Francis Brennan - Francis Brennans Book of Household Management: How to Create a Happy Home

INTRODUCTION

When I was a young boy, my mother used to do a spring clean. Do you remember that? The parish priest or some important person would announce that he or she was going to pay a visit and Mum would get started with her cleaning list. After a winter with all of us huddled up inside, and coal fires burning in the grate, the house would have a lovely layer of soot and dust that needed special cleaning. Now, before my mother kills me, the house was never dirtybut it was considered a necessity in those days, to do a once-a-year, really deep clean: rugs would be lifted and taken outdoors to air, and then to have the dust beaten out of them, curtains would be taken down, nets whitened, tablecloths laundered, windows cleaned, and Dad would be sent to clean the gutters. I cant say I that I ever saw the parish priest examining them for signs of dirt, but the point was, the spring clean was part of the yearly ritual of making a home sparkle.

There were weekly and monthly rituals too. I remember the Monday wash, the Friday cleaning of the cooker and so on. Housework in those days was a full-time job, with the wash beginning on Mondays, swishing around in a big tub, before being rinsed and put through the mangle remember the mangle?! then hung out to dry in the Irish wind and rain. And, if Mum was ever lucky enough to get a few good drying days, the wash would come back in, be put in the hot press to air, then ironed, then put away in drawers and wardrobes, before the whole cycle would begin again. Im amazed at how Mum ever managed, running a house with five children in it and a husband who worked 12-hour days. But manage she did, and beautifully.

Im tempted to think that it must have been much harder for her in the olden days, but I have since come to rethink that notion. Of course, housework would have been more labour intensive then, with no dishwasher or dryer unless you count us Brennans, the human dishwashers! no online grocery ordering, no convenience food; but there would have been that all-important commodity: time. Life wasnt a constant round of activity, the way it is nowadays, with mums and dads both working, kids out at school or at soccer matches, scouts, music lessons and all that kind of thing. Time nowadays is at a premium, and no person wants to spend his or her precious free time hoovering the skirting boards.

Which is where Mr Brennans Guide to Household Managementcomes in. Im sure there will be those among you who will wonder what I have to say about housework sure, you must hardly live at home, Francis, I can hear you say. And those of you who will have seen me wrestling to put on a duvet cover on live television might be a bit sceptical of my knowledge in that department, but running a hotel teaches you a lot about the importance and the pleasures of a tidy, clean place how warm and welcoming it can feel, how much pleasure it can give you and others. My hotel is my home, and when I welcome people into it, I want them to feel that they can truly relax, knowing that the silver is polished, the napkins are laundered, the sofas cosy and clean.

Some of the old ways are still useful even today and we shouldnt throw them away, from household budgets to working with the seasons and from traditional home cleaners that are well worth using to clever shopping, but I know that we have to be sensible about how that all fits into our busy modern lives. Theres a lot to learn from newer concepts like recycling (I hope you all recycle!) and upcycling, which means finding a new purpose for old things, rather than throwing them out, as well as using modern technology to make our lives that much easier. I also think that I know a thing or two about modern family homes, thanks to my friend, Cathy. I often pop in to see her in Dublin and I see how she manages a busy home and family, working as a team with her husband and children and taking it all in her stride. In fact, I asked Cathy for some tips, which youll see sprinkled throughout the text.

Modern life isnt easy, but with a little bit of help, you can get your own hotel spick and span, with the minimum of fuss, so that you have more time for the nice things in life, like relaxation, friends and family.

Good luck and happy homemaking!