Before I knew Heather, I knew her blog, Home-Ec 101. It’s a cleanly laid out site that breaks your household tasks down into simple categories even I can understand: Cook It, Wash It, Clean It, Fix It. What else do you need to know?
For me, apparently, a lot more.
So you probably have some sort of idea (because I seem to be writing about it at least once per week) that I’m moving. And part of the moving process is getting the house ready to sell. And the process to do that involves clearing out some of the clutter and making your house look way cleaner and more organized than it really truly is.
It also makes you look at your lifestyle choices and think things like…
“Yeah, I probably should clean under there way more often.”
“I wonder if anyone will really notice that stain on the carpet.”
“Why did I ever buy a book on organic homecooking that has recipes for brains?”
So I’ve had a bit of a reawakening. I’m rethinking my whole housekeeping strategy. I’m learning how to live with less and how to live cleaner. But I need help. And Heather’s book could not have come at a better time.
You see, Heather wrote a book called, appropriately enough, Home-Ec 101: Skills for Everyday Living. And I was asked to review it. Knowing that I need all the help that I can get, I was only too happy to oblige.
Here’s what endeared me right away. This is structured like a reference book, not a read-straight-through-from-beginning-to-end kind of book (although you might want to do that anyway because it’s so chock full of knowledge and it’s awfully amusing). I flipped through the book and the first page I came to read:
Dear Home-Ec 101,
What is the best way to clean diarrhea off of carpet? I’ll spare you the exact details, but let’s just say it’s pretty heinous.
Signed,
Poopy in Peewauket
Believe it or not, I have needed the answer to this exact question. I’ll spare you my exact details but let’s just say that it involved an aging dog and a lot of carpet… the day before Thanksgiving.
The book is organized in the same style as the website. Four simple categories. For me personally, I don’t need to read the Fix It section. I just call my husband. He seriously can fix anything. Anything. So I skipped that. For those of you with those not-so-handy husbands, forget about them and just figure out how to do it yourself. You’ll be much happier and life will be easier.
The section that resonated the most with me was Clean It. Why? Because as I might have mentioned, I don’t have the best housekeeping skills (Spoiler alert: You can pretty much use white vinegar to clean everything). The book not only gave me specifics but it also laid out what I’m supposed to be doing on a regular basis.
What?
Yeah, apparently if I clean consistently and regularly, then I don’t accumulate the disaster that I’ve been dealing with for the past few weeks.
Then I moved on to Cook It. I’m a pretty decent cook when I try. I actually like to cook and I know my way around the kitchen. And yet, I can still learn about meal planning. Something I’ve never attempted other than “You want hot dogs tonight?” I can also find tips like this one about shopping at warehouse clubs:
Be Careful With Bulk Purchases
While some things like toilet paper don’t have an expiration date, they do take up valuable storage. Be reasonable with your purchases.
Are you listening, honey?
And finally, there is a section on Wash It. I have to admit that I have my own rules for laundry: make my husband do it. Seriously, we learned a few years ago that I absolutely loathe doing laundry and he doesn’t mind it. I actually like to vacuum and clean floors and he hates it. So we have this understanding.
There’s also my rule about never dry cleaning anything. I just can’t be bothered. Or hand washing. It’s too much work. Now do you see why I let my husband do the laundry?
So let’s get back to Home-Ec 101. I loved the book. Everything about it. It’s nicely laid out, fun to read, and apparently Heather has a wicked sense of humor, especially when it comes to cleaning.
Disclosure: I was sent a complimentary copy of this book for review.
51 comments
I hate cleaning the grout in my kitchen floor. No wait, cleaning windows/blinds.
Aha!! I found (through the book and personal experience) that hydrogen peroxide helps! Still doesn’t make it any more fun though. I actually like cleaning windows. But blinds? Barf.
tweeted!
Just tweeted!
Best household tip…I’ve got teenagers ~ Make them do it!!!
I’ve got a 4 year old. I’ve been trying but it sounds like I need to wait a decade or so.
http://twitter.com/#!/lindalatina/status/58161487151235075
I hate doing laundry
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That’s why you need a husband like mine!
I hate dusting…I mean loathe it! Mainly because when I do it, the next day/ The dust is back again!!
My bedroom seems to be THE place for dust. The rooms that we don’t use much don’t seem to have much dust. Fadra’s cleaning tip? Don’t use your house. Then you won’t have any dust.
I really don’t mind doing laundry, but I loathe folding it and putting it away. That is why there is a huge basket of socks and white clothes sitting in front of the dryer for a week now!
Well, duh! That’s the hardest part! I hate emptying the dishwasher but I’ll load it all day long. I think basically anything that requires too much effort turns me off.
I’ll see if I can send my husband over sometime.
Tip: vinegar gets crayon out of carpet. True story.
I’m not even sure I would know how to get crayon ON the carpet. Walls, yes, for sure.
Give a box of crayons to a two year old, go use the toilet and come back to
her scribbling into the carpet. It was impressive. Rice wine vinegar and
some elbow grease. Presto.
That’s crazy. I never would have thought that. I haven’t had it on the carpet before, but I do have a GREEN car seat. Maybe it’d work there.
Tip: vinegar gets crayon out of carpet. True story.
Tweeted!
My most hated cleaning chores are ALL of them. I need a maid! I just always feel so disgusting after cleaning…. yuck.
I only clean the house while I’m in my pajamas and I haven’t showered so when I’m all done and clean up, I feel EXTRA clean. And yes, I have been known to stay in my pajamas until 4pm on cleaning day.
even on non cleaning day, i can be in my pajamas longer than 4pm. LOL
Mr. Clean’s Magic Eraser truly is magical, but my all-time saving and money-saving (sort of) cleaning tip is the magic of baby wipes. They clean the shower, the toilet, even the tile floor and windows (I hate the shower and windows SO much – cleaning them, I mean!). Baby wipes to the rescue!
I totally dig the Magic Eraser. I use it on EVERYTHING. You can keep your baby wipes. I have my Windex wipes 🙂
Mr. Clean’s Magic Eraser truly is magical, but my all-time saving and money-saving (sort of) cleaning tip is the magic of baby wipes. They clean the shower, the toilet, even the tile floor and windows (I hate the shower and windows SO much – cleaning them, I mean!). Baby wipes to the rescue!
I need this book big time. I failed two courses in my life — Home Ec and typing. Apparently I wasn’t meant to be a woman.
Here are some tips: Hairspray gets crayon out of anything. Also, when cleaning anything — shower, room, curtains, etc. — remember to go from top to bottom. If your dishwasher gets smelly, run an empty load with lots of vinegar in it. And throw a lemon or orange rind into your garbage disposal every once in a while to freshen things up.
You’ll be happy to know I dusted, then cleaned my baseboard molding, and THEN cleaned the carpet. I used my smarts.
I almost wrote a whole story about my Home Ec class in middle school. In fact, I still might. It’s totally blogworthy.
As for typing, I’ve never learned (and apparently don’t need to) but in high school I was strongly discouraged from taking a second foreign language because it was too hard. They told me to take shorthand instead. Um, yeah. Shorthand would be WAY more handy than Spanish these days.
My Best Cleaning tip? Clean the whole bathroom (walls and tub and sink) with liquid laundry detergent because body soap does not stick to it. I dont have molds and I dont have to inhale the annoying bathroom cleaner fumes. this allows me to clean my bathroom once a month. YAY!
also, you dont need much detergent to use because that stuff is bubbly enough. id say id use a half a capful, dilute it in water in a bucket and *gently* scrub my walls with a big sponge. (kinda like cleaning your car) all the soap scum comes out, your faucet will be sparkly right away.
Least Favorite chore? CLEANING, in all forms. in all roooms.
I HAAAAATE cleaning but I use Scrubbing Bubbles. I’m sure it’s a super harsh chemical but it does the job. How does that compare to your crazy laundry detergent idea?
Scrubbing bubbles is expensive, and i dont like wiping down, id rather rinse. Soap scum and other dirt sticks to bathroom. Try my thing once and see how long you can tolerate a clean bathroom. its actually like handwashing a very big plate. if you have cruddy soap scum at the bottom of your shower, put some undiluted laundry soap leave it for a while,. it will soften it and it will be easier to remove.
I after soaping the bathroom, i jump in the shower and rise the walls in the tub in the process. LAZY, I TELL YA.
personal record? it comes to a point that i didnt cleaned the bathroom in 3 months and at that point its still not gross i just felt compelled. LOL
also i dont have do remove mold and mildew from my bathroom.
my mom cleaned it once using cleanser, 3 days later we had mold and mildew. I had to regrout!
I loathe cleaning the hard floors – I don’t mind vacuuming but sweeping, mopping, dust mopping, etc I absolutely HATE! Especially because of the dogs…
I totally don’t mind the hardwood floors. I use the Bruce Hardwood Floor Cleaner and the mop that comes with it. It’s pretty toxic so I keep the doors open but it works like a charm and I don’t have to get down on my hands and knees.
I’m going to have to look into that one, I just hope something will make the hard floors easier. Thanks for the tip!
I loathe cleaning floors, I’d rather do just about anything else. Thank goodness my husband doesn’t mind so much.
See? Teamwork!! I like doing floors – it’s the laundry I hate! Thank God for husbands.
I do have a handy tip for getting poop off the felt of a pool table: Use fantastic and BLOT, DON’T RUB. You really don’t want to know how I ended up with poop on the pool table.
I have two stories in my head. One involves a small pet animal doing a “butt rub” on the table and the other involves using a pool table as a baby changing table.
Either way, I can guarantee that I have way more fecal stories than you. NOTHING surprises me. I actually hate Fantastik (the fumes make me choke) but I’ve learned the blot, not rub. Also, if you’re into toxic chemicals, Spot Shot works GREAT.
Thank you for the bump on my head. Yes, I sustained this life threatening injury while falling out of my chair, laughing at this scene. What the Hell??
Tip: Magic Eraser takes silver sharpie out of brown leather couches. Please refrain from asking how I know this.
I love me some Magic Eraser. I use it on everything!
Least Favorite Chore: Mopping. Once I’ve mopped a floor, I don’t want anyone walking on it.
Tweeted you out, sister!
And thanks, babe. I’d be happy to mop your floors anytime. It doesn’t bother me too much.
I hate doing laundry.. my tip start the kids early or higher a Freshman in High school to help do it.. fold put away and carry up stairs
Oh how I loath vacuuming and vinegar and water to cleaning everything in the house…and stay home mom is hilarious, true story! Lol
Oh how I loath vacuuming and vinegar and water to cleaning everything in the house…and stay home mom is hilarious, true story! Lol
My best cleaning tip is to turbo clean during commercials. You get stuff done faster that way.
Tweeted!!!!
My most hated chore is getting rid of dust from my hardwood floors! Ugh!
Tweeted as well 🙂
[…] strange as that sounds, it’s true. I’ve generally confessed that I hate housekeeping. I’ve even shown you videos of my messy, chaotic house (and thank you to those of you who […]