Please don't laugh at me...

[LollipopViolet]

Right ladies, I need some advice. Back story, I'm a 20 year old uni student who lives with her mum, grandparents and uncle (who is a wheelchair user). Now, I do help round the house, offer to do things etc, so please don't think I'm a complete slob, BUT, I'm probably going to move out after uni (about 18 months from now) and I am TOTALLY clueless about some things. I know what NEEDS doing, like hoovering, cleaning the kitchen/bathroom surfaces, clothes washing, ironing etc.

BUT, there are some things I've never done, like ironing. A lot of stuff gets done when I'm out of the house, so I miss out on learning/helping etc.

So, I know WHAT needs doing, but how often?

And also, I'm a hoarder and a clutterbug, so I need to sort those habits before I go off on my own and manage them when I do. Handy tips? There's probably a ton of stuff I have that I could throw out, but I honestly don't know where to start!

As I say, I CAN do stuff, but there are some things I'm confused about. Like, how do you tell what goes into the white wash, and what goes into the blues (or whatever you all call lighter/darker colours... YKWIM?)

Actually, you know what? Just give me the idiots guide to EVERYTHING, because if it's all written down, I'll have a point of reference!

Could really do with the idiots cooking guide too, THAT'S my weak point!

Please don't laugh, I know it's mad that I'm so incompetent! Does moving away for uni help at all?

I do very white whites in a load, pale colours in another, very darks in another, then usually anything else is a vague mix. Always use colour catchers (little red cardboard box near all the washing powder).

I wash everything together with a colour catcher sheet, never had a single run, even with new jeans in the wash. Easy!

Aaah, right, thanks for that! I've just spotted a thread in here all about making little to do lists? I'm having a nosy but quite like that idea.

Have decided my first big responsibility is to go through my room, got 2 boxes of I don't know what, that can be sorted and binned/moved/put away. Then can do my wardrobe. Then my draws, then my room will be done.

Then I can help with the house Hopefully with less stuff in my room, it'll be easier to dust too!

i think the basics will be:

clean bathroom properly every week (but i do a quick loo wipe over everyday)

clean dishes, pot and pans, wipe down cooker and surfaces end of the evening.

dust once a week (lightly damp cloth, no need for pledge/sprays)
hoover/sweep depends on how quickly to floor gets dirty.

bed sheets once a week (get an extra set, so you replace straight away, rather than wait for them to dry)

i dont have many whites, so the loads i do are, whites and pale colours together, bright colours, darks and jeans (jeans inside out).

ironing- depending on time and if you like doing it. if just starting out i would just do shirts/work clothes and anything that really needed it. (i find it helps to do this in front of tv).

shirts- wash, hang on plastic hanger to dry, while slightly damp iron. iron them in this order: collar (flat), shoulders, arms, back and front.

have an expanding folder for important house/flat related paperwork including paid bills.

everything else do as you see or as you go along.

to do lists are really useful.

give yourself an incentive for getting through chores, i.e. after washing up and wiping down kitchen, spend time on internet or fave tv programme.

dont think i'd be much help with cooking.

hth

I think the best advice my nan gave me before I flew the nest was, learn all the basic cooking sauces, white sauce, cheese sauce, tomatoe based sauce, batter etc and you can build from there. Spaghetti bolognese, fish pie, macaroni cheese, lasagna, chilli con carne, toad in the hole.
You can buy it all in packets and jars, but making your own is cheaper. I often make larger portions and freeze half for another time.

Good advice so far.

I would add: get a folder for all the instruction manuals, so that they don*t get lost and you can look things up quickly i.e. how to change the bag of the hoover...

Definitely going to Uni will mean that you learn all of this stuff, well done you! Don't forget that so many people you will be living with will be in the same boat and the great thing about uni is learning all this stuff together. Tuna pasta, I promise, will be your best friend to line your stomach before going out on the town!

The advice above is brilliant and just what I would say and I would definitely agree with Swan's advice about learning about sauces. Delia's How to Cook series of books is fantastic when you are learning the basics - it has everythng from boiling an egg to making your own bread and pasta etc.. perhaps a nice gift from your family to give you. You can also get recipe books cheaply from charity shops (some of my best have been from charity shops and are about 20 years old - for a £1!)

For housework there are a great number of books with some really decent advice but one of the best I have found is The Housewife's Handbook.. I know that the title is perhaps a bit far off for you but I promise it will be a little gem to answer all those questions that you may have now and will have in the future - things like washing different types of fabric, or unblocking a drain, or removing stains etc... I love it and can't recommend it highly enough. Plus it isn't patronising which unfortunately some of them are! I think it's only about a fiver for the hardback version on amazon at the moment!

Lastly... remember university is not only about learning academia, it's about learning about yourself and having a bloody good time! You have the rest of your life to worry about whites and dark washes and cleaning loos.. just enjoy your time as it passes FAR too quickly!

iw ould say wash things on a wool wash - that way they come out quite damp - put on hanger and then you dont have to iron.

get microwave meals

pay someone to iron your clothes. other students will be desperate for moeny

The trick is to have a routine..i left home at 18 so been there done it all. And to just keep on top of things or it will take ages..if u do a little everyday it makes life easier and the job quicker. As for the cooking why not pick up a couple of recipe books or ask your family to put few ideas and instructions down in a book for you. Trust me its all a learning curve and you will make mistakes..i know i did..but you will pick it up in no time..and you will be able to cook and clean at the same time with your eyes closed in no time at all.

Please don't get microwave meals! They are so expensive in comparison to cooking from scratch and contain so much crap its unbelievable. Just have a big cook off occasionally and fill up the freezer and voila! Instant meals.

Lampost - has it not passed you by that the OP is ALSO a student and will be as desperate for money as other students?

Join the slatterns thread they are the list makers you talk of. Reading their posts might also prompt you on the things you had never even considered

I don't get it, why don't you just ask your mum? she could show you "on the job" so you'd be learning as well as helping her.

fantasticfixit..so true microwave meals yuck!! Taste awful and expensive..pasta always a good simple way of cooking..sauces, veg..peppers etc tuna, chicken ham, u can put pretty much anything in pasta. Jacket spuds also simple, fill them with cheese, baked beans, tuna and sweetcorn..and tastes great. I used to bake a cake that would last me all week as a pudding after dinner. Half the price of buying in..but we are going back 10yrs and if i bake a cake now with 4 kids it barely lasts a day lol

For cooking, you need this. Mum bought it for me when I went away to uni - you will have no problem making friends if you make the chocolate biscuit cake recipe.

I still refer to it for things like cooking times on meat and veg.

On the other stuff - just ask your mum to show you and start pulling your weight at home. I'm embarrassed for you not knowing how to iron at 20 - unless you really never wear anything that has been ironed.

Bitcat -

ooo I have a lovely jacket potato 'recipe' from my student days that I still make! Bake a potato in the oven on 190 degrees for an hour to an hour and a half (until the outside is lovely and crunchy and when you insert a skewer into the potato it simply slides through). Then take the potato out of the oven and half, scoop out the insides into a mixing bowl and add sour cream, grated cheese, spring onions and a drop of worcester sauce. Refill the two half skins with the mixture and pop a good handful of grated cheese on top and pop under the grill for 5 - 10 mins until the cheese is bubbling.. serve both halves for a main meal or one half with salad for a snack..mmmmmmmm
I might even go and make this now..

A good tip is to get some basic kitchen tools as well.. I have horrible memories of trying to carve a chicken with a paring knife and dropping pancakes out of the pan as I didn't have a good spatula!

Oh I am really excited for you OP - you are really just embarking on one of the most exciting times in your life.. this is really when your adult life begins.

sounds lovely fantasticfisit i may well try that. I have pretty much taught myself everything as i was thrown out at 18 with nowhere to go..most things even meat has instructions on it so u cant go to far wrong.

sorry a bit of text speak popped in there.

I think i'm going to print out nomorecake's list and stick it on the fridge!

don't put things on a wool wash and then put on a hanger - anything that isn't 100% cotton will stretch and look awful.

Jamie Oliver's Ministry of Food is another really good basic cookbook.

Re hoarding/clutter - I'm like this too but watched a programme a while back called Life Laundry where the woman on it was saying what's the point of keeping all this stuff if you can't look at it or enjoy it? Make scrapbooks or albums, buy nice storage boxes, frame pictures or photos, have collections of things out and displayed rather than boxed up etc etc. I've got 40 years worth of stuff to go through but you can start now while it's still manageable. I am getting there though!

Re cleaning etc - learn how to iron (helping your mum is definitely the best way to learn) and concentrate on kitchens and bathrooms - everything else can wait when you're a student!! Oh and change your bedlinen!

goldenticket..nothing nicer than getting into a freshly made clean smelling bed lol. Im the opposite i kind of have an element of OCD and im always throwing things out and having clear outs..i have a thing about creases in beds and towels that dont hang or fold straight. My dp has to stop me sometimes and force me to take a break cause i will keep cleaning and cleaning!! lol