Records in the Household – A Vintage Idea A Homekeeping Card File

This entry is part 1 of 3 in the series Records in the Household

records-in-household“I finally worked out what my husband calls my “time-and-worry-saving family cabinet.’* I bought a drawer, illustrated herewith, of 3 by 5 inch filing cards. The drawer will hold a thousand cards costing about 75 cents. I divided the cards under subheads which I will classify later, and which, of course, must depend upon the needs of the family. I keep this drawer on the top of my desk, where I can use it every day, and when you see how much information is packed away into that little drawer fifteen inches long I think you will be surprised.”

~Christine Frederick, The New Housekeeping

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Grocery Bags with Food

By now I know, if you are a regular reader of Homemaking Organized, that keeping up with things in the home goes a bit better with a Homemaking Binder .  However you put it together and whatever you choose to call it this little tool can make things run really nice and smooth.

Sometimes we think things like this (Homemaking Binders) are brand new and that someone just thought of them in the past few years. We see the lovely printables and great kindle books describing them in detail and think that they are new invention of the 21st century.

But truthfully Homemaking Binders have been around a while. They went forgotten when homemaking was no longer en vogue. And have come out of hibernation again in the last few years because…well goodness they just work!

I’ve worked through a few Homemaking Binders in my home trying to improve on them etc. And I’ve found, for my own tastes, that a small half sized binder works the best.

But after reading in my Emilie Barnes books Survival for Busy Women and More Hours in My Day about how to put together a housekeeping card file and use these nifty boxes to organize your home and daily activities I decided to give it a try.

I’ve also read about them in the S.H.E. >>> Sidetracked Home Executives books. They are put together a tiny bit differently there. Not much to be an issue but I’m going with the Emilie Barnes version. I believe there are less divider cards and the less the better for me.

 

What is a Homekeeping Card File?

Emilie Barnes calls it part of the Total Mess to Total Rest system. A housekeeping chore box. A box with all the cleaning details needed to do around the house each day, week, month, etc.

By the way if you want to know what I am talking about check out My Housekeeping Chore Box. I made these following the tips in Emilie Barne’s book. They are customizable and pretty. My daughter likes using themtoo.

(oh the quote up top was the vintage part).

 

Linking up with….A Wise Woman Builds her Home

Series NavigationRecords in the Household – Part 2 – A Pretty Housekeeping Card File >>

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5 Comments

  1. First, I had no idea about a Homemaker’s Binder. I mean I have heard of calendars and schedule makers but not specifically this idea. Second, where do you store your “recipe” box that is easy to access? And does it actually help you stay motivated to stay on track? I’ve tried the calendar for meals but found it’s hard to stick to.

    1. Great questions Kelli! Many people have never heard of this system of taking care of your home. It really works for me. The box idea is one I first read about in a a book by Emilie Barnes. As to your question of where to keep such a box it’s really up to you. If the idea appeals to you the most effective place I’ve found to keep it is one where I am most often when at home. My kitchen counter. Just a spare corner. I find that using the box naturally has me keeping things cleaner at home and the kitchen counter is much neater to begin with. If you have a little desk in your kitchen even better! If you move it off to an office or something you may lose sight of it and then leave it to gather dust. 🙁

  2. Hi there, I wasn’t sure where to post this. I purchased the Ultimate Homemaking Bundle 2018 and wanted to try out your Chore Box printables but it’s so huge with all the images that it crashes my computer which doesn’t have much RAM. Do you have a no-frills version without all the high-resolution images?

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