I think Sarah might just be my homemaking doppelganger from across the pond. Not an evil twin sort of doppelganger… more like an “OMG we have so much in common!” sort of doppelganger.
Sarah is an Australian living in the UK, PR Professional by trade, stay at home mum to her awesome explorer daughter Eleanor and wife to her (very tall) husband, James.
Her public relations industry blog, PR Liberated, is all about great client management, epic career advice and getting the very best out of your work day.
Sarah, what do you think of when you think of the word homemaker?
I never really thought of the word ‘homemaker’ before I became one! To my mind it’s always seemed reminiscent of 1950s women in aprons.
What do you think other people picture when they hear the term?
These days it seems people judge homemaking as ‘not really a job’, when in fact it is so important. Recently I had to update my details at the bank and the cashier said to me ‘are you a housewife?’. Errr no – I haven’t married a house the last time I checked!
How do those images compare to your vision of yourself as a homemaker?
They don’t really. I work on my blog every spare minute I have and have become a ruthless prioritiser about what needs to be cleaned and what can wait a little longer (most things, I find!)
Sarah with James and Eleanor.
Why do you think homemaking is important (and specifically, what makes it meaningful to you)?
Homemaking is a state of mind first and foremost. Creating and maintaining a space for you and your family that you all enjoy matters more to me than how clean the floor is (or in my case, how unclean the floor is…)
What does “making a home” mean to you?
Creating a warm, welcoming space that my family feels comfortable in. A functional yet stylish retreat we want to come home to.
How do you balance work and home life?
When I was working full time and up until my daughter was around nine months old I had a cleaner come once a week and it made such a difference to the quality of all our lives. For a relatively small cost it had a huge impact. I’m a big fan of prioritising what’s important and outsourcing wherever you need to. These days I find keeping up with everything is a full time job in itself – the kitchen for instance is never really ‘done’.
What are your favorite parts of homemaking?
Definitely cooking. I also find vacuuming oddly satisfying. I am obsessive when it comes to clean kitchen surfaces!
Least favorite?
Cleaning the loo (toilet), for obvious reasons. The cooker and oven are a pain and I HATE hanging washing out.
Penguin Books wallpaper
Are you crafty? A great cook? A decorator? A cleanliness nut?
I like to think I’m a good cook and a somewhat quirky decorator. Our hallway is covered in vintage Penguin book wallpaper and we have ‘travel posters’ for Hogwarts, Rivendell and Narnia on our living room wall.
What’s the best piece of advice you can give to other homemakers?
It’s a hard discipline to get into but tidying as you go along makes such a difference! When we were selling our house recently I learnt a lot about cleaning efficiently and that was one of the main things that helped.
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