Listen ... do you want to know a secret?

Hello everyone! After the torrent of wonderful comments on my previous post, the one where I told you how I set my timer to do my housework, I thought I'd share a few other little tips with you ...

Instead of throwing away old wellies (large or small) use them as plant pots! These look lovely and welcoming at the front door ... make a few holes with a darning needle to allow water to drain through, and put a few pebbles in the foot too, otherwise the stagnant water will get a bit whiffy! If you don't have any yourself they can usually be picked up very cheaply at car boot sales or charity shops.  These little darlings were 50p ... bootiful!

Whenever you use a lemon, don't just throw it away, instead put the shells into your dishwasher. The lemons will help to cut through grease, make your dishwasher smell citrus fresh, and sparkle your glassware!

When you return from your holidays, nothing brings you back to earth more quickly than emptying 4 or 5 large suitcases on to the kitchen floor and sorting and separating the washing.  To save yourself this heartache, take a few bin bags or large carriers with you and sort the washing on a daily basis.  It doesn't really take any longer than just slinging it in the suitcase! Have a bag for whites, one for coloureds and a dark one.  When you return it's much less daunting to just select and deal with one bag at a time than to sift through a mountain of dirty, smelly washing.

If you're of a sensitive disposition, or eating your breakfast, you might want to skip this one! If your daft dog, or indeed, your child, has an accident on your precious vintage rug, remove the excess whilst gagging and wearing a protective mask wipe with a wrung out, barely damp, cloth without rubbing too hard, and then sprinkle the area with good old bicarbonate of soda and leave for a few hours.  Then simply hoover the area,  and the stain will have disappeared, along with the smell.

Courtesy of Google

To avoid the torture of finding a matching set of bedding, simply fold the duvet cover, bed sheets, and pillowcases (saving one) and place into the saved one and fold ... your airing/linen cupboard will be transformed by the neat stacks of sweet-smelling, orderly bedding! All you need to do is select the set you want and remove from the pile, instead of all that flinging everything around to find a matching pillowcase! I've done this all my life and am amazed when I pass on this tip to others, as I just thought everyone knew about this one ... By the way, I really, really, have bedroom envy for the picture above!

Now I really must apologise for the next image ... not that it isn't beautiful ... but the 'C' word in October isn't always acceptable!

Courtesy of Google

In my defence, I can't do a post sharing my top tips without adding my 2 favourite Christmas ones!  If you have more than one child, I know what a nightmare it can be to wrap and label all their presents.  I pick a different roll of paper for each child, writing in a notebook which is which, as between one marathon wrapping session and the next I'm bound to you may forget.  This dispenses with any need for labelling as each present is colour-coded and on Christmas Eve (when the elves bring pyjamas, miraculously wrapped in the right paper), Father Christmas puts the wooden heart with the name of the child on the relevant pile so there is no mix-up on The Big Day.

Courtesy of Google

Just before (about 45 minutes) serving up the most important meal of the year, put all your plates and serving dishes into the dishwasher and put on a quick, hot wash.  When they are dry, but still very hot, put the food in the serving dishes and immediately wrap in tinfoil.  Leave the plates in the hot dishwasher until required.  This frees up valuable space in an already overloaded oven.

And remember, if all else fails, flowers will ALWAYS make it better!

Hope you all have a fabulous week!

Love, Claire xxx