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Housekeeping

Find cleaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Housekeeping forum.

Be honest! What things do you judge in other people’s houses?

623 replies

Teaandsleep · 14/02/2022 21:07

Just a fun post.

Recently doing a huge renovation in our own home and am absolutely mortified at the dust everywhere, I keep having visions of visitors coming to the door and seeing all the dust everywhere, it is thick!

I also currently have a spatula sticking out my down pipe drain as we have just unblocked it and it’s to catch any old leaves/moss until it’s replaced 🤣

OP posts:
Fluffmum · 16/02/2022 20:22

Dirty kitchen and bathroom.

Hasselhoffsheadband · 16/02/2022 20:23

Also beds that don't get aired, just straightened straight away for looks.

How on earth would you know if someone else's bed hasn't been 'aired'?

Headabovetheparakeet · 16/02/2022 20:23

I love staying with friends. But it's no good if you have to bring your own books every time. One of the joys of staying with friends is having unfamiliar bookcases to rifle through on a wet day or a long dark evening.

You're not a heroine in a gothic novel, love.

SleepyRoo · 16/02/2022 20:34

Astroturf gardens.

wellstopdoingitthen · 16/02/2022 20:52

@Hotcuppatea

Those big words that some people have. Like SLEEP on the bedroom wall and EAT on the kitchen window sill.

What are they for? Is it in case you forget what you came into the room for?

I thought that was just me who wondered why people need instructions on how to use a room Grin

I also cringe at those huge bows on front doors, really tacky & tatty.

wellstopdoingitthen · 16/02/2022 20:56

@thefirstmrsrochester

Also houses with no books.
We have lots of books but they are in cupboards.
Jewel52 · 16/02/2022 20:58

Sparkle! On mirrors, candlesticks, boxes, cushions etc - just hate it Angry

Woahthehorsey · 16/02/2022 21:03

@WinterWeather1

Dirt and smell is the only thing I judge and even then, it has to be pretty bad. I went over to a friends house a few weeks ago and the stench of cat piss as they opened their front door nearly knocked me over. I didn't stay for long as it was so over powering. I suppose the must just be nose blind to it but it got me wondering if my house smells of dogs and I just don't notice it...
Yeah, your house probably stinks of dog. Mine must stink of cat. I dont think it does but everyone else's does do mine must.
Kanaloa · 16/02/2022 21:08

I thought that when I had a dog but some people’s houses do seem to smell really bad while others don’t. Like in some places you can smell a faint smell of dog but not a dirty smell. Judy ‘oh dog smell.’ Whereas other places have a strong dirty smell, I think when the dog isn’t clean/had accidents or the furniture and floors aren’t cleaned enough.

bettertocryinamercedes · 16/02/2022 21:12

Smoke smells, strong cat / dog, dirt and really bad decor like wallpaper peeling / paint scraped off

mbosnz · 16/02/2022 21:33

The house I judged most had a swastika flag on one wall, spotting equipment on the filthy stove, a rat ran across the bench, and a motorbike was stripped down on the kitchen table. I can't tell you about the rest of the house, because I didn't make it past the kitchen. . .

Stevie77 · 16/02/2022 21:35

No art on the walls.
No art on the walls except for kids school photos and cheesy wedding pictures.
No books.

ukborn · 16/02/2022 21:41

Walls. I don't understand big blank walls. Get some artwork or wall hangings up there!
General untidiness is fine but I'd visit one friend snd her downstairs loo was gross - someone brushed their teeth there regularly and the sink was always totally caked in toothpaste splatter. Like it had never ever been cleaned, and this was the loo guests used!
People have funny blind spots - another friend's house was pretty tidy but her car was next level yuck that even my kids refused to accept lifts to matches in it.

martharob · 16/02/2022 21:45

@StartupRepair

I judge people with no books. Anything else I assume they are having a bad day /week/month.
I send my books to the charity shop as we are so short on space that anything that I am not going to read again has to go!
Pipsquiggle · 16/02/2022 21:49

Dirt and smells. Also clutter, not normal amounts that is kind of organised but when it takes over a room. We have a few hoarders in our family so I do spot these things

declutteringmymind · 16/02/2022 22:04

What always gets me though is when a house doesn't reflect a person, or who I thought they were.

So people who are meticulous but have a house that's untidy.

I dont judge people's decor at all. It's their house, they've got to live with it after all.

I will absolutely love you if you have proper large mugs for coffee though.

Littlebittasunshine · 16/02/2022 22:09

I was once dating a guy and everything was going really well until the first night I stayed at his place. First impressions were yeah nice little apartment, good taste. Only when we went to bed did I realise he had a fxcking pet RAT in a cage right next to his bed. The side he made me sleep on! Oh the smell 🤢 made and excuse that I wasn't well and drove an hour home.

MrsBaublesDylan · 16/02/2022 22:10

How in all that's holy is this a 'fun thread'?

No one judges me because I don't invite anyone in. I don't judge either.

The books one is really odd. I enjoy minimalism so only keep books which are regularly referenced.

I don't need the contents of my house to act as proof of my intellect.

FoggySpecs · 16/02/2022 22:11

How do you keep the cat off the counter top. I'd be intrigued to know.

The only thing I really judge is the use of chemicals, I would rather live with filth than with Zoflora masking real smells. And I hate anything too matchy

Meakai · 16/02/2022 22:15

I’ve honestly never judged anyones house for their abundance or lack of books, and thinking about it I’ve been in quite a few that don’t have books on display.

I did judge the house I visited that had no pictures, photos or art of any kind on the walls. They also only used the ‘big’ light, which didn’t have a shade, they didn’t use lamps. That was in the 80’s and it still bothers me.

I’m now worried about cat smells in my house. I have a cat. I’ve just sniffed his neck and he simply smells fresh and warm and lovely to my nose (and I have the nose of a bloodhound). What do cats smell like to others?

pictish · 16/02/2022 22:20

You make a face of shooing it off when you have visitors, knowing fine well the moment you leave the room the cat will do whatever the fuck it wants.

ilovepixie · 16/02/2022 22:25

@CrunchTime22

No cake forks.
HmmHmm
Quamora · 16/02/2022 22:26

@FoggySpecs every time they jumped up in front of us we lifted them back down and said no. It really didn’t take long, obviously initially they’d just go up there anyway and jump down when they saw us but then progressed to not going up there at all. Disclaimer we had ours from kittens and did this from day one which obviously made it easier.

FoggySpecs · 16/02/2022 22:26

Cats smell lovely.

Violinist64 · 16/02/2022 22:31

@mbosnz

The house I judged most had a swastika flag on one wall, spotting equipment on the filthy stove, a rat ran across the bench, and a motorbike was stripped down on the kitchen table. I can't tell you about the rest of the house, because I didn't make it past the kitchen. . .
I could feel myself pulling a face at the mention of a rat. It makes me shudder to imagine it. In common with others, I dislike dirty, smelly houses. We have a small dog and I am conscious that he has his own aroma so he has regular baths and l have diffusers in all the downstairs rooms to disguise it.