Category: advice
It’s that time of the year to start spring cleaning, and it’s a task many of us dread.
There are plenty of great ways to reduce the effort though, so we thought we’d save you some time and scour the internet for the best in cleaning tips using some natural home ingredients.
Sparkling windows
You can buy all sorts of cleaners that work specifically on the glass in your house. Or you can save some pennies, and use a simple solution of 50% white vinegar and 50% water. Wipe with a newspaper or cloth for sparkling windows.
Picking up pet hair
We love the furry members of the family, but we’re less keen on the hair they leave on the furniture. There are a number of ways to pick hairs up, including a trusty lint roller, but our favourite is to simply use a pair of rubber gloves. Just run your hands over your sofa, and the friction will cause the hairs to stick to the gloves.
Cleaning limescale from taps
Limescale build up leaves a white deposit on your taps, in kettles and washing machines. Scrubbing it away can take a lot of time and elbow grease – but we’ve found a simple trick that takes all the effort away.
Limescale dissolves in a mild acid, such as the citric acid of a lemon. So, cut a lemon in half, wedge it gently onto the end of your tap and leave it for an hour or more to loosen and dissolve any deposits, while you move onto another chore.
Freshen up your mattress
You may think that one of the hardest things in the house to clean is your mattress, but it’s really one of the simplest. All you need is some bicarbonate of soda, and a sieve. Sieve the bicarb over the whole mattress, and leave for several hours. The soda will draw out any dirt, moisture and odours, without damaging the mattress. Finally, hoover up the powder thoroughly and you’ll be left with a fresh, clean smelling bed.
Microwave your lemons
Another top tip using the lovely lemon – squeeze some juice into water and put it in the microwave for a minute. The steam will loosen any food stuck to the inside for an easy wipe, while the lemon leaves it smelling lovely and clean.
Clean out your drains
Our drains can become blocked with hair and soap, but there is an easy way to clean it out and keep on top of any build up. Pour half a cup of bicarbonate of soda down the drain, followers by 1 cup of white vinegar, and leave it for 30 minutes. Then flush down some fresh clean water and you’ll have lovely clean drains.
Fresh and fragrant
Finally, leave your home smelling beautifully fresh with these simple tips. Add a few drops of fabric conditioner to a dry wipe and leave it behind your radiator. As it warms the fragrance will spread across your room. And there – a lovely, clean and fresh home, ready for the year ahead.
We hope that you enjoy these easy at home tips, and enjoy a fresher cleaner life. Happy cleaning!
The home business lifestyle sounds wonderful to so many of us. Flexibility to take a day off whenever we want, working from coffee shops or sitting in the glorious British sunshine and meeting with clients – it all sounds so perfect.
The reality is often quite different. Many small business owners find themselves working far longer hours, with the divide between work and home life blurred. You may have chosen to be your own boss for the flexibility, but it’s still important to set aside work when the family come home.
Many of us don’t have the space in the home to have a separate office. Even if you set aside a small space in the living room, or under the stairs, for your desk, your work often overflows into the family living areas. Boxes of stock, paperwork, filing cabinets, samples – whatever type of business you are in, there’s always some sort of clutter that gradually infiltrate throughout your home.
Working from home can affect your health.
Overlapping home and work life so much can seriously affect stress levels and affect your health and wellbeing. You are more likely to pick up calls and emails outside of your work hours. Even when you put your work down, it’s visible in the home, causing your mind to dwell on and worry about work issues.
Stress can lead to time off work, making mistakes, depression and anxiety. Not only do these affect your business, but impact on your personal life and family as well. The more you worry about your work, the harder it will become to focus and get it done.
Tips for improving your work life balance
Set work hours
You may have chosen to work from home so that you can juggle your family commitments better – particularly coping with childcare. It’s still a good idea to set work hours, and manage the family’s expectations by clearly outlining the time you will finish and be free to focus on them.
Get dressed
Your initial image of working from home might be sitting at your laptop in bed, or answering calls in your pyjamas. Getting washed and dressed, ready for the work day, will actually make you feel more focused and productive.
Create a work space
Set aside a desk or table where you can sit and work everyday – preferably out of sight, or with your back to piles of housework and mess that can distract you. Working from home provides plenty of opportunity for procrastination – leaving you frustrated that the work hasn’t been completed.
Consider storage
Paperwork, emails and telephone calls can be managed with limited space. But if you do find boxes of stock filling your corridors, then consider self storage. With a little organisation you can manage the office from home, with regular time set aside to visit your storage unit for packaging and posting trips. It’s also a good place to keep old records that must be kept but aren’t needed on a daily basis, leaving you more room in your home.
Get out and about
Becoming lonely and isolated is another effect of working from home that can cause low moods. Try attending local networking meetings. Not only will you meet other solo workers in the same position and perhaps boost your business with great contacts – it’s good for your mood as well.
Although we can’t organise your work life for you, our storage units are perfect for helping small businesses grow. If you would like to talk about cost effective space, call us on 0121 250 5055 or email
info@cookesstorage.co.uk
Even the most organised of households will need to de-clutter once in a while, whether it be once a year or every couple of months. Everybody builds up a collection of things that they don’t need; from clothes that don’t fit any more to unopened birthday presents. If you want to de-clutter your home then here are our top 10 solutions to make it easier, quicker and less of a chore.
1. Do I really need it?
This is a question that needs to be asked for every single item you pick up, whilst de-cluttering. Do I really need to keep those cinema tickets from last year? Do I really need to hold onto that dress that I only wore once? It can be easy to convince ourselves we need to keep something, but asking yourself this question should help you think twice.
2. Make some extra cash
This is a great de-cluttering tip that everyone should use; sell the things you don’t need! If you’ve got a pile of old clothes, shoes, DVDs, books, pretty much anything you don’t want to keep any more, then sell it! You can use online auction sites such as eBay or organise a Sunday morning trip to a car boot fair. The extra cash can be put towards better storage solutions or just a treat for the family.
3. Put it into storage
Sometimes there are things that we don’t necessarily need to keep hold of right now, but we don’t want to get rid of them altogether. If this is the case then it may be worth considering putting those things into storage. Boxes of books, family heirlooms, pieces of furniture and even baby clothes can be put into storage for a time when you will need them again.
4. Double Purpose Furniture
As you have started to get rid of the things you don’t need, it’s important to find a place for the things that you do need. Double purpose furniture is a great way to de-clutter, without having to find somewhere for storage boxes to go. You can use old trunks for decorative purposes and to hide the clutter, or a window seat that lifts to reveal a secret storage compartment.
5. Vacuum Storage Bags
These clever inventions are perfect for keeping seasonal clothes out of the way, without taking up too much space. Simply pile in the clothes you want to keep, but aren’t going to wear for a few months, then zip it up and attach the hoover to the air hole. The vacuum will suck out all of the air, making a compact bag that can be stored away.
6. Bespoke Storage
If you’re serious about de-cluttering then why not have some bespoke furniture made? Everything from bookcases to chests can be made by a carpenter to suit your home, style and the amount of clutter you have to hide!
7. One Room at a Time
The problem many of us will have when de-cluttering is that we just get overwhelmed by the amount of work to do. We’ll try to get it all done in one day or we’ll get distracted halfway through one room by finding clutter in another. If you want a clutter free home without the stress, then make sure you only tackle one room at a time.
8. Avoid Distractions
It’s so difficult, when getting rid of clutter, not to go through it all and get distracted. You may stumble across an old diary or photo album that you just want to go through and reminisce. Distracting yourself with these things is only going to prolong the process, so put them in a pile away from the rest and have a look through once you’ve finished de-cluttering.
9. Memories Box
You’re bound to discover a lot of things along the way, that just simply don’t have a place in the house. These tend to be sentimental objects such as old photographs, event tickets and birth or marriage certificates. Create a memory box to store all these things in, so that they don’t get lost or damaged.
10. Get Everyone Involved
Finally, make sure you get everyone involved when you start to de-clutter the house; the children and the partner included! By doing this not only will it take less time, but it will be easier for everyone to learn the new organisation systems you have in place. Hopefully then, it will be much simpler for everyone to keep clutter free. Hopefully!
We’ve covered 10 of our favourite de-cluttering solutions for the home, although there are plenty more. What do you find to be the best way to keep a clutter free house?
As Christmas is fast approaching, we wanted to share with you our opening hours.
You can access your unit at any different times over the Christmas period, so please do check if the facility is open before arriving.
Reception Opening Hours;
Even the Cookes Self Storage elves need a bit of time to eat turkey – here’s when you can contact us or pay us a visit.
OPEN: Thursday 24th December; 10am – 2pm
CLOSED: Friday 25th December
CLOSED: Saturday 26th December
CLOSED: Sunday 27th December
OPEN: Monday 28th December; 10am – 4pm
OPEN: Tuesday 29th December; 9am – 5pm
OPEN: Wednesday 30th December; 9am – 5pm
OPEN: Thursday 31st December; 10am – 2pm
CLOSED: Friday 1st January
OPEN: Saturday 2nd January; Normal Operating Hours
Our Storage access hours as the same as our reception hours.
New bookings
To sign up for storage, get in touch before Wednesday 23rd December and we’ll make sure you’re sorted smoothly.
Don’t forget – although our office is closed, our website is still open so you can find information and reserve online at any time, whenever you need.
We wish you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Best Wishes, Cookes Storage Team
Did you start the year off with every intention of being organised, being on time, and finding a better hiding place for presents rather than the boot of your car? Every year, many of us will say ‘I will be more organised this Christmas’ but every year Christmas comes around with bang, and organisation is the last thing on own minds.
If there is anything this year has taught us, give yourself a break! As we are all in the same boat!
No late night shopping trips, no panic buying, no day trips trawling the shops. It will most likely just be you up late with a laptop and a cup of tea, however do not fear, this can work! We have a few helpful tips to make Christmas run as smooth as possible while still being totally enjoyable.
Make a list.
Who are you buying for? It may seem so simple but without warning you can end up buying something for your next-door neighbour’s dog. Stick to the list! It is key for the when starting to think about Christmas.
Set yourself a budget.
Being honest with how much you want to spend on each person gives you control along with keeping things sensible. It is so easy to spend online without realising the cost. Once you’ve bought an item write it down next to the persons name; it is a great visual reminder of what you have spent!
Order 6 different wrapping papers.
1 for each person you will be able to see at Christmas. This means you don’t have to worry about labels, simply wrap each person’s presents one at a time to know exactly who’s is who’s. (Do make a note of which wrapping paper you use for each person!)
Shop Small.
Instagram and Etsy are fantastic platforms for small businesses. Over lockdown, small businesses took full advantage of the time and ensured they had an online presence. For Aunty Sue, why not get her a nice handmade soy candle rather than a plant. Instead if socks for other half, why not get them a hand designed and printed memory book. Your little girl, why not get a handcrafted dolls house to finally house all her dolls.
Think outside the box.
This year has been a little tospy turvy to say the least, so maybe you could arrange to have your very own Santa’s grotto at home? What about making a family hamper that you all share on your 6 person Christmas day? Make handmade cards and post them to your elderly neighbours (they will appreciate this more than you think)
Arrange a virtual gathering!
We did this so amazingly in lockdown, with family movie nights, quiz nights and virtual social gatherings to stay connected whilst keeping our loved one safe. Christmas is about connecting with people so get organised and arrange a date and time where all the family tunes in to celebrate.
Get yourself a hiding place.
Under the bed, in the loft, in the cupboard or maybe even in the car! Wherever you have tried to hide presents; I am sure that you had a few slip ups! With your very own private present cupboard surely this would make life a little easier? STORAGE ROOMS! We have you covered, with storage rooms from just 16sqft to over 270sqft. We also accepted your deliveries so you don’t even have to bring them to us, they will be ready and waiting for you to hide away out of prying eyes! Head over to our locations page to find out a little more about our facility.
Following those simple tips and ideas might just make your 2020 Christmas that little bit easier!
Happy Christmas Everyone!!
When you are planning to build an online business, understanding your marketplace can be key. There’s a number of things to consider to make the most of your e-commerce shop, with the main one being where you decide to sell your items.
Where should you be setting up shop?
There are plenty of online platforms for selling your products, but the best known have to be eBay or Amazon. Are these right for you though?
Both are huge, established marketplaces, which gives you the advantage of a large consumer base. Plus, your buyers already trust the platform and protection it gives them. However, you are competing against large numbers of established sellers, and both Amazon and eBay have higher seller fees than other platforms.
One of the main differences between the two is that you have a fixed price on Amazon, while you can choose to auction items on eBay, or sell them with a fixed Buy It Now price. Another is the way listings appear on each platform. On Amazon, if you have the same product as other sellers you are often listed on the same product description. The main way to stand out is to keep your prices low enough to be competitive, which could be a problem for small sellers.
On eBay, you have control over the pictures and wording you use to list your item, so spending time understanding how to make the best use of headlines and keywords can be beneficial. You can also compete more directly with large sellers, as buyers may have other priorities than just cost, such as timeframes – how soon the auction ends – distance and options to collect goods themselves.
Other options for online sellers
Etsy is a fabulous online marketplace for handcrafted and vintage goods. If your products fit into these areas, this could be the best option. Your goods will stand out more than on eBay or Amazon, and buyers come to Etsy specifically for something unique.
Another growing marketplace can be found on Facebook. However, it has limitations. Firstly, you need to understand the platform. There’s the Marketplace where you can list secondhand items, but you don’t actually sell them. If a buyer wants your goods, they contact you direct to arrange the details.
Then there’s your Facebook Shop. You need to set up a business page and then learn how to set up the selling element. Then there’s the marketing to bring buyers to your page. And that’s where Facebook can be hard work, as you need to build up engagement with your audience to be found. Starting your e-commerce business on Facebook can be a slow process, especially when you already have an established consumer audience on other platforms.
Building your own website
Another option for selling is to set up your own website and online shop. You have the immediate advantage of controlling everything yourself – prices, listings, descriptions and costs. You also won’t face immediate competition from other sellers, although you do have to consider that other people may be selling the same items, and today’s savvy buyers always shop about to compare prices.
To make the most of selling on your own site, you need to start with a great website. This doesn’t have to cost a fortune – in fact you can build your own online shop fairly easily. But you do need to understand things like SEO (search engine optimisation) and have an idea of how to market your shop to build up presence.
With your own shop you are also building up your brand, so if you also have a bricks and mortar shop, this is an obvious choice. Your customers will get to know you through your reliability and reviews, and you appeal to customers who don’t like the big platforms or prefer to support the local and smaller business.
A little bit of everything
When you are just starting your online shop, you might want to try everything. List some items on eBay and Amazon – or Etsy if your products fit – and build your own website as well. Then you can monitor and compare sales to see where you make the most profits.
Once your business takes off, you’ll need more space for your products. Keeping stock safe, organised and undamaged means you need a place for shelving, packing and a desk, with wifi to manage your orders. That’s where we come in. Call Cookes today to see how we help support online retailers to grow on 0121 250 5055.