Customer Reviews

Confessions of an Organized Homemaker: The Secrets of Uncluttering Your Home and Taking Control of Your Life

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This book is a lifesaver for anybody with children. When I bought this book, I just had my first baby. Lack of organization has thrown our household back with tons of chores piling up every week. This book has given me a lot of good ideas about the way to run a house smoothly. The best thing about it - you do not have to do it all in one day. The author stresses out that you can do it bit by bit and you will eventually get to a clean well-organised home.

The most valuable thing for me was the idea of a monthly planner. It does not matter if you are a busy professional or a housewife. To catch the bull by the horns you ought to have one.

One more thing, after reading the book you will understand that there no picture-perfect homes (of course, if somebody lives there). If your house is, and you are a clean-it-all slave of it, read this book. It will help you ease your cleaning passion and start enjoying life instead.

I am planning to stock up on a few copies of the book. Next time I am invited to a wedding, I will have an exellent addition to a present.

This book was wonderful! It really motivated me to get organized. I enjoyed reading it [it is "easy reading" - the author writes very well] and couldn't wait to get started organizing our family. This book is exactly what I needed to get myself going.

One thing that really helped me was the chapter on throwing stuff away. I never realized that I had such pack-rat like tendencies till I read this book. I am now a firm believer in throwing stuff away [or recycling it, giving it to charity, etc] and our home is so much more uncluttered and nice to live in.

She has so many great ideas in this book that it would be impossible to list all the ways I've been helped by it. She does have some ideas that didn't work for me [I spent a long time trying to organize my recipes and shopping like she suggested, but it just didn't work for me], but they might work for others. I found this a great book to use on a "take what works, leave what doesn't" basis. I think our lives have been improved as a family because I read this book and used many of her ideas and suggestions. I highly recommend it to anyone - but especially to young families!

I am planning on quitting my job and coming home (again) to care for my three children, and I had serious reservations about taking this step (even though I know it's what I want to do) until I read this book! Last time I was home full-time with my kids I was overwhelmed and depressed most of the time. Now I know why! Deniece's book helped me realize how being organized, making lists, and treating homemaking responsibilities professionally will help me. I have already instituted most of what she recommends, and I can already tell a difference in my mental state. Now I will really be able to focus on my kids, and little setbacks (like spilled milk) won't ruin my day. Plus, it's great to have a little free time in the evenings for myself. I really enjoyed this book. I read it from cover to cover, although it could be read in bits and pieces, starting wherever you feel you need the most help.

This book is so motivational. I come from a long line of keepers, but feel I am on the road to recovery. I have been through my entire house with the help of this wonderful book and made vast improvements. I no longer feel guilty about tossing the things that only have sentimental value and are other wise useless. Like the Author says,"Keep the love and get rid of the symbol". I was literally becoming depressed with the state of my house and unable to tackle it. She gives you the tools and knowledge you need to approach it without being overwhelmed. I feel so much better about my home and possessions. The key is everything has to have a well-defined place so that everyone knows where it belongs. And you need to go though things periodically and not let it get out of hand. Her storage tips are so wonderful and organizing is very important. I am so grateful for the help this book provides. I am giving this book as gifts to family and friends. Nancy Ansel

I have been digesting this book chapter by chapter. It has such great ideas and also helped me realize I wasn't in that bad shape either. From keeping a detailed calendar to organzing my dishwasher (if you can imagine) has made me, my husband and my household a happier place. I would recommend this to ANYONE setting up a new house hold, having childern or who works full time and is exhausted!

Wonderful. This book was what encouraged me to begin my quest of organizing my life. This book covers all aspects of organizing your life- organizing time, cooking and meal planning, cleaning house, etc. Although it covers just about every part of a home, it is not overwhelming.

If you are interested in organizing your home and want a starter book, I would suggest you consider this book. In this book she discusses the whys, how tos, and what fors of organizing every aspect of your life.

If you are already on the road to organizing and want a book that will give you cheap and easy hints and solutions to storage, I would put forth that Confessions of a Happily Organized Family is more about the how to of organizing. She provides a wealth of suggestions for storage and organizing solutions that are not very expensive and easy to make and/or buy.

Either way, both are good. Both are full of ideas. And for me, most importantly, both are encouragine and realistic.

I liked most of this book. I haven't put it into action yet (because the cost is prohibitive), but I plan to use several of the author's suggestions. It is obvious that the author is not a pack rat like I am though. Some of the things that I didn't like about the book are: monthly planners are expensive, so I haven't gotten one yet, the author suggests that you buy too many containers (for dry food, toys, books, etc.) You would spend a fortune buying all of the dish pans and plastic containers that she suggests. I haven't found a utility cart yet, but I'm sure they are not cheap. The author also suggests making shelves out of concrete blocks and boards to store toys on. This seems dangerous to me. Small children are suprisingly strong and also like to climb.

I did purchase a few containers at a local thrift store. I really like having a container for my chili seasoning, ranch dip, and taco seasoning packets. One would be great for Kool-Aid if you use it. I also like having one for all of the stuff like cupcake liners, birthday candles, toothpicks, etc. that are small and not packaged in stackable containers. I plan to get another one for medicines. I have also tried to apply the idea of keeping all of my most frequently used items on the lower, more convenient shelves and placing less used items on the highest shelves. I used to hate making brownies because I had so many plastic Tupperware/rubbermaid containers stacked in my brownie pan. It was an avalanche everytime I tried to get it out of the cabinet. Duh! So now I have one smaller pan sitting in the brownie pan and it is so much easier.

I also like that the author shares what didn't work for her, like a toy box. My son is 7 months old and I was just thinking that I needed to get one of these. However, as he collects more toys, I don't like the idea of having to separate them into 30 different containers to put on shelves either. I'm not sure what the solution is for that.

I think most people could get some great ideas out of this book, so even if it only helps a little, it's better than you were before.

I bought this book by mistake (from Amazon) and what a great mistake!! I have read this book starting with the chapters I needed most and then started at the beginning! What this women does with a ziplock baggy is great! Be sure to go out and buy baggies and drawer dividers before you start reading. The only time I have to read is late at night after the family is asleep. I wanted to start right away while I was motivated. The planner section is useful; I am implementing many of her ideas for the new year.

Enjoy starting January ORGANIZED!

Several years ago I went out and bought five books on how to organize my life; then I organized my life (pretty much). This was one of the best, and now that I have 3 kids (I think we had only 1 when I first found "Confessions") I'm going to read it again. I especially enjoyed Schofield's tone. As I recall she had a zillion children of her own (6? 7? something like that?) and reading the book was a bit like reading the old Jean Kerr books back in the early 60s. Retro and fun.

I felt unsatisfied with my life but I knew staying home with my four daughters (ages 9mos, 3, 5, 8)is what I wanted more than anything. After reading just a few chapters of this book, I felt renewed and ready to take on my "new" life. I have much less stress in my days and the children and my husband seem happier (because I am happier). Meals are planned, laundry stays caught up, the house is tidy, and I have much more free time on my hands to do fun things with my girls. I really am greatful that I picked up this wonderful book at the library, now I am going to purchase it for my home library! Awesome book!