Simplifying life... while still being OS?

pigpen

I buy one cleaning product and clean everything with it.. none of this bottle that bottle 25 sprays and polishes.. microfiber cloth and a bottle of 1 thing (elbow grease currently)

White sheets and towels are banned... I have red and the boys have black.. I can't fit anything else in if I want my sheets to wash properly. White ones get nasty very quickly.. towels are navy, dark green, red, orange depending on owner.. they are old so can go in together but I usually have clothes to fill washes. White ones look like dish rags after a few months .. if they aren't used to mop the bathroom floor by one of the little treasures.

I don't cook more than 1 meal at a time.. I don't have room to store it though I save leftovers if by some miracle there are any.

savingqueen

I have been simplifying life for a long time now, gradually changing my attitude and lifestyle, routines (or non-routines!) as time goes by.


I like the fact we have piles of books and similar all over the house. We have half finished newspapers, craft projects, lego constructions etc out and its great. Nothing matches though we like wooden furniture and certain colours for example so there is a natural sort of blending and broad style but it just happens by chance rather than choice. Our dresser for example holds a selection of different family photos in all manner of frames that we have bought, found, been given, made by the kids and its just how we like it and no-one else will have the same.


Back to the original question... sorry


My biggest time saver is reducing the ironing to about 5% of what I used to iron. Only iron clothes that really crease like linen or something for a special occasion and then only if it needs it. Now never iron things like duvet covers and towels like I did a few years back. Saves on the leccy - anything that heats up like irons, tumble dryers, hairdryers, hair straighteners eat electricity and I rarely use any of them.


To reduce ironing do these:
don't buy lots of clothes that really need ironing
don't overload washing machine
get washing out as soon as machine stops
put heavy things like jeans and stuff you don't care about creasing in the bottom of the basket, things like shirts on the top
if line drying - shake each item well and peg carefully


Dirty dishes and plates are left to soak if not immediately being washed up. Clean stuff left to dry on the rack.


if think of any more will post.... off to hang up laundry as washing machine JUST stopped!

jinny

I got a bag of carrots at the weekend, they were huge like you would give to a horse from the yellow sticker stand at
more reasons supermarket
I chopped them and poured boilong water over them in a dish(my version of blanching)Then plunged into cold water(the carrots not
me)
Spun them in a salad spinner to dry then bagged up into portions
for freezer. I do this with the surplus veg im not going to use that day. As others have said a flexible meal plan with a weekly shopping list is the way. Have a basic chore shedule that you get done early as possible each day(or not). Have a target room for each week if you dont get it done, its week comes around again
mainly cut yourself a bit of slack we all get overwhelmed

moments_of_sanity

Saving queen - I too have cut down on the ironing and haven't ironed a thing since January 2013! :eek: my Great Aunt never irons anything either and 'taught' me to take everything out when the wm finishes, smooth out the clothing, fold it and leave it to rest for about 30 mins, I have to say it works brilliantly.

When running my kitchen taps whilst waiting for the hot water to come through, I fill up 3 4 pint milk containers and use the water for topping up the kettle dog water bowls etc and if anything is left when I next do the washing up the plants get a good watering or I tip it into my watering cans ready to use the next time I water the plants.

Washing is never tumble dryed as I can't afford the expense, things are reused, recycled etc. Free weekly newspapers can be made into small plant pots to plant seedlings in. I don't use kitchen tissue, I buy cheap cloths (sometimes cut them in half and re stitch to make smaller) and once used they go straight into the washing machine.

We never have a lot of money so spend on food etc so everything gets used, for example, dinner the other night was chicken left over from a roast stuffed into 5 peppers that were not going to last much longer and mixed with some cheese and we all had stuffed peppers for dinner, DH had 3 and DD and I had 1 each (peppers were cheap to start with as bought from Aldi when on offer).

It does take a while to get into the right mental state and even now I make mistakes but we are getting better with making sure we don't waste any money.

None of my furniture matches but all of it has sentimental value so I love it and will keep it. We have a wide variety of towels, again none match but it doesn't matter, the still work as a towel. Old towels get cut up and used for other cleaning jobs or pet towels and once they are no good for that, they get sent to the rag bin in the garage and used for washing down external window frames/filthy car wheels, mopping up spillages etc.

good_advice

I researched online a bigger washing machine when my last one packed up.
I now have one that is A++,holds 9kg and does a 1600 spin.
Much better, washes more at once with the same amount of washing gel. Fast spin is a big deal in getting water out of clothes in winter.

Every household will have chores that need doing every day.
Washing the clothes, dishes, cleaning and cooking.
We do a little every day to keep on top. People have set jobs although sometimes get done by others. Some choirs are shared like emptying the bins.

GreyQueen

Tallu, I think you may be being a bit hard on yourself. My home is also cobbled together out of other people's cast-offs, some family ones, some bought secondhand, some even (shush!) skipped.

It may well be that your home reads as well to others as you feel your sister's reads to you. A lot of it is confidence. Y'know the saying that with a beautiful woman, you can't really recall what she's wearing? It's a similar thing with a welcoming home; you couldn't really describe what's in there, just the emotions engendered by comfort and being made welcome. A smile and a cuppa goes a long way. People come to see you, not your skirting boards and sideboards.

I find that, just as fashion magazines are liable to cause discontent, so are home decor ones, and a feeling that everyone else has got it better. Relax, or relax once you've de-woodchipped your home, and enjoy what you have. Sometimes, you'll see something inexpensively or just a freebie and you'll know it's just the thing to give your home a lift.

I spent an outrageous £4 on a new pair of secondhand curtains recently, and altered them to make them fit my windows, and they're making me very happy. Next via the bootsale, lovin' it.

I'm contemplating hosting a small teaparty, to introduce the new curtains to those of my friends who haven't seen them yet, but I am a tad eccentric.

alfsmum

GQ loving the idea of a curtain-warming party :j

Bublin1

I'm relatively new to OS Money Saving and like some posters have said, it takes time to get to the point where it becomes a lifestyle and not a chore or hard work.

Right now I'm at a point where At the end of the day there isn't much tidying up to do. I'll try and list all the things I did to get to this point. I'm a single mum to 2 children and work 4 days a week so I'm not home all day every day. I found and hour here and thereover a period of a few months......

I decluttered. I was ruthless. Ebayed, binned and charity shopped lots of items. Before I was organising and finding space for clothes and stuff I never used. Now everything has a home and I even have some empty drawers. This has resulted in tidying up taking minutes and cleaning being easy as I no longer have to clean around 'stuff'.

I took Lidl seriously!!! And then graduated to Aldi. Before that it was Sainsburys Basics.

I created a 'Home Organising File'. Now I no longer have to search for important things. The kids have their own file ie dd had a school and gym file. It's not for them to use, it's for me but if I ask her to get her gymnastics membership card she knows where it is.

Organsing my finances and also have cash envelopes. Between by online accounts and my envelopes I have a category for everything.

Became extremely conscious of my gas and elec usage. This has a massive positive impact on my bills. No lifestyle change at all, just not doing things like leaving the hot water on for 5hrs every evening!

Purchased a slow cooker. Nuff said.

Discovered Stardrops...Nuff said.

All leftovers get eaten for my packed lunch the next day or frozen. I buy yellow sticker bread and freeze and only take out what I need. I used to throw loaves away because they went off before used. I also freeze things like hot cross buns in bags of 2. Agin, they would go stale and I would then have to buy again for the kids when they wanted them.

I buy cheap savoy cabbage, chop, blanch and freeze in bags. Same with carrots. Again, before they would fester in the fridge.

I am discovered DIY and have done many jobs myself. Youtube is fantastic!
I cleared out the shed and now the kids bike fit in it. 'Decluttered' the garden and now it's nice, clear, tidy and easy to sweep. That then got me into planting and growing veg and the kids now have their own pots on the patio. I routinely cut my grass every 10 days. That way I don't have a big 4hr job on my hands. I have a huge garden.
I didn't hire a skip and literally made about 5 runs to the Rubbish Dump over a period of a month.
I have recently completed my 'big clean'. I deep cleaned my home over a period of month, even washed the walls!

I'm now sitting in a decluttered, easy to maintain home. Recently visitors have commented how light and airy my home feels and how everythig is so neat. The great thing about all my months of had work is that I can start on the little details. My newest project is to repaint the radiator in the bathroom.

Arrrrgh....did I type all that? I hope someone reads it. I got carried away but I just wanted to say OS doesn't happen overnight and I know I have alot more things that I could change.

[Deleted User]

good_advice wrote: »

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The biggest thing is to rethink and stop spending. This can take a full 12 months or more. Mistakes are made.

I speak from my own experience. I have been through all the DD and cancelled some at renew date. Others I have cut down.

Stop going to the shops unless it is a need.
Reuse, recycle what you can.
Make things and grow things from seed.
Go YS shopping and yes, Home cook.


How to simplify - as i said it is a life style choice.
I shop at the supermarket once a week and always with a list.
Going out is often free. We walk our dog in woodlands/nature reserves or parkland. Along the coast.

QUOTE]


Spot on, well said I try to stay away from the shops as much as possible.To me shopping is something that I could easily do without I HATE it :)I go for neccessities nand essentials and can't wait to get out of there and back home again.Life is far too precious to waste wandering aimlessly around the shops I would rather be knitting,cooking,reading,renovating the cast off furniture that I aquire via my children .(they know I love the sanding down and undercoating and top-coating old bits of useless junk and turning it into something useful for one of my DGC. I have renovated book cases,shelves and even an old ottoman that was due to go to the tip.I like walking,swimming visiting friends my U3A activities,coffee mornings book club History group and also find time to squeeze in looking after four of my grandsons before and after school.So I am happy to do as little shopping as possible:rotfl:basically I would be hard pushed to find much time really. Not a lot matches in my house I like to live in a home not a show house If you visit I like to think folk feel comfortable and at ease and not worry if crumbs end up on the carpet (thats what hoovers are for) I do like to recycle as much as I can,even to using (washing up water ) for the garden instead of a hose I'm a great forager in the autumn and love blackberrying with the grandchildren.I also sometimes like to just sit and watch the birds in the garden scurrying around raising their chicks.Life is for living and enjoying, and I do that to the fullest extent that I can :):)

lilian1977

Tallu wrote: »

I'll start -
I wish I only had white bed linen and towels so I could do them together in a whites wash and not worry about matching sets!

A quick helpful comment on this - when you've washed a set, put the bottom sheet, the duvet cover and one pillowcase inside the other pillowcase and store like that. Voila, a full set, already sorted!