My top 10 tips for new homemakers.
1. In regards to housekeeping, always work top to bottom. What this means is that you want to start cleaning on the surface level, literally at the top of the room. I follow this order in every room in my house: Declutter, Dust, Vacuum, Wipe Down, Polish, Floors. If you follow this order you’ll find that you spend a lot less time going back over things you’ve already cleaned. You want to work from the top down so that any dust or debris finds it’s way to the floor, so as you clean items from the top they don’t get dusty again.
2. If you’re feeling overwhelmed and don’t know where to start, start by going through your home with a basket and work on collecting all the out of place items you can spot and return them to their usual home. Once the house is picked up you’ll already feel accomplished and you’ll have a better overview of what needs the most attention.
3. Break your home up by the days of the week. Don’t attempt to clean your entire house in one day, you’ll only exhaust yourself and by the end of the week the whole house will feel grimy. Instead, allocate one day of the week to each room. E.g. Mondays = Bathrooms, Tuesday = Kitchen and so on.
4. If a job can be completed in 5 minutes or less, do it now. Don’t put it off and procrastinate. You’ll feel more motivated and can maintain the momentum of the day if you tackle the shorter jobs first and then build up to larger jobs.
5. Keep your own regular work hours. What I mean by this, is just like an office based job, try to keep your housework confined to certain hours so that you protect your personal time. I, for example, will only do housework between 8am and 8pm. Yes it’s a long day, but if it’s after 8, that time is to be spent with my husband, relaxing together. That time is so valuable to me, and keeping that time for myself allows me to maintain my enthusiasm for my daily work.
6. You don’t need a million and one cleaning products. Honestly they’re bad for your health and bad for the environment. I’ve found over the years that most day to day grime can be cleaned effectively with a damp microfibre cloth and some elbow grease. If that isn’t enough to shift the dirt, then you can use a basic homemade cleaning product such as 1 ½ cups distilled water, ½ cup vinegar, 1 tsp dishsoap, 10 drops of an essential oil (optional). I will be sharing more specific homemade cleaning products another day.
7. Get dressed. This can be whatever you’re most comfortable in. For myself I tend to wear jeans and a jumper in colder months and mid-length dresses in warmer weather. Avoid spending the day in any form of sleep or loungewear. Keeping your home is you job, dress the part and it makes a world of difference to your motivation.
8. Learn how to multitask. This doesn’t mean overloading your time with multiple jobs, but it does mean being effective with the time you have. Are you boiling the kettle for a cup of tea? What jobs can you see that could be done before the water is ready? Maybe give the floor a quick sweep, or perhaps you can quickly wipe down the counters.
9. Learn how to effectively meal plan. It’s absolutely the best way to cut down on food waste and excess spending. Further to that, only go shopping for food once a week. Avoid getting a little every few days as that’s a really easy way to lose track of how much is being spent on food. If you’re living off a single income, you’ll probably find food is the black hole of your budget so these little steps can make a world of difference.
10. Keep realistic expectations of yourself. Some days you won’t have the energy to maintain a sparkling house and that’s okay. You don’t need to have a picture perfect home all the time, doubly so if you have young children at home. Don’t fall victim to high expectations and let yourself burn out. Your home is to be enjoyed and it’s somewhere to provide sanctuary and respite. If you can’t reap the benefits of that yourself then perhaps take a step back and remind yourself why you are a homemaker in the first place. Reconnect with yourself and show yourself some grace on the hard days.
