List updated February 2023 🙂

So I’m back with my Home Front list, finally. Please forgive my delay, since we last spoke and I talked of calmness and space to think, I’ve unexpectedly moved house (this place will be long term, the chickens wouldn’t forgive me if they moved for a 5th time in a year) which we all know is a really relaxing activity.

So where were we?

Ah yes, I had realised that, although I knew I wanted to use my love of WW2 and the lessons I could learn from it to make my life a little brighter, I didn’t actually have a plan for how I was going to do it in practise. I had a vague idea of make do and mend and dig for victory but nothing concrete so I decided I had to go away and write a list of what I loved about the Home Front, which I would then work out how to slip them in to my every day life with the ultimate aim of living a happier, healthier, greener life.

And a few month later, here is it! My list of what I want to bring back from the Home Front, starting with:

1. Choose bike over car
2. Holiday at home
3. Use Trains (especially steam)
4. Get more fresh air
5. No single use plastics
6. Stop wasting energy
7. No food waste
8. Make mindful purchases
9. Eat inseason and local
10. Grow as much as possible
11. Have a capsule wardrobe
12. Make do and mend
13. Bring your own cup
14. Buy secondhand
15. Read as much as you can
16. Less processed diet
17. Make more homemade meals
18. Choose radio over TV
19. Look after yourself
20. Careless talk costs lives
21. Have a sense of purpose
22. Learn first aid
23. Keep chickens
24. Channel the Mass Observation diaries and journals
25. Appreciate the small things
26. Go to the cinema
27. Embrace ingenuity
28. Go dancing
29. Be part of clubs and communities
30. Have a milkman
31. Use loose tea and tea pots
32. Have no credit/debts
33. Use pencils over pens
34. Use toothpaste in a box
35. Listen to Brass bands
36. Use a shopping baskets
37. Knit and Crochet
38. Reuse as much as possible
39. Live in season
40. Make chutneys and Jams
41. Forage and feed
42. Make picnics
43. Get involved
44. Wear more headscarves
45. Dress up for going out
46. Drink more water
47. Give blood
48. Eat less meat and more pulses
49. Get to know your neighbours
50. Play boardgames and puzzles
51. Use the library
52. Visit museums and galleries
53. Make your own clothes
54. Shop local
55. Spend time offline
56. Be organised
57. Recycle everything you can
58. Eat more potatoes

I will add more as I think of them so expect this list to grow as I go along and possibly tweaked a little as I start to try them out. I’ve numbered the list so I can easily cross reference back to them on my instagram or within blog posts ( I might even make a spreadsheet THE JOY)

My plan now is to try and bring at least one of this list into my life every day documenting it on my insta, and then each month I’ll document how I’m getting on and whether this little challenge is making my life a little happier, healthier and greener.

Please check out #homefrontsolutions on insta to keep up to date with how I’m getting along and I’d love to hear any more ideas you’ve got or your own

Side note, I just want to add in case anyone gets the wrong idea, although I love the 1940’s and some of its values, there are many, many parts of the war and the wider society from that I don’t like and won’t be championing to bring back. That crap can stay very much in the past and won’t have any place in this blog or on my socials.

Here and Now 1. Choose bike over car 10. Grow as much veg as possible 11. Have a capsule wardrobe 12. Make do and mend 13. Bring your own cup 14. Buy secondhand 15. Read as much as you can 16. Less processed diet 17. Make More Homemade Meals 18. Choose radio over TV 19. Look after yourself 2. Holiday at home 20. Careless talk costs lives 21. Have a sense of purpose 22. Learn first aid 23. Keep chickens 24. Channel the Mass Observation diaries and journals 25. Appreciate the Small Things 26. Go to the cinema 27. Embrace ingenuity 28. Go dancing 29. Be part of clubs and communities 3. Use Trains 30. Have a milkman 31. Use Loose Tea and Tea Pots 32. Have no credit/debts 33. Use pencils over pens 34. Use toothpaste in a box 35. Listen to Brass bands 36. Use a shopping baskets 37. Knit and Crochet 4. Get more fresh air 5. No Single Use Plastics 6. Stop wasting energy 7. No food waste 8. Make mindful purchases 9. Eat Inseason and Local