I know that FlyLady suggests that you "dress down to your shoes," and I completely get the concept, but I have a problem with it. Wearing my shoes inside the house is causing my kitchen floor to get prematurely dirty. By sweeping like a mad woman after EVERY meal, I am able to get my kitchen floor to last a week without mopping. Wearing shoes? Now I've got these grimy, big SPOTS in front of the fridge and the sink. And I want to mop more often. NO! MUST NOT! Too much time spent on cleaning as it is! Will rugs help? Or will they just be new hazards to the running-through-the-kitchen children?
Also, I've been trying to wrap my head about how to dress in my new lifestyle for quite a while now. I want to be comfortable and yet not look FRUMPY.
My job had a VERY lax dress code. We could wear jeans every day--and I did. But I noticed that I would start to get too relaxed, and look more and more like I did in college--sweatshirt and jeans--which just didn't look RIGHT on a woman with three children in her *cough* mid-thirties. So, now I've got a new outlook on life, where I could possibly get away with the same wardrobe.... But the problem is still there. I don't want to be frumpy, yet I want to be comfortable. I don't want to wear those J-Lo-like velor suits, but I want to be able to PLAY with my kids in comfort.
I think I've decided jeans are a no go. As much as I like them, sitting on the floor playing blocks with Izzy for hours in them is not conducive to comfort. And then jeans can wrinkle in funny ways when you wear them ALL DAY like that.
So, I turned to one of my favorite programs for inspiration: What Not To Wear. Sure, not every episode does apply to me, but surely there is something there I can use?
So today, I went and spent $100.00 on two new pairs of slacks (tweed-like and comfy) and three shirts (two layered, one henley). Now I'm thinking, "Gosh, am I now OVER-DRESSED?" I will be chic. I will be comfortable. I will be able to go to my Girl Scout meetings and Parent-Teacher conferences and playdates at least LOOKING put-together. But what about baking? And finishing the painting in Keith's room? And spending two hours pulling the moon flowers out of our garden (like I did yesterday--yipes!)? Obviously, I can't wear those clothes to do THAT stuff. Am I going to have to spend my day changing my clothes all day? A different outfit for each different purpose? OH GOD, THE LAUNDRY!!!!
So, I'm begging all you SAHers. HELP ME! Can it be done? Comfort, style, PLUS utility--and yet reasonably keeping the laundry load the same ('cause I can't POSSIBLY do more laundry than I'm doing now, I tell you!).
(And I won't even START on the freakish style that my hair has turned into. THAT needs a post of its own--and a stylist to come to my house EVERY DAY and do my hair for me.)
3 comments:
Oh, dear! I'm afraid I will be no help at all! I wear jeans and a t-shirt EVERY! SINGLE! DAY! I don't even OWN non-jean pants. I have "good jeans" and "painting jeans." I recommend the stretch denim kind for sitting on floors, not that I ever DO sit on floors.
I used to have a rug in front of the sink, but it looked grubby. One thing you could do, if you're doing Fly Lady: when the towel you're using to swab out your sink gets used up and you're ready to toss it in the laundry, wet it down a little more and do a quick swipe-swipe on the grubby spots.
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I'd definitely change for gardening and painting. I'd designate some gardening/painting clothes, something that you can slip on easily and quickly, and won't mind crudding up. And only wear them. I know I'm not a SAHM, but I wear something to take out the dogs in the morning, dress clothes to work, something in the evening to walk the dogs/hang out, and then pajamas for the hour or two before bed. It doesn't feel like a lot of changing, but it keeps the work clothes safe.
Also, I wear a lot of my clothing more than once before I wash it. Not so much shirts, but definitely with pants, especially heavy pants like jeans. I wear them at least twice, maybe three times, unless they are getting completely disgustingly gross. If I'm wearing dress slacks for a few hours, I see no point in washing them afterwards.
I sometimes spray cleaner on grubby spots on the floor and wipe it up with a paper towel, to avoid mopping. Like Swistle, only more wasteful.
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