Weekly Flylady Thread 6th July 2026

Natty68

Welcome to the weekly Flylady Thread.

What is FLYLADY? Well, it's our version of the US flylady idea - but we work on the principle that housework is not fun, it's boring, can be time-consuming, is often thankless but, unfortunately, necessary. It's here on Old Style to provide the support we all need and to make the whole task easier and quicker. We also accept that, sometimes, life just gets on top of us and we can't keep up, maybe because we're time-poor, not in the best of health and/or we have littlies who need us. We are definitely NOT control freaks aiming for perfection and utterly spotless show-homes.

You're more than welcome to join us in the everlasting battle against dust, grime and gibble. The aim of our thread is to make those onerous tasks less daunting, and to support each other - and to make time for the finer things in life! Please do remember we have to abide by MSE rules; each post should, ideally, include some mention of flying.

Thank you Valli for last week’s thread. Please follow the forum rules on this thread as Flylady has been here a LONG time and is a fabulous support and resource for lots of us. All posts should have some Flylady-related content! (i.e. it should be on-topic)

The idea is that even if you are really busy you don't need to fall off the wagon!Every room comes back around next week so please don’t stress about catching upThese lists are only suggestions and not a must do list; you are more than welcome to post and follow your own lists.Also adding a declutter mission each day will help to gradually clear the clutter and make flying easier.

A few of the basics before we start the week -

Hotspots are areas where if one thing gets put there, loads of other things follow!
Daily routines are anything you need to do on a daily basis like washing, swish and swipe kitchen and bathroom, ironing, making beds, vacuuming high traffic areas, making meals etc.
Night-time routines are all things which make getting ready in the morning easier, preparing clothes for the next day, making lunches, swish & swipes of the kitchen and tidying the living room before you go to bed plus personals like shower/brush teeth etc.
Fling Boogie - stick on some loud music, grab a bin bag and whiz around the house finding items that can go out with the rubbish, recycling, for charity shop, basically anything that will stop it cluttering your home.
Swish and swipe/S&S means have a quick wipe over an area such as a sink or toilet to prevent the build up of dirt. This is usually done on a daily basis
HHE/HHC/HHI Half Hour exercise/challenge/ironing ... run around for 30 minutes to the Benny Hill music frantically cleaning exercising or ironing.. other music may be used if you prefer!
WM ~ Washing machine
TD ~ Tumble dryer
SC ~ Slowcooker
BM ~ Breadmaker
DW ~ Dishwasher
SOAADFA ~ Sit on 'bottom' and do 'nothing'
KH/XH/FW ~ Ex-husband and other not so polite versions
DH/DD/DS/DW/DP ~ Dear husband/daughter/son/wife/partner/whatever
OH/SO ~ Other half/significant other
NN ~ nice neighbour
Toxic (friend/mother/sister/whoever) ~ person in your life that seems to exist to make your life miserable
AF ~ Aunt Flo 'time of the month'.. nothing to do with flying but it comes up often.
ETA ~ Edited to add
Gibble ~ miscellaneous crap that appears forever homeless
Dot-to-dot ~ pick a small area (not a whole room) like a chair/coffee/table/shelf/worktop or wherever- thats your first 'dot' - totally clear it - clean it - and only put back what should be there - deal with what you have removed (not just move it somewhere else) then if you have time move on and do the same to another 'dot' -the idea is just like a dot to dot puzzle, you aim to join up all the dots and have a tidy room. The trick is to keep each dot tidy until you get them all joined up! All credit to AnW's Mum for this one
RoD ~ Room of Doom, the one room that feels like it is a permanent pit and cannot be used to its potential!
MAD half hour - Mad is the abbreviation for Make A Difference.
The idea is that you have a Forth bridge (ie never-ending - or just huge) task but that you work on it in half-hour bursts. This way you know you ARE stooping, and that you won't get it finished but you will make a difference - so it might be clearing out - the garage or shed, or clothes sorting, or weeding - you get the picture - but rather than keep going until you've lost the will to live you do half an hour...but, eventually those half hours will get the job done!
Mr S/A/T/M/L/Al - supermarkets Sainsburys, Asda, Tesco, Morrisons, Lidl, Aldi. You get the picture!!

Click here to read Toots wonderful welcome guide

Here goes this Week.

Magnificent Monday ~Crabby kitchen!
Level One
Fling open those windows and let the lovely sunshine in
Clear and wipe worksurfaces
Empty and wash out the bin.. make it smell sweet!
Level Two
Wipe all appliances.. large and small
Wipe over units and kickboards
Sweep and mop the floor
Level Three
Sort and wipe a cupboard.. throw away all those germ harbouring chipped plates and mugs!
Thoroughly clean the oven and hob
Wipe the table.. does it need a clean cloth?
Extras

• Make the most of the lovely weather and get that washing washed and hung out to dry
• Wash any filters that need it.. don't forget the extractor hood!
• Wash the windows if they need it
• Clean/descale a small appliance.. shake the crumbs from the toaster.. defuzz the kettle...
• Scrub out the fridge.. incorporate those 'slightly wilting' things into your meal plan!

Tingling Tuesday ~ Living Room/s, Hall, Stairs
Level one
Declutter the floors and flat surfaces
Empty and wash out wastepaper baskets etc
Level Two
Wipe sofas
Vacuum floors... or mop them.. whatever..
Wipe over any paintwork/doors etc
Level three
Vacuum under furniture you are able to move without injuring yourself
Wash any soft furnishings
Do a BIIIIIIG declutter... toys gone, shoes gone, paperwork gone...
Extras

• Wipe and water neglected plants
• Dust and deweb
• Wash any windows that are in need
• Binbag dance!

Wrinkly Wednesday ~ Bathroom and Study/Pc Area
Level One
Clean floors in these rooms
Level Two
Clean baths, toilets, don't forget the outside! and sinks
Clear any clutter from desk
Dust PC and desk and wipe off those cup rings!!
Wipe keyboard, house phone, sockets, switches and mouse etc
Level Three
Wash your bathroom mats, nets, clean blind/curtains etc
Wipe down tiles in bathroom.. defragment your pc while doing this.
Empty and clean out all the upstairs bins! (the proper bins not the rooms that look like bins!)
Clean shower screen/curtain if you have one/if required
Clear a mega hotspot!.. shred it.. and fling it.. or just burn it!
Extras

• Wipe the skirtings, door and window frames in these rooms
• clean the radiators in these rooms
• Fling all those empty bottles and tubes
• Gather up the dirty laundry upstairs!!
• HHI... a bit more gone!

Thrilling Thursday ~ Those terrible kids rooms and spare rooms
Level One..
Clear away anything that isn't in it's place, clothes, toys, books etc
Spend at least half an hour doing something for yourself!!!!! paint your nails, make an appointment to have your hair done, a lovely soak in the bath.. whatever you feel like!!
Level Two..
Put anything back in it's place that isn't where it should be
Dusting.. all those shelves and flat fluffy surfaces!! Don’t forget the light shade and curtain pole!!!
Level Three...
Vacuum Floor (even if it's just where you can see)
Strip beds, turn and vacuum mattresses!! and replace with fresh linen .. check if duvets need freshening up too!! Wash the curtains!
Extras

• Time for the Thursday Flylady Fling, aim for 27, if you can't find that many, well done, you are obviously making a difference
• Clean windows in these rooms
• Declutter one hotspot anywhere
• Clean any mucky marks off kids doors and walls, oh and those lightswitches and door frames.
• HHI

Fanciful Friday ~ Mystical Master Bedroom & Limpid Landing
Level One..
Remove bed linen and wash, replace with fresh linen
Level Two..
Check fire alarms are working
Vacuum floor in bedroom and on landing
Sort out your makeup and toiletries if you didn't do this last week..
Level Three....
Dust surfaces & make sure no cobwebs about
Vacuum mattress before replacing with fresh linen
Eat a frog!
Extras

• 27 fling boogie time, time for that midweek fling, go on grab a bag and clear that clutter
• Clean windows in these rooms
• Sort one drawer, making sure only what should be in there is, anything that's had it's day or doesn't belong there is removed
• Wipe tops of door frames, even if just what you can do in 5 minutes

Please do say safe in the heatwave and drink plenty of fluids. I'm not having anyone with sunstroke or heat exhaustion on my watch 😀

Narc0lepsy

Thanks for the lists even though I'm all over the place at present and we go away with the bike group Wed-Fri so those days are cancelled flying-wise.

I'm still on my EV learning curve amidst much research and support from MSE groups and Inster owner's groups. Yesterday evening we visited a friend so had the "first" of driving home in the dark. Of course it was no hassle as little Shieldbug (it's metallic green!) turns his own lights on, dips main beam politely when he sees another car coming towards us and turns it on again when we're alone again. Today's research is around where/how I will managing charging him when I go to my stepsister's funeral next week as it's a long journey and I'll need to charge at least once.

Also today:

• washed my new skirt, top and trousers as they will pack down to nothing in the motorbike box (we're trying not to take panniers apparently). Sorted out what clothes I'm taking/wearing, i.e. not many!
• emailed godmother who lives in the Cotswolds near where we are staying to confirm we will join her for a meal.
• emailed a friend with a terminally ill husband to see how he is doing.
• picked probably the last rhubarb of the season.
• went to church.
• ordered some touch-up paint as poor Shieldbug got attacked yesterday by a nasty big black "tank" which refused to move over on a narrow road, so we now have a small scratch on the wing mirror. A notorious part of the road, I drove to church via a slightly longer but safer route.
• Various other admin bits.

We've ploughed our way through most of the Midsomer Murders several times in the last few years and have now started on Silent Witness. Our favourite though is Brokenwood (Mr N used to work in NZ) and that's just started a new series.

wendywitch

Had a stressful day at the hospital yesterday. My mum, DD2 and I went to visit my dad. My dad's hearing seems to be getting worse, not helped by the extra loud TV mounted on the wall near him. Mum tries to talk to him but he can't hear her and when he can she's so long winded he gets confused and doesn't know what she's going on about.

DD2 keeps taking over everything which is becoming stressful and neither of my parents not being able to hear makes it worse. Of course going up every day means we don't actually have anything to tell him. Ended up with us all just sitting there.

I don't want to put the NHS down but this place isn't great. Mostly communication and hygiene, we still haven't seen a doctor or been given an update since he's been there (and we ask every day) Only hes not coming home but now he might be. I won't go into details about the hygiene as its to do with other patients.

This morning I've unloaded the DW and added the odd bits that need to be washed.

I've been researching bird food while having my first coffee (ive started to enjoy feeding and watching them now). My dad spends a fortune on feeding the wild birds and I know I can find the food cheaper else. As I've said before dad's one for the brochures that come in the post and wants to buy everything even when its not needed or could be brought cheaper else where. He's like a toddler with the Christmas @rgos book and wont take no for an answer.

While waiting for the kettle to boil I took apart and cleaned the desk fan I use in my bedroom, hasn't been done in a while. I'm now leaving it to dry off and will put it back together when I'm back from the hospital.

I'm now going to have breakfast and get back to my researching while I wait for next door to go to school then I can do a quick hoover through.

roundtuit

Morning all xx

I completed the nyt puzzles before I got up. I've made my bed, dressed, taken my meds, turned over the daily calendars, set WM swishing with towels and tea towels, and supped a brew.

To Do Next

• Put pots to soak ✔
• Feed the birds ✔
• Fill birdbath ✔
• Put out recycling ✔
• Sassy's seed & water ✔
• WU ✔
• Have another brew ✔

I like Brokenwood too.

Rxx

roundtuit

I've pegged out the towels and tea towels. Taken yesterday's clean washing upstairs. Reset the boiler. Paid the gardener who came to mow the grass.

To Do Next

• Turn calendars to July ✔
• Put new battery in clock ✔
• Put window cleaner's money in an envelope ✔
• DUPA ✔
• Swap purses ✔
• Bin tatty purse ✔

Rxx

Fayolle

Good morning all

Thank you for the lists. One day my misspelling as “lusts” will go undetected by me 😳. I have been wiping and shining in the kitchen, dining room and utility. I drew the line at the extractor fan, but did shine the hob instead. Towels have been washed and are drying. The DR is the last remaining RoD, so it is homing all the bits that have been “tidied” from the other rooms as we have been renovating. Not sure what happens when the DR gets its turn in the renovation journey…
We have house guests at the end of the week, so all flying (apart from catering and washing up) will be concentrated at the start of the week, which is how I seem to work anyway.

roundtuit

That stopped clock has been annoying me for weeks 🤦‍♀️. It took two minutes to change the battery. 🤷‍♀️

P & S are on their way. I'd better put kettle on.

Rxx

MinnieMousesMummy

Morning all,

My list for today

• Do paid stuff (kennel cover, invoice, website)
• Check banking and dds
• Feed the animals and walk the dog
• Spend an hour on uni coursework
• Spend an hour on exam revision
• Attend meeting
• Spend an hour on placement admin
• Bring the bin in once it's emptied
• Put the recycling out in the bin
• Clear and wipe work surfaces
• Deal with Mr T delivery
• HHI
• Sort lunches, bag and clothes for tomorrow

I think that is everything that I need to tackle today. I hope everyone has a lovely Monday.

roundtuit

Coffee and a chat with P & S. Then I went to Mr Al and did my first big shop since I had my op. 28° in my car. Twot 🥵

All groceries put away. Late lunch eaten. Chilling and watching Wimbledon now.

Rxx

kazmeister

Thanks Natty for the list and Valli for last week.

Well I didnt get as much done as I hoped on Saturday and yesterday we had a lovely day with DH, my dad, my son and the Grandkiddies. DGD (2 1/2) had everyone in stitches on the train on the way home and then apparently crashed in the car on the way back from the station.

So list of what I have done on my 2 cleaning days

Saturday

Bathroom

• Scrubbed Bath
• Wiped down all bottles and standing unit
• Bleach down loo to soak
• Cleaned shower – descaled shower head
• Cleaned sink – shined taps
• Cleaned mirror
• Wiped down all units
• Dusted tops, windowsills, skirting boards
• Swept floor
• Mopped floor
• Cleaned loo inside and out

Spare room

• Dusted all surfaces
• Cleaned window frame and sill
• Wiped skirting boards
• Cleaned mirror
• Wiped fireplace
• Hoovered

Top Hallway and Landing

• Wiped skirting boards
• Hoovered landing and top stairs
• Wiped down bookcase
• Wiped Mirror

Office/Craft room

• Hoovered floor

DD’s room

• Hoovered floor
• Wiped down desk
• Wiped Window frames and sills
• Wiped fireplace
• Dusted shelves and cube units
• Made bed

Main stairs

• Wiped bannister and painted part of treads
• Hoovered all way down
• Wiped all other woodwork

Today

Living Room 1

• Wiped all skirting (inc behind sofas)
• Hoovered floor (inc behind sofas)
• Watered and Fed plants and decluttered dead bits
• Wiped down all electricals
• Wiped down sideboards
• Wiped windowsills
• Wiped down fireplace
• Mopped floor

Hallway

• Tidied all shoes
• Removed what wont fit in baskets under bench
• Wiped all skirting boards
• Hoovered floor and door mat
• Washed floor

Living Room 2

• Wiped all skirting (inc behind sofas)
• Hoovered floor (inc behind sofas)
• Wiped down all electricals
• Wiped down all other surfaces
• Wiped window sills
• Mopped floor

It really doesnt look like much but I've been doing it most of the day 😭

I now have the dining room, crabby kitchen, utility room and downstairs loo to do.

DH's room and my attic room are bear pits, my office is bearable although needs a darn good dust but they are all last resort.

I also have to cook dinner (DH has gone to the allotment to get veggies) and I have taken a lump of already cooked beef out of the freezer to use up.

I also need to go the the shop to get backing stuff as our team that are based in head office are coming down on Wednesday and I thought I'd made my Orange and Ricotta Scones to have with mascarpone and home made strawberry jam. Will prep everything tomorrow just to throw in the oven Wed before I go to work.

Honey_Bear

Wow Kazmeister - you may not think that list is much but I'm bowled over by how much you've achieved. I'd be chuffed if I got half of that done.

I'm going to try to be back in this week. Today I got up when Belovéd cranked up his computer at 6.45 to watch last night's England game and thought 'I'll just put the dog out, medicine and feed her, make tea and then go back to bed and do the NYT puzzles.' Famous lasties. I stopped at 11.15 and although I hadn't got a list as I was doing each of the 'I must do that' tasks, the next urgent one would pop into my head. The sad fact is, it was all stuff that needed to be done but there's nothing to show for it. As far as I can remember I:

• ran the dishwasher, emptied it and put everything away,
• ran it again empty with a cup of vinegar in it which I've been meaning to do for weeks as it wasn't really doing very well,
• wiped out the microwave,
• cleared the draining board and washed up all of the things that I gathered while I was working like the animals water and food bowls,
• inspected my problem tomato plant and hacked it back where needed and watered all my herbs and some of the tomatoes (Belovéd is responsible for watering at the back and our 83 year old neighbour does the front for us now because she says our flowers give her such a lift - thank you E),
• changed all the towels and washed them with various manky things that needed to be run through the machine,
• did a bit of vacuuming where needed,
• moved a table that was in the way in my office, sorted more of the gibble that was flowing across the floor, washed some of it and managed to confine the high tide to on and beneath the table, this saving about 2m2 of floor space,
• flea/tick treated the dog,
• weighed out some food for her for the next few days,
• found a box of blackcurrent tea that I wanted to give our lovely Italian lodger so she could take it with her when she goes,
• swept and vacuumed up the whole bag of pizza flour the dog gently removed from a low-lying cupboard when it had the door open while I was hunting for the blackcurrent teabags and I had to go downstairs to turn a boiling kettle off, which she then quietly eviscerated all over the RoD and landing floor and her sheepskin rug (I've never asked an animal before why they had to do something but I did ask her that this morning I was so exasperated),
• cleared up a couple of patches of animal sick but I've got no idea who did the sick,
• and a bunch more things that just needed to be done.

Our lovely Italians are leaving on Saturday morning and we'll miss them. We're taking them to the Eden Project tomorrow and then Kingsand/Cawsand on the ferry on Wednesday or Thursday for a pub lunch and a couple of miles of the SWCPath. I saw MG in Florence at the beginning of May and knew she was hoping to bring her daughters over to study English for a week and then a bit of a holiday, so we've been looking forward to their visit but goodness it's busy! They arrived a day early as their London accommodation booking fell through on the morning they arrived at Stanstead, and unknown to them we also had friends due that day so as we waved off one lot the other lot were walking up the path! When they leave, 48 hours later a new-to-us guest arrives (theatre digs), the girlfriend of a lovely trumpeter who stayed with us for a panto at the tail end of the pandemic and he's joining her for a week's holiday her last week. So it's full on here and I love it, but that's why I haven't been able to post for weeks - I never, ever seem to be able to get ahead enough to sail serenely through these busy times.

I flick a duster about sometimes when I can write my name in it, but frankly if the kettle's full, there's cake in the tin, the bins are empty, there's clean bed linen and towels as appropriate, the dishwasher is on at least once a day, everyone's fed and the floors are vacuumed that's as much as I can manage right now.