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Summary: You CAN know it all!
Review: This book is great.The author loves householding AND research. No one has told you this stuff so intelligently and well, 'til now. Mendelson generously and nonjudgmentally shares her wealth of information about everything in the house: how, when,and why to care for it. It's not intended as self-help, but as reference. The chapter on garment care labels alone will save you hundreds of dollars a year.
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Summary: if you live in a home you need this book
Review: I have been a stay at home "homemaker" for 10 years and I have always had a major struggle with how to be a good housekeeper.This book has completely changed my degree of competence in this area from pathetic to "betty crocker like". The author goes through each detail of all duties encountered in taking care of a home and describes how and why to do them. I really feel like an artist now that i have implemented tons of new stratagems in my daily upkeep of the home. She describes how important each job is in adding to the quality of life for ourselves and our families.Her description of how to wash white sheets caused me to quickly run out, buy white sheets, launder them and throw them on the bed (with hospital corners).After reading this book i now truly grasp what a privelage it is to have a home and to be able to care for it. Awesome!
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Summary: Think twice before you buy this book!
Review: Buying this book was a big mistake. I was expecting a guide to more efficient and practical housekeeping, but instead I found a relentless paean to obsessive practices. If even a minority of the author's basic assumptions were true, I'd be dead by now. Sanitize your drains once a week! Give me a break! Change pillowcases twice a week! Have mercy! Disinfect your dish towels after every use! Oh, please! Haul your mattress outside for sunning twice a year! Ouch! And did you know that garlic lasts only 2 days at room temperature? Please! I'm sorry, but you've got to be joking. Spare yourself another fruitless guilt trip...stay away from this book.
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Summary: I'm keeping this one for myself!
Review: I bought Home Comforts as a gift, but I'm keeping it! My mother was neither a housekeeper nor a homemaker. There is so much information in this book that I should have known but didn't. I agree, the "Broken Windows" theory has changed everything at my house. If I just go ahead and pick up that newspaper now, if I wash this cup now, then the clutter does not accumulate and multiply. The laundering advice alone is worth the price of this book. The section on removing stains is complete and doable. It's all here: how to build a fire, how to choose a lightbulb, how to clean jewelry, how to deal with domestic employees. Martha shows us how to gild the lily; Cheryl shows how to clean and maintain the lily.
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Summary: Excellent advice...taken with a pinch of salt
Review: I loved the book. The only reason I gave it a 4 star rating is that I feel it is unrealistic for most people's lives. I am an organized person, and I suspect anyone that would be interested in a book like this already is. The book gave me many tips that I will use (I now know the correct way to fold a contour sheet), and many that I will not because I feel they are a tad obsessive. I will refer to it as a reference for things like removing stains, caring for appliances, etc. This would be a great shower gift for the person who had lived at home all their life and had no clue on what needs to be done to keep a home happy and healthy.
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Summary: A Comfortable Home and Week-ends Too!
Review: One of the highlights of the Cheryl Mendelson's book is the suggestion for schedules - what should be done daily, weekly, monthly, etc. In the past, the only cleaning I did during the week was wash the dishes, clean the counters and take out the garbage. That left weekends as the only time to launder, dust, vacuum, and on and on. Needless to say, weekends were not a lot of fun and the feeling of peace that you feel when you're in a clean home only existed for one or two days. Thank you, Ms Mendelson, for helping me find a way to have a comfortable home 7 days a week and time to enjoy my week-ends!
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Summary: Totally changed my attitude and approach to housekeeping!
Review: As a professional woman, I always felt like my home was never as organized as my work life and it frustrated me no end. Cheryl Mendelson's "broken windows" therory in the book alone has made all the difference in my approach to housework. I also appreciate all the research she has done on each subject she writes about. It is a wonderful reference book as well as enjoyable to read. I am buying 2 more for my daughters. Cheryl is correct, many of us were never taught by our mothers to clean, they always had bigger plans for us.
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Summary: I love this book!
Review: I can't believe I am writing this, but this is the best book I have read this year. I have always been considered hopeless at cleaning house and now I find that it is not so bad, that I am just disorganized. I have learned things from Ms Mendelson that are actually interesting about keeping the house organized (like having more time to do other things, for one.)I like the fact that this is not a "hints" book (those never worked for me, and just forget about all that Martha Stewart stuff.) This is the basics and I have been sitting up at night reading it as if it was the latest murder mystery (my usual reading! )Thanks Cheryl, great job!
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Summary: FANTASTIC BOOK! Would make an excellent gift.
Review: This book contains ANYTHING you would ever need to know about orgainizing and homekeeping.
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Summary: Incredibly informative and entertaining reading
Review: Home Comforts describes in detail and whys and wherefores for creating and maintaining a clean, comfortable and liveable home. The author does not pass judgement on those less tidy than herself - a relief to readers like myself who are trying to start anew in the whole housekeeping area. The amount is detail can be overwhelming but when read chapter by chapter is easy to digest and quite captivating. This would be a great gift for newlyweds - it would prevent many arguments on the best way to launder, make a bed, etc.
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