The Friday Five: This mess is a place!
You guys, I just need to share with you something real quick. It's currently Wednesday at 9:53pm and I'm writing this. This is epic. No, really... it actually is! I have been known to write The Friday Five at 11pm the night before and even (only once) at 7am the morning of! Nuts. This 31 day challenge is changing me, but don't quote me on that because in no time I will be behind and posting twice in one day just to get caught up. Just like last year.
Ok so with all of that being said, this week I am keeping the focus on simplifying the home, focusing less on "stuff" and keeping with the cleaning theme this week has had so far. Why cleaning? Well there's that saying "Cleanliness is next to godliness", and it's a bit (a LOT) extreme for me, so I'm not going to pretend like that's what this is all about. I just kind of like the saying.What it is about is pride. I think a clean, tidy home makes people feel proud! I know that when I walk into my pantry and I see the water bottles all lined up, and I can see how many cans of beans I have left or whether or not we need more quinoa right away, I feel a little bit proud because, heck, I put work into that! I cleaned it all up and I organized it and most importantly: KEPT IT THAT WAY! It makes my house feel more homey when stuff isn't just lying about and I know exactly where to go to find what I need.Now, let's clear something up real quick: I have AN ENTIRE ROOM filled with random stuff (yes, you will see it this month) and I don't think I could tell you where anything except the giant wooden desk is in that room. I close the door and try to forget about it because that room does NOT bring me joy and it does NOT make me proud. But it will. One day.So we're going to look at some seriously awesome people cleaning up around their homes and hopefully feel a little bit inspired to do the same!
Here are this week's picks:
I have been thinking more and more about making my own laundry detergent lately. Honestly, this stuff is SO expensive and I still find that whenever I use vinegar or baking soda, stuff comes out cleaner than when I use expensive store-bought things. This post was a bit of an eye opener with all the stuff about Borax. Any thoughts on the matter? The Complete Guide to Imperfect Homemaking is jam-packed full of awesome tips and tricks. Totally worth a read!
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Be serious. How many of you have thrown out a pillow for looking a little dingy and yellow? Well my hand just went up. This gives me hope that when I find that perfect pillow I never want to let go of, I won't have to because it can (hopefully) be washed! Great instructions over at One Good Thing.
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Have you met Gillian? Ok stop EVERYTHING you are doing right now. Go have a pee break. Grab your hot or cold drink of choice and click on the image up there. You're going to want to be comfortable for this because you won't want to stop reading. EVER! This is one of my most cherished, favourite blogs ever! And this year she is doing her 31 day series on decluttering her house. Love it. Love, love, love. K, now for realsies, go to Growing up Gillian and see for yourself how great she is.
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I don't know how many of you use actual silverware for your daily eats, but in this house we have stainless steel cutlery, and even just in the last year I have noticed some of them are starting to look a little tarnished (especially the knives). I did a bit of research and several sites indicated that citric substances and things like mayonnaise can contribute to the tarnishing and stainless steel cutlery should be rinsed right away and dried quickly. Sounds like a lot of work, no? So if you wanna just keep throwing your stuff in the dishwasher like me, A Typical English Home provides a great tutorial on how you can clean them every now and then to make them look like new!
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A final slice of advice this week coming to you from A Bowl Full of Lemons - a FANTASTIC site for all of your cleaning and organizing needs. Serious. So good. These are quick and easy tips to get you started on having a routing - she even suggests timing yourself! I need to do that...
Now that you all officially think I have OCD, let me reassure you - I don't! I'm just taking this month (and this week specifically) to learn how to handle spreading out my homemaker responsibilities so that they don't overwhelm me and so that I get to enjoy my home a little bit more. Am I the only one who loves to see my bed nicely made when I come back home after a long day? Am I all alone in thinking that pulling back the covers at night and getting into a nicely made, clean bed somehow makes me sleep better? I compare it to when you go on vacation and stay at a hotel - it's SO nice when you come back from having breakfast and the bed is made up, pillows all back in order. Makes me want to jump right back in!
My husband of course is the complete opposite... figures. But he pretends to get my OCD. He pretends pretty darn well.
What's next?
Well, you're headed over to The Thinking closet, of course, to see what creative and amazing things Lauren found all over internet-land this week. So go on over to see what The Friday Five: A World Where There Are Octobers is all about because it's sure to be entertaining and awesome!
Have a great weekend! I'll be back tomorrow with a little more 31 day goodness for ya!
