housekeeping as a spectrum, from don't know to don't care
We all want the perfect home, but we also want to lay on the sofa and watch television, binge on social media, and watch cat videos. So sometimes you have to put the cat videos first (for self-care, obviously), and let the housework slide a little. That is what The Good Enough Guide to Better Living is all about. It’s about washing the dishes by letting them sit in the sink in soapy water, about using that chair in the bedroom to collect laundry, about using throw pillows to create mystery in the bedroom.
Author Alison Throckmorton is not a fan of adulting, and she is ready and willing to share her tips for cooking, cleaning, decorating, and entertaining with all of us. From her use of decorative hand towels as a weapon for guests to her understanding of when to re-wear the laundry to when to just give up and burn it, from her zone organizational chart for the nightstand to her napkin folding techniques, Throckmorton is confident in her ability to lead us to better, albeit messier lives.
Her tips for living are abundant. She lists 40 ways to serve Mac & cheese, including Mac & cheese with bacon, Mac & cheese with peas, Mac & cheese with a cheeseburger and fries, Mac & cheese with pie, or Mac & cheese with a box of red wine. She has ideas for your next charcuterie board, like the “Leftovers'“ Board of things from the back of your fridge and cabinets, or the “I Got a Bonus” Board, consisting of pretentious artisan things you spent too much money on because you just got a bonus. She includes instructions for making your own napkins (cut cloth into a rectangle, fold the edges, and sew) or making your own curtains (cut cloth into a very large rectangle, fold the edges, and sew).
There are plants that you can purchase and keep alive with ease and a list of pantry essentials. There are ways to organize the medicine cabinet, so that those coming for the dinner party can see at a glance what’s in there, and ideas for making your coffee table both cluttered and unusable for family and guests alike. You can learn how to plan a menu for a dinner party and lie to guests about your achievements with skill and aplomb. And each chapter includes skills to master, like having a favorite stove burner (kitchen) or having a small, dusty bowl of year-old potpourri (bathroom). Throckmorton is basically a modern-day Martha Stewart for the masses and the messes.
The Good Enough Guide to Better Living is a fun gift book filled with real-life wisdom and snarky humor. Perfect for a Mother’s Day gift, birthday present, or as an aspirational guide for a new graduate, it’s charming and relatable and offers real-world solutions to those of us who manage to get out of bed in the mornings but certainly don’t want to have to make it. It’s judgement free and very freeing, reminding us all that there is more to life than mopping and learning to cook all the mother sauces.
Egalleys for The Good Enough Guide to Better Living were provided by Chronicle Books through Edelweiss, with many thanks.
