Vintage Homemaking Routines That Still Work Today (Make Your Own)

Learn how to create an old-fashioned homemaking routine that works for the modern world.

Homemaking schedules are all over the internet, but today I want to focus on how to create your own, custom homemaking routine. Using a combination of vintage ideas and new tricks, you will have a daily, weekly, and seasonal household work schedule.

I have had two approaches to homemaking schedules over the years: not having one, and doing things as needed, and having one, obsessing over it, and letting it rule my life.

💕 First thoughts

stop aimlessly housekeeping

When I first started out as a homemaker, I thought taking care of my baby was my one job.  The housekeeping part was an afterthought.

I reacted to what needed to be done: laundry and cleaning as needed. I never organized, decluttered or planned ahead. I at least got dinner made, but I was still learning my husband’s tastes and spent a lot of time making complicated things no one really wanted. (Stupid craft projects, fancy desserts from scratch, sewing projects that were terrible and had to be thrown out.)

I went shopping a lot too, even though we had very little extra money. I just wasn’t sure exactly what I should be doing.

Don’t let the homemaking schedule control you

Five years, more kids, and different houses later. I read a book that convinced me a homemaking routine would be worth it. I liked the vintage aspects of it, and it just appealed to my controlling nature. I had a newborn in the house, and it was not the right time to attempt something so strict.

But I decided to embark on a deep cleaning and organized house. So I downloaded some weekly printables and set myself on the schedule.

Laundry day was Monday, so I would wait until Monday to do ALL the laundry and turn it into a big production.

Cleaning day was Friday, so I would vacuum and dust the whole house. I would add on a deep cleaning project like windows. I would get panicky if all the laundry didn’t get done on Monday. I developed a weird habit of grinding my teeth because I was so worked up over the whole thing. It was very silly.  My homemaking schedule was seriously stressing me out.

To be fair, the book emphasized being flexible with yourself, adjusting the schedule, and not letting it rule your life. I just didn’t listen.

staying flexible

It was just recently that I was contemplating abandoning the whole thing. I still liked many aspects of it, though. My house was clean and company ready. But it was ruling me, not helping me. I started tweaking deep cleaning the kitchen a bit every day instead of once a week. I did laundry all throughout the week. I used laundry day to do as many loads as possible and clean the laundry room. Instead of deep cleaning and weekly cleaning on cleaning day, I kept the house clean all week, did a deep cleaning chore 3-5 times a week, and went over the whole house with a vacuum and damp cloth on cleaning day. I found I just prefer to do things bit by bit. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t still follow the schedule…. I just use it to get ahead, instead of catching up.

daily work is the backbone

If you save up all your work for a cleaning or laundry day, you are making your life harder.  Instead of letting work pile up, tackle it as soon as possible and things will seem easier.

Keep the house picked up, do a load of laundry when you wake up, run the dishwasher every night and sweep the floor before bed every day.  These things take less than five minutes but maintaining your house this way means that it is always presentable and will not be stressing you out.

There will be days, and sometimes weeks, that this is all you can do, and that’s okay!  But the real magic of a vintage homemaking routine is in the weekly tasks that help you get ahead of the housework.

 

Once you have started maintaining your home through daily tasks, it is time to think about more “in-depth” housekeeping that you can do on a designated day.  Try to think of things you could knock out for the week, which will be a gift to yourself, like a freezer stocked with prepared meals or a whole week of activities planned out.  

Here are my days, which you could just copy for yourself, or you could think of your own:

My vintage housekeeping schedule: weekly theme days

Monday: Laundry Day

 All the laundry I can do, combining loads if necessary to get the baskets empty.  I always do linens on this day too. This way if I have a busy week ahead and can’t get laundry done, I am not behind. I also clean the laundry room. Just wiping it down, not a big production. Now Tuesday through Sunday, I am still doing laundry if I have time and tidying up the mudroom bit by bit. I am not intentionally leaving it for Monday.

Tuesday: Baking Day

Preparing things ahead of time to stock in the fridge or freezer. Sandwich rolls almost every week, as they are a staple. Cookie dough to freeze, salad dressing, meatballs to freeze, occasionally chili or lasagna. In hot weather, I will marinate a few things to grill later in the week, make ice cream or popsicles, or can something. We usually have pizza on Thursdays, so I make the dough and put it in the fridge.

Wednesday: Projects and Presents  

This used to be my sewing day, but now it is more general crafting. I sew, cross stitch, or make soap.  If there is painting or decorating I want to get done, like hanging pictures or something, I will do it on this day. If we have a party coming up that needs decorations, I work on them. If there are gifts that need to be wrapped for that weekend or letters written, I get it done. I keep a Pinterest board of projects I want to try.  

Thursday: Errand Day

Now that I am no longer driving into town for preschool, it makes sense to combine errands. I do the grocery store, library every week, and sometimes the bank or post office. I try to stock up as much as makes sense. That way, if for some reason I can’t get to the store, the world will not end.

Friday: Cleaning day

Hopefully, the house is pretty clean daily from my general tidying up. But on Fridays, I vacuum and dust everywhere, including bedrooms, steps, halls, etc. It doesn’t take long. Sometimes I move furniture and all that, but mostly not.

Saturday and Sunday: Paper and Planning Day

I make a meal plan for the next week and write down any important dates for that week, like appointments, visits, etc, using one of my weekly planning sheets. I also straighten the bookshelves. I go through my kids baskets or school papers, throwing out most of it and saving what I need. This is just a few minutes at a time over the course of the weekend.

Some other themed days to add to your own routine:

Now obviously, you can’t add all of these and keep the ones above. But maybe your family is small, and you don’t need a dedicated laundry day, or you live in town and do one small errand a day. Here are some other task days that might be helpful. You get the idea.

Garden Day:

Work in the garden, tidy up outside, wash the car, organize the garage, and prune shrubs.

Office Day:

If you homeschool or have a home business, maybe you need a few hours a week to plan ahead and get ahead of your work

Deep Clean and Organize Day:

This sounds terrible to me! But if you don’t like the idea of deep cleaning a bit every day, maybe dedicating a day of the week to get those tasks done would work.

Kids Day:

A day to organize the kid’s toys and craft supplies. Pull some out for the upcoming week to keep them interested. Request from the library some new books for them. Research a realistic craft project to do with them over the weekend, and make sure you have the supplies. Make sure their sports equipment, uniforms, and seasonal things are all in good shape and buy what you need.

The point is, that everyone’s schedule will look different, depending on your family, your workload, and personal preference.

Putting it all together

Now that you have picked the five or six focus days you want to do, it’s time to plan when to do them. Think about what days are already busy for you with after-school activities and other commitments, and try to put light or flexible days there. My local grocery stores are always crowded on Fridays and weekends, so I avoid them on those days. On Fridays, cleaning day is good for me in case we have weekend guests. Keep things like this in mind.

Write it down.

Keep life flexible

And here is the crucial part:

Some days I don’t do any of the weekly tasks. Someone is sick, or we are visiting friends, or the weather is terrible, and we want to go to the craft store, or the weather is beautiful, and we want to be outside all day. Or a shipment of berry bushes has arrived and we need to plant them, or an out-of-town guest is here. Or maybe we just don’t feel like it.

When this happens, there is no need to cry or lose sleep. That was the point of it…to get ahead of the housekeeping. Now when life happens, nothing goes awry. I just get right back into it next week and eat one of those meals tucked away in the freezer. No catching up later in the week is allowed. Cleaning day will come along again.  

As long as days off are the exception rather than the rule, things flow just fine.

Want a printable to help you organize your routine?

If it makes your life harder, something is wrong

Don’t read this and think you are adding a ton of work to your day. It’s all stuff already getting done, just more organized now. Now instead of those bad days when all of a sudden tons of laundry needs to be done, the house is a mess and guests are coming, and there’s nothing to eat, things will be done a bit at a time.

I can promise you, from experience, that doing the overworked martyr act will get you no sympathy and is not attractive.  A routine should help your life feel easier and your household run more smoothly.  That way, you have time to relax and still feel like you are being productive and getting things done.

So I hope you can find a system that works for you. Just write out your days, get started, and go from there. 

I hope this helps you in some way!