Latest news with #lifehacks
Telegraph
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Choose to have fortitude: life lessons from Andi and Miquita Oliver
Anita Rani is finding out how you can live your best life on her new podcast, Bright Ideas with Anita Rani, in partnership with EE. In the latest episode she gets double the life hacks with mother and daughter duo Andi and Miquita Oliver. Andi is a top TV chef, best known for her appearances on Great British Menu, now in its 20th series, while Miquita was a household name on T4 and Popworld in her teenage years, and has gone from strength to strength ever since. More recently, they have been winning over audiences with their podcasts Stirring It Up and Miss Me?, the latter of which Miquita hosts with childhood best friend and singer Lily Allen. Sitting down with Anita, the pair explore what it takes to be happy during and after periods of adversity. Drawing on her experiences as a single mother, Andi discusses some of the toughest moments in her life and what got her through them – 'You have to choose to have fortitude and step towards the light' – while they both reflect on their journey rediscovering their Caribbean heritage with their show The Caribbean with Andi and Miquita: 'They were having a drumming circle ceremony, and we got out the van and they all said, 'Welcome home.' I couldn't stop crying.' They also talk about the importance of a holistic approach to life, surrounding themselves with good people, the challenges of staying organised – and which apps can help – and why they are each others' best friends. For all their chat, laughter and advice, enjoy the full episode with Andi and Miquita Oliver Bright Ideas with Anita Rani wherever you listen to your podcasts. For more tips, life hacks, insights and stories, listen to Bright Ideas with Anita Rani on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes will be released weekly on Wednesdays.
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Lifestyle
- Daily Mail
Organised mum reveals four-word mantra that helps her maintain ordered lifestyle
For many parents, the school run is a daily battle against time, lost jumpers and forgotten homework. But for one supremely organised mother, life runs with perfect precision. Emma Roberts, a British mother-of-two known to her 170,000 TikTok followers as @organisedbyem, has become known for her practical tips on keeping family life running smoothly. She has revealed her mantra of just four words: 'Helping my future self.' Whether it's pre-sorting school uniforms or stockpiling birthday cards months in advance, Emma's approach is rooted in taking small actions today to ease the chaos of tomorrow. Her videos regularly rack up thousands of likes and grateful comments from frazzled parents across the UK. One of her most popular hacks involves birthday cards. At the start of each year, Emma prints a list of everyone she needs to buy for, complete with dates. Among the fan-favourite tips is Emma's method for remaining on top of sending out birthday cards She then ticks off each name as she purchases a card, filing them neatly into a folder with monthly dividers, plus two additional tabs: one for general occasions like Mother's Day, and another for spare cards ready for impromptu classroom parties. And her life hacks are resonating. One viewer wrote: 'This is such a good idea!' Another said: 'God, I love this.' Her school uniform system is equally impressive. Every Sunday, Emma washes, irons, and prepares the week's uniforms. Her son's outfits are stored in a hanging wardrobe organiser, each section labelled by day. And her daughter's school dresses are hung up individually, with the hangers clearly marked to indicate which day they're for. Some viewers expressed surprise at Emma providing a fresh jumper daily, but she explained: 'Ours don't have to wear school logo jumpers, so I buy the supermarket multipacks.' One parent commented: 'The uniform thing I do for my little boy at nursery too. Honestly it saves so much time!' But Emma's organisation doesn't end with clothing. In another viral clip, she shows off her homework stations - wall-mounted hanging organisers, one for each child, with labelled plastic baskets. A basket marked 'Friday: PE' serves as a visual reminder of what needs to be packed. Children are encouraged to place their completed homework inside the relevant basket so it's ready to go. They're positioned in the family's shoe cupboard, so everything can be grabbed at a moment's notice on the way out the door – no forgotten spelling books or rogue permission slips. And even electronics are accounted for. Emma has designated a basket for charging devices, where her children are expected to place anything that needs powering up. Emma's ethos is striking a chord with fellow parents who are desperate for some order in the chaos of daily life. Her advice may be simple, but it's the kind of simplicity that can feel revolutionary when you're trying to get two kids dressed, packed and out the door by 8:15am. Emma isn't the only influencer making waves by sharing tips with swathes of busy parents. She has built a loyal and adoring following sharing glimpses into her family life An organised Australian mother-of-two revealed three simple life hacks she wished she knew sooner. Melbourne mother Chantel Mila recommended the tips to more than half a million people in a recent TikTok video. In the clip, Mila dampened a paper towel to make green vegetables last longer in the fridge, used a wine glass to scoop out mango pieces and placed facial masks in the fridge prior to using. To make the fresh vegetables last longer, she spritzed a few drops of water onto a paper towel then placed it on top of the greens in a fridge-safe container. Next, she sliced two mango halves and used the edge of a wine glass to scoop the fruit out and minimise wastage. For the third and final tip, she placed a Go To Skincare sheet mask in the fridge for 15 minutes before applying it for a 'cooling boost' to promote glowing skin. 'You'll never use your sheet mask the same way again,' she wrote.
The Sun
21-05-2025
- Climate
- The Sun
‘Literally had no idea!' people gasp as they discover what the little holes on pegs are for
WITH the weather hotting up for summer, more and more of us are drying clothes outside. But while hanging the laundry on the line, have you ever had a closer look at the pegs? 3 3 3 As one man left people stunned by revealing he had done just that, and had discovered a hidden function he'd never seen before. In a video on TikTok, he showed his washing on the line - with the line itself going through the hole underneath the "hinge" of the peg. "I was today years old when I found out I had been pegging wrong all these years," he wrote over the top of the clip. "The little holes are for the line!" "Today years old…. Life changing!!!!" he added in the video caption. And the comments section was almost immediately filled with people admitting they were just as astounded as he was when he found out. "Literally had no idea!" one admitted. "No idea over here," another agreed. "Are you kidding me? Now I'm even more excited to hang my washing out tomorrow!" a third commented. "Omg! I'm 55 and just found out!" someone else wrote. Savvy woman shares how she creates more drying space inside with £2.99 Home Bargains buy & it even works outside too "Well I'll be damned," another marvelled. "The things you learn on tickletok!" someone else joked. "You just blew my mind," another said. While someone else admitted they were 32 and "never knew this till now". "Mind blown!" another raved. "I am not going back out to re peg my washing for the fear my neighbours think I'm crazy," someone else laughed. How to dry wet washing inside, in winter Drying rack or airer Load up your airer with wet washing and place near a heat source - like a radiator or direct sunlight - to help distribute air around your clothes. Dehumidifier Plug in a dehumidifier in a room with clothes hanging to dry quickly and prevent dampness and mould. Many now have a laundry setting. Tumble dryer A tumble dryer can heat moisture out of wet washing, saving time and can be used in any weather. Heated airer Many brands and shops now sell heated airers for as little as £30. The racks heat through electricity and can speed up drying time. Open a window Choose a spare room or unused room for keeping your washing and crack open a window, but close the door behind you. Using curtain poles Hang wet washing on radiators then hook them onto curtain poles with radiators below. The heat will rise and dry the items. Alternatively, if you have a shower curtain pole, hang your clothes in the bathroom with a window open. "I'll do it next time!" The discovery wasn't new to everyone though, as another sighed: "This has got to be a joke right? "Are you serious people didn't know this?" Meanwhile, others used the comments section to share their own washing line hacks. "I put mine on clothes hangers first then peg the clothes hangers to the line so they don't move," one wrote. "Once you take them off, they're already ready for the wardrobe." "OMG! great idea!!" the poster replied. "So much more room on the line," another added. As someone else said: "T-shirts and jumpers on hangers. "Jeans and trousers by the belt loops so you don't get marks on the legs from the pegs once they have dried. "And handy to have a sock hanger to use less space!"
The Sun
16-05-2025
- Climate
- The Sun
The clever way you can ensure your paddling pool is kept warm even on cold days and there's zero kettle-runs involved
"MUM, it's freezing!" is a phrase you'll likely hear more than a few times over the summer. And it usually comes when you've spent ages setting up the paddling pool and filling it with water. 5 5 5 But to avoid any whining, one man has shared his clever way to keep the pool feeling warm whatever the weather - without having to run backwards and forwards with the kettle. He took to TikTok to share the nifty hack, as he explained that you first need to make a hole the size of the end of the hose in an old plastic bottle. Pop the hose through the hole, and turn the hot tap on. Then, make your way to the end of the hose, and "suck and siphon the water until it comes out of the hose". "You will get spurts of air until the water is cleared," he added. He then showed what the setup should look like at the end - "free flowing water going through the hose with no water coming out of the bottle". "This is so clever, I love it! Thank you," one person wrote in the comments section of the video. "You're a lifesaver for this!!" another gushed. As a third raved: "This is awesome, love it!" "Game changer," someone else said. Mum shares the £64.99 paddling pool that won't leave you puffed out blowing it up & it's perfect for the warm weather But there was one aspect of the hack that caused issues for many people. "Ewww my hose has been outside all winter!" one wrote. "No way I'm sucking that till clean water comes out." "Was a great idea till this," another added. "Now I just see gob fulls of spiders and dirt!" "I was all in for the idea until you had to put the hose in your mouth," a third commented. "I turned my hose on once and earwigs came out of it," someone else revealed. "Wouldn't recommend sucking the hose!" "I can't lie, I wouldn't never of known to suck it and would still be waiting to see the water come out the other end!" another wrote. While someone else added: "Or better still just put the plug in the sink and run the tap!" 5
