Creating a simpler life is something that we will all benefit from! It can be overwhelming in the beginning but it started with the house. A simplified house can bring you a sense of calmness and control.
You’ll use your time more wisely and be able to spend more time on the things that you love, not constantly cleaning up the mess or looking for misplaced items.
If you were to add up all the minutes that you spend on these types of tasks, you’ll be surprised! Imagine all the other things you could get done with that time!
Let’s dive into our top tips to create a simplified home, that work for moms.
21+ tips for a simplified house
Declutter your space
Declutter will be the key to creating a simplified house. The less stuff you have, the less time and energy you will be spending on maintaining the home. You will have more space in the house and that will help you feel calm and relaxed. You know that when you have a cluttered space, you have a cluttered mind.
Decluttering can seem like an impossible task! Start slow, take your time and you will get there. Starting to declutter will lead to wanting to declutter more. To get going, start in the bathroom, laundry or kitchen. There will be fewer sentimental items in these spaces so it’s much easier to throw items out. Get rid of double-ups, items that you don’t use, things that you don’t like and any broken items. Even if you received something as a gift, don’t think you have to keep it just because it was given to you. If it doesn’t serve a purpose, then get rid of it.
Continue through your house, room by room. You will start to feel the benefit of decluttering by the time you get to the more sentimental items! If you need more help with decluttering, I highly recommend The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo.
Keep a capsule wardrobe
This is part of the decluttering process but deserves its own section. Start by clearing out any pieces of clothing that don’t fit, you don’t really like or that you aren’t wearing. Once you go through the pieces that you keep, you’ll get an idea of the colors, fit and styles that you like.
Decluttering alone might be enough to create a capsule but you might like to buy a few extra items. You will be able to make purchases that work well with the clothes in your existing wardrobe.
Having a capsule wardrobe will help you choose what to wear in less time and keep your morning routine simpler.
Regularly clean out kids wardrobes
Kids go through clothes so quickly. They either wear them out or grow out of them. It can be easy to put off clearing out their wardrobe but it makes it so much easier when there are only clothes that they wear in there.
If you have secondhand clothes stored away, keep them in labelled boxes to make it easy to get them out when needed.
Meal plan
Mealtimes can be the toughest time of the day in a household and they can really contribute to a simplified home. Planning out the meals once a week will clear space in your mind so you don’t have to worry about what’s for dinner every day. You’ll know the plan and roll it out as the week goes by.
Make two bulk dishes a week
Each week plan to make two meals that are double the size. This will give you food to freeze, easy lunches or reheat dinners for those really busy afternoons and evenings. It will also give others in the house options when they don’t like what’s on the menu for that night. This can make mealtime with kids a whole lot easier!
Create platters for the kids
Allowing the kids to choose what they want for dinner makes life so much simpler! Make platters of vegetables, meat and fruit. Put it in the center of the table and let them help themselves. It also helps with minimal clean up afterwards!
Related Post: Zero Waste Stores We Love [that use zero waste packaging too!]
Create a calendar
You can create a digital or physical version but make sure everyone has access to it. You’ll know what’s happening each day, saving you energy by not having to relay all the activities to the other parent. Everyone’s on the same page.
Pay all your bills at one time
Find a place to put the mail each day once collected, then once a week go through it. Open each piece, discard if irrelevant and then pay what needs to be paid. It will take you less time than doing it each day and you know that you haven’t missed a bill.
Create as many auto payments as possible
If it’s possible, set up auto payments within your banking. That way, you won’t be using your time to physically pay the bill. It also clears up mental capacity because you don’t even need to think about it.
Create a cleaning schedule
Instead of spending a whole day cleaning, create small tasks that can be done each day. It will be more sustainable to maintain the routine and you won’t dread the bulk cleaning. For example, you might do the bathroom Monday, vacuum Tuesdays or dust the bedrooms Wednesdays. Have a play with what will work for you.
Do small cleaning tasks regularly
Get into the habit of getting small cleaning tasks done throughout the day. Tasks such as wiping the basin down after washing your hands, wiping the glass down after your shower or even giving the toilet a quick brush once a day. It makes a huge difference!
Keep multipurpose cleaning products
We all get quite the collection when it comes to cleaning products. In reality, vinegar, bicarb and essential oils can clean almost anything. Not only that but they’ll also significantly reduce the toxic load within your home. There are so many recipes out there for cleaning solutions, experiment and see what works for you.
Write a list the night before
Getting ready for the day ahead can really make the morning routine much smoother. Before bed simply write a quick list of things that need to be done the next day and leave it in the kitchen. You’ll get up and you won’t need to remember everything, you can get started straight away.
Encourage kids to maintain their own rooms
Whilst this can be hard, it does create a sense of responsibility and ownership for kids. Encourage (not force) them to do age-appropriate tasks in their bedroom, and/or in other areas of the home. You might be surprised how much they get out of it.
Make pack up time fun
At the end of the play day, make it fun to clean up. Create a game and see who can collect the most toys and put them away. When everyone joins in (parents included) it can be quite fun and sometimes very competitive!
Wash everyday
Yes, you read that right, do a load of washing every day. Wash, dry (either hanging outside or the dryer) and get the items back to the wardrobes all on the same day. It helps to put the wash on auto timer in the evening and have it ready to hang out in the morning. If you don’t have many clothes that need washing, do the linen, towels or cushion covers. It will help you stay on top of the washing and get rid of that ever-growing pile of washing!
Aim to keep horizontal surfaces clear
As we mentioned earlier, clear spaces help to keep the mind clear. This can be achieved easily by making an effort to keep benches and other surfaces as clear as possible. It really helps to achieve that sense of space and order.
Create a charging station
In our modern lives, there can be quite a large number of cords and chargers. Create a charging station to keep it all contained in one space.
Regularly audit your makeup (or eliminate)
If you don’t pay attention to your makeup and beauty products, you’ll end up with so much stuff. Make sure you regularly go through it and through anything that’s out of date, that you don’t use or that doesn’t suit you. Hopefully, you’ll have only a few products that you can easily organise in the bathroom.
Digitalise as many documents
When you receive documents, scan them, organise them in files and then throw out the hard copy. Only keep what you need and keep them in a simple box. No need for fancy and complicated organising systems.
This saves you time when looking for documents and keeps your storage to a minimum.
Buy groceries in bulk
Buying in bulk will not only save you money but you won’t have to spend as much time with your meal planning and organising your shopping lists. You know what you have and you can create meals around ingredients that you already have.
Have a stockpile of meals in the freezer
If you don’t have enough leftovers, then spend some time stocking up the freezer. There are always those nights where you don’t have the time or energy to prepare a meal. Simply pull something out and reheat.
Other ways to create a simplified house
There are so many ways to create a simplified house out there. You need to go through them, create a plan and start experimenting. The ideas that we have outlined are what works for us, they might not work for you. Having said that, we’d love to hear how you have been able to create a simplified home!