Teeni’s Tips - Doubling Up
Posted By Teeni on October 6, 2008
Ah, my dear little bubble blowers (nieces and nephews),
Life is precious and time is short, so really we should try to make the most of each. One simple way of doing that is to have doubles of some things. Now I certainly don’t like clutter and don’t mean to suggest that you should fill your domicile with useless things. But in some cases, it just makes sense to have more than one of something if it will make your life easier. For instance, in Uncle TGH’s and my house, we have exactly three eating areas that we may choose to dine in. There is a formal dining room, a kitchen bar/countertop area, and also the three season porch with its picnic table. Rather than search for salt and pepper shakers when we decide to eat in a different area than we did last night, it’s just easier for each area to have it’s own salt and pepper shaker. These are inexpensive to duplicate and having a pair for each area just makes more sense than going crazy looking for them or having to remember to move them all the time since you just never know where we will be eating that night. So it saves gray hairs and allows us to dine in a more relaxed state. Also, there needs to be a pair of shakers in the kitchen for cooking! For those, I have magnetized ones on the fridge which are much harder to misplace since half the time I forget they are there! 
Another thing we have doubles of is cat bowls. The wet foot (oops - fixed typo) food that we feed our cats rarely gets eaten since they just lap up the gravy. The food that remains stuck on becomes like cement, only cemet that has sharpened into glass-like shards. It’s best to let those dishes soak a while in order to wash out any food remnants that could hurt somebody. So the extra set of cat bowls ensures that our pets can indeed be fed on the same schedule that we are so they don’t hound us for our food. While one set of cat dishes is soaking, the other can be in use. It works out well, leaving us (and the cats) more time to enjoy life. And when you think about it, it does make some sense. After all, we humans usually have more than one set of dishes for each of us.
Again, I definitely do NOT advocate duplicating your entire household inventory, but for some very inexpensive and easy-to-store items, it does make a lot of sense to have more than one set. Does anyone else have any doubled items that make life easier for them?
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Hairbrushes. One in my room, one in the bathroom, one in my purse.
Ooh - that’s a good one!
Hi Teeni, I carry all that stuff with me in my toolbelt. I also wear a Batman cape to hide the sack of groceries attached to my back…lol!
LOL. Bobby, you are a nut. But a very smart nut to have such a wonderful toolbelt and cape. We don’t have to worry about you going hungry anyway.
“The wet foot that we feed our cats rarely gets eaten since they just lap up the gravy.”
You feed your cats feet? You know stinky feet is the leading killer of lolcats. LOL Ok, I’m sorry. That was wrong from the get-go.
We have doubles and even triples of tools, but yet most of them seem to find their way into the same place which is never where they are needed. LOL
Oops! That was a bad typo! LOL. My cats wouldn’t eat feet although Jam does like to give me affectionate nips when she is looking for attention.
I don’t like doubles of tools - for those there needs to be just one (or two if another size is necessary) of most things and it should have a “home” that it is always returned to so it can be found when needed. This applies to my packing tape dispenser and stapler and glue gun too. It can get too crazy too easily.
Hmmm. Our house is too small to have duplicates, methinks
If your house is that small, then yeah - you wouldn’t want duplicates because it would add clutter!
(PS, I love your meez with the cat. That is TOO CUTE!)
Thank you! She and I do share our love of cats. LOL.
If you find something works out well for you, buy a couple more (if you can afford it) so that you have a replacement if the first one breaks. These days, you can’t be sure that what you buy today will be available tomorrow! Or, they’ll redesign it, but it won’t be better.
Good advice, Dan. I hate when they redesign something you like and it ends up better the way it was.
I would think it’s important to have extra tupperware. I always need another…I never actually get around to the leftovers in the fridge, But it looks like we have food when you open the fridge door.
LOL. That’s a good one - I do have two sets of tupperware (or similar) storage containers. They come in handy all the time. I hear you about the leftovers. Some leftovers are better than others.
GREAT ideas, Auntie Teeni! You are so wise.
I have 2 toothbrushes. My ensuite bathroom is upstairs, but generally I am downstairs getting the kids ready when it’s time to brush my teeth, so I decided to get a 2nd toothbrush to keep in their bathroom
I really like the idea of magnetic salt & pepper shakers to keep on the fridge … I must keep an eye out for some!
Oh, that’s smart about the toothbrushes! Having two of those makes a lot of sense with two bathrooms!
I need to try and remember where I got mine!
You are the person I like to come to get my advice from. Who needs experts when we got teeni?
Now, there are some things I might still want to consult an expert for 
Wait moving salt shakers gives you gray hairs? 
Then remind me never to get old ok? Your blog is the only one i havevisited since my surgery! guess I cant get enough of you. Off to email you!
Emailed you back.
Hmmm…my house ain’t big enough for that kind of thing. I’d rather take it all down to singles…if you get my drift.
I hear you, Honeywine. Some things it makes sense to have more than one of and some things you don’t even want ONE of!
Yes, I agree, methinks our house is much too small for doubling up, but i sure have multiple combs, hahhaa, i always forget where i place them, in that case, if i don’t find one, there’s more in the house…
Combs are small - it’s good to have a few of those around.
Oh that is clever Teni! I like the magnet idea too…if I can fit another thing on the front of my fridge…lol!
My fridge is kind of crowded too and I don ‘t have any kids to blame it on! Actually, I just cleaned it off the other day and guess what? I have an overabundance of MAGNETS on the fridge and that is what is making it look cluttered! LOL.
Great tip, Teeni. We have extra sugar/creamer sets for when we eat outside. Comes in handy when we have company and have more than one of them on the go. Saves running back and forth to fill the cream container.
If it saves running back and forth then it is saving you time that you could be spending with your family/company.
In my bad old days of smoking, I had an ashtray in every room. Now I like to cut back on duplicates.
Ah, LOL. When I smoked, anything could be turned into an ashtray!
But I hear you about cutting back. It really only makes sense to duplicate things that are going to save you time for more important things.
I have a tube of hydracortizone cream in each room (dang mosquitoes), I have one litter box upstairs and one in the basement. I also have poo scoopers and dustpan/ brooms in each location.
We also “double up” on staple food items (we buy in bulk)… Nothing wrong with covering the bases right?
Oh - litter boxes!! How did I forget that? We have two also - one upstairs and one in the basement - just like you! And we also have scoopers at each location and trash areas nearby each location so we can keep them pretty fresh and scooped daily. And oh yeah, it just makes sense to stock up on staples especially if they are on sale.
Dang, spelled that wrong huh? My bad!
Oh, I found the dress I love from the blog post on ebay for cheap and it is in my size! I am excited but also worried that it is too good to be true…
Whoa! You already found the dress? I just finished reading your post a couple hours ago! LOL. You work FAST, my dear! I hope it turns out to be exactly the right dress for you.
I am with you on the salt and pepper shakers
We have no cats though and the kids, well, we do have several plates that they are “allowed” to eat off of…
LOL. Well, you know, when we buy a set of dishes - there are normally 8 or 12 in a set right? It’s not like we each only have one dish. So that, plus the fact that the dishes need to soak a bit, made it make sense for us to have a set of two dishes for each cat. Kids may possibly need more than that, though. I hear they can go through a bunch of them quickly!
You need to borrow our cat Sammi. We feed her and Syd wet food twice a day and whatever he doesn’t finish, she does. Obsessively.
I honestly don’t think we’ve cleaned the cat dishes more than a handful of times in the past year. And only then because I feel guilty because there is never any food in them. Not a trace.
She’s a machine.
Wow. I guess she likes to clean things up. LOL. I clean our cats dishes every day and it’s good that I do because they don’t always finish and it can attract ants into the house. I wonder if your Sammi is a fat cat or not and if she is indoors or let outside. I wonder how much of that affects their little odd behaviours.
I live in a travel trailer. A 34′ one. It is a very small home, but I find that I need at least three nail clippers–one for the bathroom, one for the kitchen and one for my purse. I also need at least three lip balms. I am forever losing those, even in this tiny house. And I have two sets of salt shakers so if I take one set outside to the picnic table and forget to bring it in, I still have salt and pepper in the kitchen.
Oh, sure - those things are small. It’s worth having a couple of pairs. I am like that with nail files - some in the bathroom, some in the living room, one everlasting one in the purse.
I always knew Bobby was off. And now I know why… Fighting crime can be very daunting.
Things I have more than one of : TVs!!! (I’m terrible I know) *sigh*
We have two (well actually we have five, one is totally dedicated to my “copying VHS tapes to DVD project,” one gets watched most often, one gets watched once in a while, and one for watching while on the treadmill and one that is not in use ). Crazy.
Shoes. But I have more than double of those…
You sure as heck do! LOL. But if you have that kind of closet, then you definitely should have shoes. I used to have tons of shoes like that, but I never had your awesome closet. Boy, I would have had fun with that baby!
Oh yes I doubled up on kids- well and then Julian came up and I didn’t want to even the score anymore.
LOL. So THAT’S how you ended up with an odd number. Poor Julian. LOL.
Teeni, you are remarkable! You simply take the most mundane of things and make it sound so interesting.
I was suddenly forced to think about this matter and I plead guilty! I just have too many things to list here. In fact, perhaps the time has come to junk some of them.
I am sure I’m not remarkable. I just have a good mind for simple things. LOL.
Isn’t it funny though how we end up with lots of duplicates but really it only makes sense to have them for certain things. Otherwise they are just clutter. And clutter really isn’t healthy.
I tried it with boyfriends once (since guys are often so unreliable you need a back-up!)
One day they both decided to turn up though and weren’t too impressed with my foresight and lateral thinking skills.
Ooops!
Yeah, that’s probably not a good idea. That sounds like a story that needs to be written though.
Let’s see, I’ve doubled up on shoes, dogs, cats,(except one got hit by a car and I haven’t replaced him yet),computers,pillow cases (I have managed to amass no less than 40 pillowcases - does that qualify me as ‘crazy pillowcase lady’?)and, yes, S&P shakers. Wow - I have 3 eating areas just like you (well, 4, actually - but the 4th can only be used in the summer).
I think you are going to have to do a picture post of all these pillowcases sometime.
Oh, we have a patio set outside for eating too that I didn’t count so we are still tied with the number of eating places. Yay - we’re twins! LOL.
For us it would be a set of tools. Nothing worse than needing a tool and have to go down to the basement and dig through John’s tools.
Oh, and I think there should be a computer in every room (wink). We also have three brooms, outside, kitchen and basement.
Tools need to be organized (not that mine are). But they really make a lot better use of your time if you can find them when you need them, right? Hmm. I think we have one indoor broom and a big push-sweeper broom outside.
lets see…
i have 2 kids
2 sets of salt and pepper (one for cooking, one for the table)
2 of all bathroom supplies (i keep one set packed in our travel bags so that there is no stress involved in packing for a weekend visit to my moms or an overnight visit for one of the kids to mimi’s house)
pacifiers! lots more than 2…but i always need to know where at least 2 are located!
2 sets of sheets for each bed (at least)
several tv’s (4 actually)
2 portable dvd players (goes back to the two kids and the frequent trips out of state to visit my mom and dad)
2 razors (hubs and i can’t/won’t share! ewww)
oh and…
2 computers! makes our house a happier place when hubs and i don’t have to share internet time!
okay, there are lots more i’m sure but i will bore you and overwhelm myself if i keep going!!!
LOL - wow, you do have a lot of duplicates! But I don’t blame you for not sharing on certain things.
That’s a good idea about the bathroom supplies to always have packed - it fits how you live and allows you to pick up and go. I like that and that is the kind of thing I was talking about when I said some duplicates save you precious time and aggravation.
I’ll have a double shot of whatever’s handy.
LOL.
I’m in a bachelor apartment, so basically it’s in front of the TV using a TV Tray. LOL
My salt n’ peppa’ is added in the kitchen before sitting my ass down.
But two fridges would be nice. One in the kitchen for food, and another by my computer to store cold beer.
Of all people, I thought you might have two sets of salt n peppa!
Sammi is a lean (bit of a paunch) indoor cat. But she used to be feral. She was born in the wild and lived under a house when she was a kitten. That might explain her obsessiveness.
Oh, yeah, that does explain a lot. I’d have issues if I lived under a house.
I’m glad she was able to get a real home with you. 
Lip balm… I’m a very big fan of it. So big that two just wouldn’t do it. I have some in every bag I own, and at work, and at a few select spots around the house.
Also? Two strawberry plants! It’s nearly summer, and they’re nearly ready to bear fruit! One’s a normal strawberry plant, and the other is a wild one, which will have smaller berries.
I’m jealous of your strawberry plants! Yum! I see a delicious summer headed your way!
And hey, you’ll be able to eat them with soft, moisturized lips! 
True True. Very excellent tips. We are always looking for the dang salt shaker
The one thing I really wish I had doubled up on is the children’s bedtime bears. My youngest in particular will NEVER go to sleep unless he has the bear in bed with him. The number of times I have been frantically searching the house, car, garden for this bear late at night just cos he won’t go to sleep without it. How much easier would it be if I had a spare stashed away in a cupboard and could find the “real” bear the next day!
i am too disorganised though.
Oh, that’s a really good one - it would have saved you tons of time and tears, I’m sure, to have doubles of those bears!
great tips, as always
Thanks, Diva! Good to see you.
My parents got me a Brita filter pitcher for my birthday and it is awesome. I want to get a second one to keep upstairs. I’d like an upstairs vacuum too.
Ooooh - that is a good idea about the Brita pitcher - put that on your gift list!!! An upstairs vacuum is good if you have the room for it - no more lugging up and down the stairs. Or central vac is okay too. Or maybe just a maid.
I grew up with a mom who liked to keep extra EVERYTHING handy.
It is a good thing(especially when the stuff is on sale!)
She has lately discovered Costco and was happily telling me about my niece bringing her container truckloads of toilet paper, soap, and non spoil able foods.. LOL.
LOL. My mom is the same way! She still buys things now just because they are on sale and “somebody MIGHT be able to use it.” And most of those items end up forgotten in her closet even when gift giving time comes so it just goes to show that some things are not worth it even when they are on sale.
Costco could be dangerous for people like that. LOL.