What small household fixes have made everyday life noticeably easier?

[HardyPinkPanda]

I’m between jobs at the moment and have decided to use some of the time to basically snag my own house.

I’m going through every room and making a note of all the little things that have mildly irritated me for YEARS, but which I’ve somehow just accepted as part of life. You know the sort of thing - not actual problems, just things you regularly curse under your breath and then continue living with for another five years.

So far I have:

1. Ruthlessly slimmed down the kitchen cupboards so I could lose one cupboard and fit a tumble dryer. Every winter I normally spend approximately 46% of my waking hours hanging damp clothes around the house and rotating them like prize livestock, so I’m disproportionately excited about this.

2. Reorganised the Tupperware so every container now lives WITH ITS OWN LID. No more rummaging through 17 lids while slowly losing the will to live.

3. Thrown out about 12 random, ancient, slightly raggedy towels that had been granted permanent residency in the airing cupboard. It now has SPACE. Things are FOLDED.

4. Replaced the sieve that hasn’t had a handle since approximately 2020. Why did I just... live like that?

5. Put bigger shoe storage by the door, so we no longer have the traditional hallway shoe landslide.

6. Rewired a switch so it finally works the way you instinctively expect it to work rather than requiring a tiny moment of irritation every single time.

Honestly, none of this is exactly world peace, but the cumulative improvement to my quality of life is ridiculous. I keep thinking, WHY DID I PUT UP WITH THIS FOR SO LONG?

So humour me: what tiny, boring, seemingly insignificant thing have you changed/fixed/bought/reorganised in your house that has made you disproportionately happy?

I want the really mundane ones. The things nobody is putting on Grand Designs but which have genuinely made your day-to-day life better.

Basically, tell me what else I should be wandering around my house looking for 😂

Ooh I like the idea of this but my bathroom is tiny and doesn’t have a window so not sure how well stuff would dry

Also... on the door inside the wall cupboard which holds the mugs, I have a list of the months of the year with everyone's birthday dates on. I literally can't forget anyone's birthday now.

My usual supplier doesn't seem to stock the cables, but here they are

https://www.fscables.com/other/blog/curly-spirals--coils--what-you-need-to-know.html

I imagine they are usually sold in vast trade numbers to manufacturers of hairdryers. I don't think I've seen them in retail or wholesale outlets. They might not like selling to DIYers who make unqualified modifications to appliances.

BTW the reason yours curls up is probably that every time you pick it up with hand A, then pass it to hand B, putting half a turn on the flex every time you use it. Used to be common with phones.

And, and, and.... We have a tall artificial Christmas tree, but I missed the lovely pine scent you get with a real tree, so as soon as the fake tree goes up, I pick lots of small fir tree branches and shove them in between the fake branches. Voila! Lovely pine scent in the sitting room and no faff of watering a real tree. The fir branches last quite a while before the needles start to drop, then you just pull the real branches out and replace them.

That is fucking genius! 🤣

@PigletJohn how can one box in a boiler in the kitchen? It’s on the wall and ugly

I’m going to watch what I do next time I use the hair dryer. You may have just solved the problem.

It absolutely is, thanks @IAmKerplunk 👏

Going to need a new thread, on page 40 already

I only ever shower because bad knees and back. My airer lives in my bath.

Mine is in a fake kitchen cupboard. The cupboard has no top or bottom, just sides and a front and looks like all the other cupboards.

Sorry to sound thick but how did you do it?

Yes we are @HardyPinkPanda come on - you started this 🤣

me too.

That’s how mine is too but it’s part of our hee build kitchen so can’t help with the how I’m afraid

Hope nobody minds but I have started a second thread! 🙈 Finding this really helpful but can’t link. Sorry

Kitchen designer suggested it and fitter did it when the kitchen was done. I think there are rules about space all around the boiler but it was no big deal.

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/housekeeping/5582041-small-and-simple-tips-to-make-life-easier-no2?reply=154954699

Found it

Thank you!
Hope you don’t mind @HardyPinkPanda but I think lots of us have found this helpful - so thank you for starting it 💐

This thread needs to become a book!

For what it's worth I buy standard blocks of real butter (200g/250g) and keep it in a glass butter dish on my kitchen counter unless it's really hot outside (over 25 degrees), when it goes in the fridge. Never had it melt or go off at room temp and I don't eat that much, a block lasts me ages! Maybe it's because I like the really salty kind...

Full of additives. And is it even butter?

Get a dehumidifier. They aren't cheap but my god they dry a full load in about 9 hours and cost 8p an hour. Just hang it all up in a room turn it on and shut all doors and windows.
Amazing and the room smells so fresh.

I do this. I also have something like this for hanging anything that goes on a hanger.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SONGMICS-Clothes-Rotatable-Stainless-LLR510G01/dp/B0BTLDBBF2/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?adgrpid=1178678826260102&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.iBiMnXdyTjg2BnpPgoqfOWwtS0gEqmHBegcDqWACtV5sctuZ3b7lSLCgnSZaLMmii5tTM_x4S09YeeOMKDtmzfR3OSBtDISUS_5CQtvBWDKRIqgrAE5Gj-n5AAAckDAnZEM8hXUAxCL2d6bh9o3iw6n7iLXJUkm6Y0yPplX6xKJDkz0gw0-SCCDMZXaOROSlyU_w_bt-LHV4UzmzzVOzXA.N_94eZ27_pavb_y3mLEl8RDmUeh3vlhDBOX9lEGz7ho&dib_tag=se&gb=2&hvadid=73667654693956&hvbmt=be&hvdev=t&hvexpln=0&hvlocphy=40951&hvnetw=o&hvocijid=12115892299435839452--&hvqmt=e&hvtargid=kwd-73668171145499%3Aloc-188&hydadcr=25304_2896528_8580&keywords=hangaway+clothes+airer&qid=1790288312&sr=8-4

Lurpak spreadable contains butter, salt, oil and water. No artificial additives, colours, e numbers etc.

www.lurpak.com/en-gb/products/lurpak-spreadable-slightly-salted