tidy and clean mean you're boring or an inferior mother?? How rude!

And being tidy and clean doesn't have to be for the sole purpose of being 'visitor' ready. I love relaxing at home - I do as much of it as possible! - and if it's (fairly) clean and tidy) I feel happier and more relaxed. It's for me more than anyone else.

A friend of mine has a spotless house. But... when I visit, I have to say I do feel uncomfortable. As soon as you have finished with your cup, she has whipped it away and is washing it at the sink. You almost feel like you should be leaving although that's not the way she means it! I feel more comfy if there are cups and crumbs!

I've managed to clear out - either by binning or sticking them in the loft - anything that didn't have a place downstairs (it's only a small house so only a kitchen and living room downstairs and as you can imagine it get's cluttered very easily). So now downstairs looks clean but very empty! Just have to try and keep it that way. I also grew up in a messy house and despise the untidyness. Cleaning is easy to fix, tidying is difficult when there isn't enough room for all your "storage" boxes etc.

One problem I have noticed is that my nice house and nice furniture is being steadily destroyed by ds! The lid from his wooden toybox has come off (the hinges have actually snapped the wood so we need to have a think of how we can fix that), door handles are off on various kitchen cabinets because he has pulled them off and the front of one of my drawers in the bedroom has been yanked off too, the indestructible brabantia bin has been broken (lucky it has a guarantee!), and the list goes on... chips in the paintwork, scratches on the floor.

I expected spillages and stains with a toddler but I didn't expect him to be quite so destructive and I bought a lot of this furniture to last! He doesn't even mean to do it and yet things end up broken. It is driving me mad.

Mm, visitor ready? You cannot achieve that if you have small children.....not happening people!! Keep it tidy as you can but enjoy your children more, they will be only small once - you can spend the rest of your life tidying your house when your children are grown....oh er .... then come the grandchildren...........

My house is tidy, but I wouldn't say I spend a lot of time getting it that way. The main thing is to have a place for everything - that way it's a complete no-brainer to do a quick tidy-up. Having a minimalist bent is also very helpful - I don't ever buy things I don't need.

I don't think it makes me boring - quite the opposite, as it's one less thing to worry about, and I can always have people drop round! But I do recognise that I'm lucky that it comes naturally! My mum is the biggest hoarder, so maybe it's a reaction to that.

OMG, this really made me laugh, you could be talking about me!! I have two young kids (8 and 4), my daughter is so so messy. I tidy, she makes a mess, I tidy, she makes a mess. My son on the other hand is really tidy but I find there are little bits of toys all over my house, I don't know whether they're part of something important or whether they're just cheap toys from a Kinder Egg so I keep everything and everything has a place and it takes an age to sort it out! I do think my husband comes home from work and wonders what I've been doing all day and the reality is, I haven't stopped since I got up. It's so demoralising. My mum is super tidy too so when she comes round, she must think I'm a total pig! The thought that someone might pop in unexpectedly horrifies me because it's happened so many times! Just ring beforehand why don't you!!