The British Homemaker - One day at a time

Last July, I took the plunge and set up a simple blog to share the short stories that I'd written over the years. It wasn't until I was having a clear-out on my pc that I came across them. I have tended to write them, stick them in the folder and then forget them. So, over time, there has been quite a lot built up. Through July and August, I shared summer and generic themed stories, but with September already upon us, I have themed back-to-school and autumn stories to keep in line with the moment. As you may see a pattern setting here, I will also be adding Halloween, winter and Christmas stories through the rest of the seasons too. All the short stories I share on A Writer's Journey are free to read. They are also included in compilation books that are currently being added to Kindle Unlimited and Amazon. The books have extra stories, as well as there being longer stories. The current average word count for the regular free stories is around 5000 words, so it makes for a g...

Having taken almost a month off of the computer (except must-do's) I've come to miss this little spot so while I've been off on my jollies I've been working on some homemaking posts that will be pre-posted 3 or 4 times per week. At the moment I'm on an organising mission, I want each room in my home to be simple, organised and workable. I've shared some simple storage ideas in the last post (scroll down) and I have more to come. I've also been using some systems created by some awesome bloggers, they too will be shared b/c after using them myself I feel sure in endorsing them from here. However, there's no time like the present to share something, right? :) Measuring Flower  has become my new source for all things to get organised. Compiling a home file has made it easy for me to keep all the important stuff in one place. Think emergency, grab and go, everything you'll need is there. Job done! Measuring Flower is owned by an awesome lady wh...

I love being organised, I love colours so put the two together and I probably go a little overboard! I've put together a few of the simple things I've invested in that saves me heaps of space as well as time looking for things. Of course, there's the added bonus that the kids will put things where they belong, ok there's hope! ;) Cutlery drawer. Upon the insistence of my daughter, I was happy with my pretty tins on the window but I must admit, this does kinda look better :) Having just 4 drawers in my kitchen I am hell bent on limiting what goes in them, I admit I do feel the need for a junk draw but it's not this one, nope, its one full of manuals, menus and other paper products 'just in case' and I'm ok with that! This draw sorts the most used things and a teeny tiny little pot for small junk ;) I was so fed up of washing powder leaking over the worktop so I had a brainwave. This 3 drawer unit is perfect. Each drawer holds approx...

Hands up if Ikea makes your palms go sweaty, heart racing and brings you to your knees with sheer excitement? Yep, me too :) So a few weeks ago I decided to see if their reputation for fitted units was really true, or if I'd have to get the saw out and do some additional alterations for a shelving system in  my kitchen. I was not disappointed, in fact, the measurements were totally spot on for the space I wanted to fill! The Expedit range - ideal for almost anywhere in the home/office. You see, my kitchen is a multi-function room. Not only do we cook/eat there but I do my crafting/work there too and now it's where Charley does his school work. Storage shouldn't have been a problem in this house, it's quite big for a 3 bed but somehow I needed all the storage in the same room. It was by accident that I came across this range so I took the plunge. My too much growing amount of craft stuff (even though I have decluttered and rehomed much of it) meant that if I...

One of the things I took on board when I was active in the Lds church was the preparedness they encouraged. This covers a whole range of things from food storage to car breakdown, from family emergencies to power shortages. With the Uk on various weather alerts there's a lot of talk on whether it'll happen or not but I like to air on the side of caution and prepare for the worst. The one thing I don't like is being caught out with such things so I figured I'd share what I've done to prepare my family for the severe rain and winds, cos one thing is for sure, we ain't going anywhere! The following suggestions are just that, they will vary family to family but some are pretty standard, however I'm not sure how long the bad weather is set to last so I'm working on a 7 day period. {Food} ~ Be sure you have plenty of the staple foods such as bread, milk, potatoes. If you have a plastic box you can store some outside if you can't fit them in your fri...

I’ve always said to my kids, don’t just leave home, plan it and I can help you. Well that was changed on my oldest sons part, he went for a visit one day and didn’t come home! We laugh about it now but he’s settled with his girls and his fiancé and all has come exceptionally well for them. No matter how many times I look at Jay, I can’t help but feel proud of the person he’s become. When Scott left it was appropriate timing after my marriage ended, since then he’s completed college and university and about to move into his own place nearby, so I’m now on the look out for some good furniture for him even if I have to do it up first. He has it together impressively well. I totally love the man my Scott has become. Now I’m determined that at least one of my 4 kids will leave home with some input and planning from me! I just always wanted to share that experience with them and Kirsten is the one that is more like me, plan, plan and more plan. While she has her l...

One week to go till school starts. One week to go till Kirsten starts college. Life will not only return to a normal routine but it will require some serious planning and preparation for the latter part of the  year now.  There are 5 things I am actively working towards... Bailey turns 2 Having a rather large doll house off my sister means Bailey gets a rather large doll house for her birthday....only Kirsten and I are decorating in inside and out as well as furnishing it. Reminds me of when I was a kid, I loved my dolls house! Charley turns 8 a week later ...

    My absence has been rather exciting, time consuming and full of ups and downs. I have almost got to the point where I can officially launch my new venture...even though it has already started trading...by accident! Party in a Box has been a growing idea that has not been without trial and error, yet each time I turn around I have more interest, followed by demonstration bookings and pre-orders. I guess it was just meant to be! The worst part was securing the business in the legal sense, the biggest headache was deciding what stationery theme I wanted, I am just too indecisive! :) So, if you want to pop on over to my new Facebook page, like it and share it with your friends and family I will love you forever and I will like, share yo...

A couple of weeks ago I decided to try out an idea I had for Charley’s room. I was so fed up of hearing his groans when a lego kit got knocked by his friend or stepped on by me him when he’d spent hours and hours building it. Lego is his life. So off I went to armour up with the required bits. *Note! I have since replaced that narrow shelf with a proper sized one…and he’s since filled that very shelf with over 12 constructions!* I decided on a pine effect curtain pole {painted in glow in the dark paint which looks rather cool at night} the baton is added support but also as I chose a longer length I was able to add some hooks for his other bits {it’s now filled with key rings, ds cases and other stuff} The S hooks and flexi tubs are ideal for not only his odd bits of lego but for his teddies and other stuff {he’s since added 3 more tubs since this pic, how slack am I to not photo it?!!} Simple white medium sized hooks are effective enough, nothing ...

I can’t remember {or find} any post that shows this idea from when we were living in temporary accommodation last year…so I figured I’d share them {again probably!} ...

The start of a new school year can be exciting yet expensive and time consuming, over the years I have learnt what not to do and how best to do the challenge. Here are my top 9 must-do’s:   Don't wait till the week before school starts! Two weeks before is fine {that’s what I usually do}. Make a shopping list for each child then go house shopping. It’s surprised what items we already have that we’ve stashed or forgotten about, especially stationary. Decide on your labelling system and get the kids involved. Be it a permanent pen or sewn in labels, most kids can do an effective job. Don’t try and do other shopping in town at the same time, make it a specific day for school shopping. With older kids, give them their own budget and let them go off and pick up there items. If you are like me and buy reduced priced items when they aren’t in season now is a good time to get them out, last year I didn’t buy many uniform items other than logo sweaters because...

I am a firm believer that we each adopt our own habits and styles when decluttering a room and/or moving home. My style is one room at a time till there is nothing left to be done in there till move day. However, by doing this I have hit a few irritating things I do and I now urge you to overcome any frustration by using these tips: Don’t bother with marker pens. I have lost 4 in an hour. Only me in the room. I haven’t left the room. I am not wearing pockets. I can’t find them anywhere ! So I came up with another idea which is probably quicker in the long run. Print off a sheet of labels for each room, stick them through your creatopia then cut them to size and bingo, you are set to go. Reinforce the bottom of your boxes before you pack. Just don’t ask! Where possible lay 4/6 books flat on the bottom of each box, this will spread out the weight of the books and provide a stable ‘nest’ when adding other things. Don’t be afraid to use small boxes. Yes it may t...

I have a client who has over 2000 car/motorcycle magazines that are neatly lined up in date order on a handmade unit in his hallway. When I saw them I was glued to the sheer volume! When I found out they were from all over the world, dating back years and years I figured he must be totally wacko or a professional driver of some sort. Wrong. He’s a milkman . Always has been. I have always enjoyed magazines, I love homemaking ones, diy ones, craft ones and psychology ones. I don’t go for these celebrity or real life stories but ones that feed my general creative interest. At one point I would spend around £20 a month on them, sometimes more. When I purged my craft room I was stunned with how many I’d gathered over the last 2/3 years, it was that point I decided I just wasn’t going to buy them anymore, well the odd one here and there! Ok, ok I buy Sew Hip each month but that's cos I actually USE it! I gave a lot to my mom, a few I kept (I limited myself to 20 which is a...