Upside Down Hook

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Posted on February 24, 2015

As I have mentioned before, it can be the smallest things that can make a real difference to organising your home.Here is an example.

I keep the clothes hamper in the laundry cupboard and the small step-ladder fits beside the hamper. The only problem was that every time I pulled the hamper out to sort the washing, I would have to hold the ladder and then re-position it to stop it falling over. One day I thought of a solution so the next time we were at the hardware store I selected a large hook which is designed for hanging things in a garage or workshop.

I calculated where it needed to be positioned and The Duke attached it to the dividing wall in the cupboard.

You can see that the hook is upside-down compared to how it is designed to be used. My idea was for it to retain the step-ladder so that it would not tip over when the clothes hamper was removed.

It works perfectly and does not impede getting either the ladder or hamper in or out of the cupboard.

This does not look like much but it has saved me an endless amount of frustration. The key is to think laterally and look for solutions that may be a bit ‘out of the box’.

Do you have any unique organising tips to share?

A Laundry List

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Posted on February 16, 2015

Tonight I want to share a germ of an idea that has formed gradually over a period of time.

Some people have an ongoing shopping list to which they add items as they find that they are required. Others keep a list of what is stored in the freezer and cross things off as they are used.

I am thinking of creating a laundry list. I have this cupboard in my laundry. On the left-hand side are the assorted brooms and the vacuum cleaner (not shown), hangers for knitted items and dispensers for plastic bags as well as the racks on the inside of the door for laundry liquid and presoak and the rag-bag.

The right-hand side has the laundry hamper with shelving above. This holds various cleaning items as well as spare light globes, batteries, rubbish bags and shopping bags. However, the door is clear and this is where I could put my list.

I envisage a write on/wipe off board and am thinking of making one myself from a sheet of coloured A4 card and laminating it.

So, what am I going to write on this list, I hear you ask? It will basically be a reminder of extra jobs that need doing such as ‘stain on white trousers’, ‘scrub cuffs of mauve shirt’, ‘hem of black skirt’ or ‘darn striped sock’. They will be all the little things that seem obvious at the time but by the time I am doing the washing/ironing it can be overlooked.

What do you think? How do you keep track of the extra laundry jobs?

A Little Bit Every Day

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Posted on January 7, 2015

My method of keeping things organised to to do a little bit every day, or in my case every evening. At the risk of sounding like a cracked record, I work full-time hours and long days because of the distance that we commute but that is our choice.

Last night I did the bit of ironing that was waiting to be done, one load of washing and hung it out then put the next load in the machine. It was not a full load so when we arrived home this evening I pulled the top sheet off the bed and that made up the load. It is all washed now and in the basket.

It has been cool and damp here all day so the load that is on the line is not properly dry even though it is under the verandah. The next load of washing will be hung indoors overnight.

This is a portable rotary clothesline which I find invaluable in the wet weather.

This hanging rack is usually used to hang shirts waiting to be ironed as well as ones that I have done but tonight I will hang the freshly-washed shirts on here to dry.

I will put the dehumidifier on in the closed room overnight, the clothes will be pretty well dry in the morning. This eliminates the smell that clothes develop if they are damp for too long.

Once the washing is hung out I will finish stripping our bed and remake it with fresh linen. Then it will be time to crawl into bed.

I am working from home tomorrow and will make it a short day so that I can catch up on a few more jobs here.

By spending a bit of time each evening on household jobs, I can choose what I do on the weekends.

A Laundry Gadget

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Posted on September 23, 2014

Several months ago I was searching for clips that would hook onto the clothesline to hold shirts or dresses on a hanger. I have some old ones that came from my mother-in-law but I had not seen in any the shops recently. Naturally, I turned to that guru, Mr Google and found this site. The Hook-Ups which are about halfway down the page were a better version of what I was looking for.

However, it is a UK site so I decided to wait until we went there on holidays. Now I am home with my packet of Hook-Ups that I bought at Lakeland in Glasgow.

Once they are clipped on the line it is a simple matter of slipping the hanger through the hole. I have about 5 clipped on the line and the rest are in the peg bag on the end of the laundry trolley.

It is quick and easy to get the clothes off the line and I can hang them on the rack in the spare room ready for ironing. Even better, there are no peg marks.

What gadgets or tips do you have to make it simpler to get the washing and ironing done?

Housekeeping – How To?

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Posted on June 23, 2014

What is housekeeping? The literal definition would be ‘keeping house’. According to the wonders of Google it is ‘the management of household affairs’. This is a fairly broad definition but allows for everything from shopping, cooking, providing meals to cleaning, organisation, paying bills and filing. Does this sound familiar?

I am not planning on getting into a debate over the merits of mothers who stay at home versus those who do paid work or male versus female workload within the home.

My interest is more about what you do, how to do it and where you learned the skills/methods that you use. Today I was at home and it was a sunny winter day here. I took the towels and bathmat from the bathroom and hung them on the line where they could air thoroughly and dry.

This got me thinking about how often I wash the towels and why. We have one towel each and a bathmat and these are washed once a week. I do this because this was the routine my mother used when I was growing up, and I suspect, her mother before that. That is not to say that that I have religiously followed everything my mother did. An example is the 3 pegs on the towel: I do this because I can’t stand the way the towels go out of shape if you just peg them with a peg at each corner.

We have a climate where it is possible to line dry the washing virtually all the year round. As you can see from the photo the line is undercover which gives protection from the rain and when it is cold we generally have the fire on at night so the washing is finished off indoors.

So, where did you learn your housekeeping routines and skills? Have they changed and evolved over the years? Do you ever discuss things of this nature with others – friends or family? Have you intentionally taught your children or do you just expect that they will work it out for themselves.

The Final Step

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Posted on March 11, 2014

I read somewhere that doing the washing should not be about putting a load of washing in the machine. It should be about closing the loop, that is, washing should include the full process of getting worn and grubby clothes back to a state where they are ready to be worn again. Therefore, hanging them on the line to dry, bringing the dry washing in, sorting, folding, ironing and putting away the clean clothes should all be included in the process.

From my observations, ironing and cleaning the oven seem to be in a class of their own when it comes to the universal dislike of jobs. I actually do not mind ironing but sometimes find it difficult to find the time as I prefer to do the whole lot in one go. Due to our streamlined wardrobes I cannot leave it for too long as then we would have nothing to wear so on the weekend I did a spot of procrastinating which masqueraded as organising.

I have a hanging rack where I hang the clothes once they are ironed but I decided to hang them before ironing so that I could see exactly how much I had to do and could easily fetch the next item as I was ready. I also sorted the things that do not go on hangers into a pile of mine and a pile of clothes belonging to The Duke as well as linens and handkerchiefs in a separate pile.

I did the ironing early this morning and found that my procrastination strategy actually paid dividends. I find it easier and quicker to get into a rhythm of ironing the same type of item – I do all of the shirts or all t-shirts in one go. By having things sorted I saved time. I also decided that I would place all of the t-shirts together once they were ironed and then fold them up at the end of the session. This saves time by not disturbing the rhythm as well as saving money. I am not wasting time folding while the iron is sitting idle and using electricity to maintain the heat.

This method does not work for items such as The Duke’s shorts which are folded as part of the process of ironing them.

Sorting the ironing and hanging the items on hangers started as a bit of a joke but it is a process that I will continue in an effort to further streamline what I do.

I know that some people always hang shirts and dresses on hangers rather than pegging them on the line to dry. I do not generally do this, although I have 3 plastic clips that peg onto the line and you can feed the hanger through the hole. The hangers stay in place in even the windiest weather. I inherited these from my mother-in-law and have considered looking for more. I checked online but cannot see the same style, however, I found this website which has an equivalent product. It is UK-based so guess what I will be bringing home in my suitcase in September!

Clean Clothes

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Posted on July 23, 2013

Housework is a never-ending circle. Whether you view it as a closed-loop system which supports and sustains your family or as a treadmill that you cannot escape is entirely up to you. I prefer the first view because it is positive and values homemaking as an important role.

I was interested to read recently that ‘doing the washing’ is not about tossing a heap of clothes into the washing machine, followed by the dryer or perhaps hanging them on the line. In this scenario the final step is then seen as throwing the heap of clean clothes on the nearest sofa or bed. This results in disorganisation and clutter while various members of the household grab whatever they need to wear.

Unsurprisingly, the above view emanated from a discussion about how clutter and disorganisation go hand-in-hand. It is easy to imagine that over time the pile of clean clothes becomes dusty and soiled and then need rewashing. Perhaps items cannot be located which results in buying more clothes. Items which need mending are left and forgotten. Then there is a downward spiral, the pile becomes a permanent fixture, the bed is no longer able to be used for its original purpose and so on. This is an extreme picture but one that it is best to avoid.

Confession time: I resorted to this practice last week and here is some of the evidence.

It took me 5 minutes yesterday to set things to right which made me wonder why I hadn’t done it sooner.

The discussion went on to say that you should not regard the washing as ‘done’ until the clothes are dry, sorted, folded and put away as well as any ironing any items which require it.

I generally manage to do all of this in one go except the ironing. Ironing is always done at least once a week. This is one of the benefits of having a streamlined wardrobe. The selection of clothes are limited and I am being perfectly honest when I say that I have to do the ironing otherwise we would have nothing to wear to work next week.

By considering tasks within the home to be a closed-loop it is easier to gain satisfaction from the work you do. It is not simply a chore of folding clothes but rather can be seen in the following way. A hamper full of soiled clothes is washed, dried in the fresh air and sunshine (hopefully), sorted, folded and drawers and wardrobes replenished with clean clothes for the next week. It is also an opportune time to review the state of clothes and do any repairs as required. You can rejuvenate items before they become beyond repair.

How to you deal with washing, folding and ironing? Do you fold clothes as they are taken off the line?

Wet Washing

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Posted on June 27, 2013

Although I have a tumble drier, I try to minimise the use of it. My reasons are twofold – the electricity it consumes and also the wear and tear caused to our clothes.

We have a rotary clothesline in the backyard, however, that entails carrying a basket of wet washing down a flight of steps and around to the opposite side of the house from the laundry. This is not terribly practical and for that reason I mostly use the clothesline which is under the verandah. I can walk out of the laundry and wheel the basket of washing in the trolley to directly next to the line.

This was mounted and in place when we moved here. It is an Extendaline and potentially could be longer but it is in the available space between the wall and the edge of the verandah (about 2 metres). This means that I have 10 metres of line space and I can generally fit 1 – 1.5 loads of washing one here. Each line is long enough to hold 3 business shirts.

I have a variety of other options for hanging and drying clothes. Here you can see my other rotary clothesline. It is designed for camping and we bought it from Kathmandu. It folds up completely, comes with its own carry bag and is very lightweight. In the background you can see the mobile hanging rack which I use for ironed clothes but is also handy for finishing drying clothes in front of the fire.

This is much better than regular clothes airers as the lines are high enough to allow you to hang towels, jeans and even single bed sheets.

These hangers are perfect for drying sweaters and cardigans as there are no peg marks.

Here is a small clothes hanger with pegs attached. I bought it in Japan several years ago but I believe you can buy them here in Australia now. Apart from hanging rewashed plastic bags to dry, I use this for socks, handkerchiefs and underwear.

Finally, I have a clothes airer on castors which lives on the verandah and I often wheel it inside to dry things in front of the fire.

This post is for Kim who asked about my washing line under the verandah. It is quite timely as the forecast here is for showers and rain for most of the next week.

What strategies do you have for getting washing dry in cold and/or rainy weather?

Chasing My Tail

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Posted on February 5, 2013

It does not take much to get the organisation out of sync.

On the weekend I spent most of the time outdoors. I was helping The Duke with the fencing and my hands and legs bear testament to having done battle with the wire.

So, naturally the the jobs which I normally do on the weekends were neglected. I still cooked meals but the kitchen was not properly tidied.

The washing was done but not the ironing.

Floors were swept but not mopped.

I made a concerted effort last night and this morning and have mostly caught up. Now I need to give some thought to packing as we are going to Melbourne for a few days. There may be a couple of gaps between posts while I get on with my ‘real’ life but I will be back on track soon.

Welcome Back Summer!

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Posted on November 18, 2012

I have been away for a few days in Melbourne for a combination of work and pleasure and arrived back late this afternoon to the second consecutive day of wild summer thunderstorms. Luckily, we have not had the worst of it – just some much needed rain. The humidity is off the scale and everything is damp.

I have done one load of washing and the second load is in the machine. There is no point in hanging it on the line in this weather – even though it is under the verandah. The clothes will just hang limply in the damp air, so it is time to resurrect the indoor clothes airer and dehumidifier.

Here is the airer set up in my spare/sewing room. It is a rotary one and the outside lines are high enough that I can hand jeans/trousers or even sheets on them.