Edited - new pics!: http://www.flickr.com/photos/2429751...7607348533035/
Well several folks have asked about my house due to some other threads. It's pretty darn clean and evidently there's a rumor that my diaper pail smells like flowers.
So I thought I'd share a virtual tour and my basics for upkeep.
In the pictures, my house is totally spotless as my children were not there when I took the pictures, so it's not like I live in a museum, just so you know. Here is the virtual tour. It doesn't take me much time to get it looking like that should people come visit, but I do work on it all the time (though I do lots of other things too like crafts with the kids, outings, errands, etc.). I'm not about to write a book or anything, but my basic tricks are the following:
Other than that, I'm unnaturally neat and have trained my husband to love a clean house, so he helps out a LOT. Well, sorta. Today I say a lot, tomorrow I may be complaining about him doing nothing. For the record, my diaper pail does smell like lavendar. I just add a few drops to an old expired deodisk taped to the lid whenever I do the laundry. I'm a little paranoid about people thinking my house is stinky. Especially because we use cloth TP, so there's adult poo stink in there too. 
To those who were interested in my decorating style - I don't have any secrets. I buy what I like and most of my stuff is handed down to me. I make a lot of what I have too. My rocking chair cushions, my plant hangers, all the paintings in my house - that's all me.
eta - I do feel a bit goofy starting this thread...
Edited To Add recent Master Bedroom post Declutter pics:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...mxZtR2¬ag=1
Well several folks have asked about my house due to some other threads. It's pretty darn clean and evidently there's a rumor that my diaper pail smells like flowers.
So I thought I'd share a virtual tour and my basics for upkeep.In the pictures, my house is totally spotless as my children were not there when I took the pictures, so it's not like I live in a museum, just so you know. Here is the virtual tour. It doesn't take me much time to get it looking like that should people come visit, but I do work on it all the time (though I do lots of other things too like crafts with the kids, outings, errands, etc.). I'm not about to write a book or anything, but my basic tricks are the following:
- a place for everything and everything in its place - anything that comes into my house gets a home and gets put back there as often as it needs to be put back
- do now what you could do later - why wait if you have a moment now?
- purge early and often - don't wait for seasonal changes or time to do everything at once, if there's something in the drawer you aren't using when you're getting out the kids jammies, get rid of it
- limit the space you have - a small house is really key; more space i'd just fill up with more stuff
- pick up before you leave the house and before you go to sleep - waking to a nice, clean-ish house or coming home to one makes it easier to pick up later b/c there's less stuff out. plus it just feels good.
- get used to (and get your partner used to) enjoying it - after the kids are in bed, we pick up quickly and sit and watch a movie or just chat and drink some tea or a beer and look at our pretty house.
Other than that, I'm unnaturally neat and have trained my husband to love a clean house, so he helps out a LOT. Well, sorta. Today I say a lot, tomorrow I may be complaining about him doing nothing.
For the record, my diaper pail does smell like lavendar. I just add a few drops to an old expired deodisk taped to the lid whenever I do the laundry. I'm a little paranoid about people thinking my house is stinky. Especially because we use cloth TP, so there's adult poo stink in there too. To those who were interested in my decorating style - I don't have any secrets. I buy what I like and most of my stuff is handed down to me. I make a lot of what I have too. My rocking chair cushions, my plant hangers, all the paintings in my house - that's all me.
eta - I do feel a bit goofy starting this thread...
Edited To Add recent Master Bedroom post Declutter pics:
http://share.shutterfly.com/action/w...mxZtR2¬ag=1
Or just paint something to put up on my walls? We've lived here nearly four years and I still don't have anything on the walls in the living room, as I can't find anything I really, truly like enough to spend the money on and I refuse to just slap up any old thing to fill the space.
). I make a real effort to make sure it smells good. EOs in lightbulb rings all over the house, EOs on homemade potpurri strategically hiden where the kids can't get to it.
) And how did you make the hangers? Are they crocheted/knitted? Must go find a pattern for something like that ...
Thank you, but really, I'm not even close!
I have tons more questions but it is so late and I can barely see what I am typing right now. Thank you so much for taking the time to take pictures and start this thread! I will be back tomorrow.....
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