Any fly lady/ cleaning gems? I'll never do the whole thing...

[FlamingGallah]

I tried the website and abandoned it. But I have started cleaning the bathroom mirror/sink/taps/loo every morning, and doing all the washing up and cleaning the sink at night.

Have to admit it makes a big difference.

So does anyone have any quick, easy hints & tips that are similarly low effort, high impact?

I'm lazy, are you getting the gist?

Thanks

I get out of the habit very quickly as well. It depends how busy I am with work!

For me, the trouble is the clutter, I think she calls them "hot spots". My home office is full of all my unfinished projects! If there is clutter, it's harder to clean.

A good tip is to get the whole family involved. My DH get the kids to tidy their room plus any bits they have keft in the living room in the morning before school and in the evening after school. Makes a huge difference.

I am getting ready for a big ebay decluttter in February, I don't want to to it in January when the sales are on.

Blimey yes I agree with the clutter thing. We just have "stuff" everywhere. I find it quite depressing!

I started in September and have been doing the sink thing (mostly) and the weekly home blessing which I do 1 job at a time for 10 mins before work each day. Also do swish and swipe in the bathrooms every morning. (1min?) Then after work I do the daily missions and spend 15 mins decluttering (total 30 mins max)

It has made an amazing difference - keeping the house really quite presentable feels like it takes almost no effort at all and the decluttering is pretty much finished - I'm going back over old ground now.

Knottingley that sounds great, but am I fling to have to wade into her website to understand what those things are?? That's just the sort of thing I want though, the manageable little pearls within the jargon. I've been really impressed with the sink thing and the swish thing

going to

Would it be very embarrassing to admit to owning the book? That's mush easier to follow/understand the salient points IMO.

The web-site's just too big.

try unfuck my habitat - much more realistic and I've found it fantastic.

I actually heard about on mumsnet after hearing complaints that the fly lady had you drying out the sink with a tea towel

Agree with Timeforabiscuit, give unfuck my habitat a go. Less routine and more just doing shit that needs to be done. I really like the unfuck your morning list. No shinning sink that then someone pours tea down. I think it's also easier to follow with children/family then Flylady.

Just sign up for fly lady's basic emails. The one called sneak peak for the week outlines the daily tasks/missions. This weeks:
Missions for:
Zone 4 - The Master Bedroom

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Zone 4: Mission #1 Monday

This week we are in the Master Bedroom. Today I want you to spend 15
minutes under your bed! LOL! Take this time to get the things out from under the bed that you have shoved under there during a mad stash and dash through the house. 15 minutes might not be enough, but for today, just try to put a dent in the stuff that you have put there. Things that just don't belong. If you don't have anything under your bed, then grab a vacuum cleaner or broom and get the dust bunnies that have been multiplying under there. Have fun with this, just 15 minutes, set you time and go go go!

Zone 4: Mission #2 Tuesday

It is time to fling some socks and pantyhose today. You know that drawer that is full of old pantyhose and mismatched socks that you have held on to for reasons you don't even know. It is time to go through and toss, toss, toss. Be good to yourself and let go of these things that are cluttering up your bedroom. Hidden in a drawer or not, it is still clutter. Take 15 minutes and toss, toss, toss!

*

Zone 4: Mission #3 Wednesday

Today is the day that you get a really short mission. The only thing you have to do is grab your feather duster or dust rag and dust off the tops of your door jambs and windows. If you are short and don't really see the tops of these areas very often, you may have a tendency to forget about them. Take the duster or rag and wipe across the tops of the molding and jambs. Take a swipe across the hinges as well; they seem to collect little dusties as well. This is quick and easy and makes quite a nice difference.

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Zone 4: Mission #4 Thursday

Back in the Master Bedroom we go. For today check the hotspot that might be warming up on your nightstand. Get it quick before it turns into a four alarm fire! Take a few minutes today to straighten up your nightstands. Have fun, this is not a chore, it is blessing your home.

*

Zone 3: Mission #5 Friday

Today is the last day in the Master Bedroom. Take 15 minutes to declutter your dresser. Get the things off the top of your dresser that you have placed there that you were going to put away later. Later is now. Take the time to take care of this; it really makes a great difference.

A hotspot is just a place where you or family members leave things lying.

If you do the tasks each week, you should be able to then do an hours cleaning and feel very on top of things and always be visitor ready.

Each week is a different zone (room). You are basically working your way around the house. I do the bare minimum from the website and have had loads of comments on how clean and tidy my house is.

Swish and swipe is just cleaning your sink and toilet.

I started with flylady a couple of years ago and got really into it. Then they changed the emails and I was absolutely swamped by them - I was getting about 10 a day and there wasn't a way to opt for just the basics. I stopped using it but bought the Home Routines app for my phone (I think it was £2 or £3) which seems to do the same thing. You can add your own tasks to it too, which I find helpful.

I agree that the bathroom thing really makes a difference. I've sometimes been lax about the rest but I've carried on with that because it's so quick and easy and the bathrooms look so much better for it.

Brilliant thank you very much everyone! I feel quite inspired

Glad you feel inspired.

Google home blessing hour. Your weekly clean is just a very quick throw some polish about and Hoover/mop the middle of the rooms. There is 7 tasks that take under an hour. If your dh is on board you can blitz them together.

The key thing is to set the 15 minute timer for the mid week tasks and the 10 minute timer for the weekly clean. If dh is helping me I set the timer to 7.5 mins!!!