Tenner Week Jan 2018: Day 2: Get your home into shape

We’re busting on through the January rain and dark into Day Two of our Tenner Week. Have you spent any of your £10 budget yet?

There’s something new to do every day so we can keep ourselves busy, and today we’re looking at the Bonus Point of getting your home clean, tidy and generally more comfortable. The activity is to carry out a spot clean spring clean.

Rather than going full steam ahead into a giant bout of spring cleaning, all you need to do is pick one small, manageable task that you can easily complete. Make it something really specific that won’t take too long, and ideally choose something that will make life easier and more pleasant. Here are a few quick ideas:

• Clean a window or a mirror
• Wash some towels or bedding
• Polish or waterproof your favourite shoes or boots
• Wash your facecloth, back brush, shower sponge or hairbrush
• Declutter, clean and organise one shelf in a cupboard
• Clean out the kitchen junk drawer
• Wash or vacuum a pet bed or blanket
• Clean out and organise your work or gym bag
• Sweep a hallway or dust the front door
• Clear out the salad crisper drawer in the fridge
• Shake and plump up some cushions or wash a sofa throw
• Clear out your sock drawer
• Take out the recycling to the bin or collection point
• Shake out a rug
• Clean the inside or outside of your car
• Empty the bathroom cabinet
• Dust light fittings or a mantelpiece
• Polish a wooden table
• Mop the floor in one room
• Vacuum the stairs
• Water house plants or give them some liquid feed
• Open and file or shred post
• Tackle the ironing pile for 20 minutes
• …or anything else that needs doing / would make life easier or more pleasant

You don’t need to spend hours and hours on this, just a few minutes. Give it a blitz.

What’s happening here

I’ll be washing my makeup bag, brushes and sponges today. It doesn’t take long, and it’s so much better for the health of your skin to keep these beauty tools nice and clean. I’ll try to remember to dry them flat on a clean tea towel too, so that metal parts don’t rust and the glue that holds bristles in doesn’t become too loosened.

Yesterday was a pretty good day. When I’m doing a strict budget I find that there are fewer distractions, so it seems to make it easier to concentrate and focus, especially at work. Things are getting done with less frittering and faffing going on. It was a no-spend day too.

I did go out to an exercise class, but these are pre-paid so I’m making the most of them and not letting the fees go to waste. The healthy eating from Day 1 worked out pretty well, and I had six portions of fruits and vegetables plus plenty of water. Let’s hope I can keep all that healthy stuff up for the rest of the week without cutting into the budget too much.

Total spent yesterday: £0.00

Total spent so far: £0.00

How are you getting on with the budgeting? Finding anything especially easy or difficult?