Things You Must Have In Multiples: A Poll and Confessional

[Ginevra]

This is jumping off from something I was reading about decluttering. It mentioned several things that people often have multiples of, citing that the multiples are unnecessary. This is a lie! ;) Whenever I read such things, I think they are clearly not moms and/or they live in a small space so one object is equally handy from any place in the small dwelling. There are certain things which I very intentionally have two of, sometimes more, because I want one to use while the other is dirty, or one to use on each floor of the house at minimum. I'll do a poll here, multiple choice, but I also don't mind hearing other things you keep in multiples on purpose, and your rational. :)

[Jean in Newcastle]

We have more than one person in this family.  We often do things at the same time.  So we use more than one measuring cup set while we're all working on projects in the kitchen.  Or we have multiple sets of scissors in use during school time.  We use more than one blanket because there is more than one person who is cold sitting on the couch. 

[Rosie_0801]

Veggie peelers. 

 

A good quality one for peeling pumpkins and a cheap one that is more convenient for everything else and that dd can use. She's allowed to use knives and pretty much always has been, but she's not allowed to use that pumpkin peeler!

[Guest]

Veggie peelers.

 

A good quality one for peeling pumpkins and a cheap one that is more convenient for everything else and that dd can use. She's allowed to use knives and pretty much always has been, but she's not allowed to use that pumpkin peeler!

YES! Two of them here as well, a great one and an adequate one. :)

[BooksandBoys]

Veggie peelers.

 

A good quality one for peeling pumpkins and a cheap one that is more convenient for everything else and that dd can use. She's allowed to use knives and pretty much always has been, but she's not allowed to use that pumpkin peeler!

What do you use for pumpkins???

[slackermom]

Nail clippers! When I was growing up, my family had only one set, and it was a hassle. It was an epiphany when I realized I could have multiples. No more hunting them down.

[BooksandBoys]

I would have more sunglasses if mine weren't prescription!

 

I've had tiny kitchens my entire adult life, until we moved into what I would consider an average kitchen a year ago. Due to this, I have a pretty minimal kitchen collection. Even so, I have two medium skillets (one for eggs, one for everything else), plus a cast iron skillet (can't use it for everyday because I keep moving into houses with glass top ovens). I do consider water bottles to be necessary in a minimum quantity of two per person, and I have two travel mugs of my own, though DH makes due with one. I now have two crock pots and am sooo happy!

 

I consider it a necessity to have a toilet brush and cleaning supplies in each bathroom.

[SKL]

I only clicked "good scissors," because someone is always taking them and leaving them in some random place.  I actually have about 20 scissors that were bought over the past 10 years or so, and I could probably find about 5 of them if I'm lucky.

 

I usually don't have more than one of something.  Even towels and sheets - I use the same ones until they are no longer serviceable.  I do keep a backup in case the laundry doesn't get done fast enough, but my backups happen to be linens my mom gave me like 25 years ago when I moved out.  :P

[Faithr]

The thing about the travel mugs is you definitely need at least two because your hands are too full of whatever amount of groceries, books, etc to remember to bring it in with you from the car. So then when you are dashing out the door in the a.m. And need caffeine to make you a safe driver, you realize it is still out in the car. So then you dash out, bring it back to soak in the sink and then quickly pull out your alternative travel mug and pour coffee into that one. It goes like that all week! Doesn't everybody need two travel mugs? At the very least!

[hjffkj]

Is this a one thing per household or person because there would be huge arguments if the kids only had one pair of scissors to share among them. From the list this is what I only have one of,

 

Holempunch, measuring cups, saucepan per size, sunglasses,travel mug/water bottle, winter coat/light jacket, crock pot. I've never felt like I was missing out on anything without owning a second of any of these. But if you try to take away one of my vacuums I will destroy you! I need my canister vacuum for the hardwood and my upright for my upstairs wall to wall carpet. Life got so much easier when I stopped sweeping downstairs.

[Ethel Mertz]

Staplers. I use them in more than one place.

 

Spatulas. Need at least two for when one is dirty.

 

Manual can openers.

 

Dust pans and brushes (one for each floor).

 

Flashlights - multiples.

 

And from your list: throws (we have more than one person), cats (one for each person), vacuum cleaners (one for each floor of the house), scissors (more than one person using them on more than one floor). I used to have more than one crockpot (different sizes) until I accidentally killed my crockpot and sandwich maker in one fell swoop.

 

We need more nail clippers.

[AmandaVT]

Sunglasses - my eyes are very sensitive to sunlight and I need sunglasses even on cloudy days, so I keep multiple (cheap) pairs in the car and house so I'm never without.

[Farrar]

Of course you need multiples... I mean, everyone needs extra sheets and blankets and pillows - how else would you serve guests or switch out the sheets without waiting all day for the laundry. You need multiples of anything that goes into a bathroom if you have more than one bathroom. You need more than one glass per person, more than one spoon and fork and knife per person. Goodness.

 

I'll also chip in any office supplies in general - more than one pencil, pen, notebook, etc. 

 

I find I need more than one kid.

 

So far I'm good on one house and one husband though. I do sometimes wish for more than one car, but we manage with one.

[BarbecueMom]

I'm a minimalist, but I do have a lot of scissors. They usually wander off or are covered in frozen yogurt squeeze goop. And we have extra travel mugs, water bottles, and chargers because DH tends to forget them at work. I'm sure one of the charging cords is in his work desk, but since we don't have a boat to get anywhere right now, I'm glad that we have extras at home.

 

I never thought about blankets. I do think we could pare those down. They never get used, except as cat fur collectors. Only one cat, though.

[Word Nerd]

If I didn't have multiple scissors, I'd never be able to find any of them! They are frequently "liberated" from their storage place. And I can't use the ones DD uses for her duct tape projects.

Edited December 31, 2015 by Word Nerd

[regentrude]

I have two hole punches: one for American three ring binders, and one for German two ring binders. The systems are not compatible.

 

For several of the items you listed, one is most definitely insufficient:

We have multiple water bottles because we need multiple water bottles; one is not sufficient on a hike.

I have several pots, some of identical sizes, because I frequently need several pots for the same meal.

I have different winter coats that serve different purposes - I don't go hiking in my black wool coat and I don't wear my water resistant snow coat with a skirt to work.

 

The items I have most duplicates of are pens and mugs. They tend to procreate in the house. I have way more than I need, even for extra people.

 

But I am astonished that people have checked owning several vacuum cleaners. Really?

Edited December 31, 2015 by regentrude

[Julie Smith]

When we go on a trip we take at least 6 water bottles with us, and drain them all before we arrive at our final destination. 

 

I do keep a few pairs of sunglasses; jacket pocket, car, by the front door. I'm never sure where I will be when I have a need for them. 

 

Throw blankets move around a bunch, and we have several locations where it is nice to have them. They are also sometimes all used at once. As in multiple people using them, or just a few boys using them for fort building. 

 

I keep a charging cord for my iPad in one place, and another in my traveling bag. 

 

 

[The Girls' Mom]

I checked all but three.  (although technically I guess I do have more than one of the same size saucepan, but one is cast iron and the other stainless steel)

I have multiples of A LOT of things.  Heck, I even have multiple 15 year olds (haha)

 

Life is just easier when I don't have to share ;)

 

[Julie Smith]

One funny thing we do have multiples of are electric woks. 

 

My Dh has fond memories of his mother cooking things in an electric wok. We have had a few over the years, but he rarely uses them. I think it's been at least 5 years since he used one. But he has 3, perhaps 4. ... Because whenever someone offers him one he says, "Oh ya. I want one. They are great."

 

I finally convinced him that 3 unused electric woks is enough. 

[Garga]

I answered the poll for some items personally, like whether or not I, myself, have more than 1 vacuum.

 

But for some items, I answered whether or not we had more than 1 per family member. For example, it would be logical to have 1 throw for each family member. So if we have only 4 throws then we do not have duplicates, in my mind. But since we have well more than 4 throws, we most certainly do have duplicates.

 

Since we have only 1 travel mug per person, I voted that we did not have duplicate mugs.

 

I voted that we have duplicate scissors because there are 4 of us in the house, but there are 6 pairs of scissors.

 

I agree with you, Quill, that people who write those articles are a bit goofy. Sure, we could have only 1 set of measuring cups, but what a pain when you're baking a lot of stuff or cooking many recipes at the same time. Or running all around the house to grab the scissors. Since they're used in different locations, it sort of makes sense to have a pair in each location.

Edited December 31, 2015 by Garga

[Guest]

Of course you need multiples... I mean, everyone needs extra sheets and blankets and pillows - how else would you serve guests or switch out the sheets without waiting all day for the laundry. You need multiples of anything that goes into a bathroom if you have more than one bathroom. You need more than one glass per person, more than one spoon and fork and knife per person. Goodness.

 

I'll also chip in any office supplies in general - more than one pencil, pen, notebook, etc.

 

I find I need more than one kid.

 

So far I'm good on one house and one husband though. I do sometimes wish for more than one car, but we manage with one.

Sometimes one of those is more than enough...

[Guest]

I have two hole punches: one for American three ring binders, and one for German two ring binders. The systems are not compatible.

 

For several of the items you listed, one is most definitely insufficient:

We have multiple water bottles because we need multiple water bottles; one is not sufficient on a hike.

I have several pots, some of identical sizes, because I frequently need several pots for the same meal.

I have different winter coats that serve different purposes - I don't go hiking in my black wool coat and I don't wear my water resistant snow coat with a skirt to work.

 

The items I have most duplicates of are pens and mugs. They tend to procreate in the house. I have way more than I need, even for extra people.

 

But I am astonished that people have checked owning several vacuum cleaners. Really?

I have more than one vacuum cleaner. I have one upright that cleans the carpet upstairs like nobody's business. But I also have an old canister that I like just for the tools/hose attachments. It never did clean carpets well, though. I also have a Roomba...

[Runningmom80]

Winter coats and charging devices.

[Guest]

Is this a one thing per household or person because there would be huge arguments if the kids only had one pair of scissors to share among them. From the list this is what I only have one of,

 

Holempunch, measuring cups, saucepan per size, sunglasses,travel mug/water bottle, winter coat/light jacket, crock pot. I've never felt like I was missing out on anything without owning a second of any of these. But if you try to take away one of my vacuums I will destroy you! I need my canister vacuum for the hardwood and my upright for my upstairs wall to wall carpet. Life got so much easier when I stopped sweeping downstairs.

The article wasn't speaking to whether it meant per person or per household; probably depends on the item from the author's perspective. Honestly, I have multiples of everything on the list. There is a logic for each item, though...measuring cups - if I'm doing some heavy baking, I don't want to wash out the honey-filled 1/2 c measure so I can now measure flour or something. ;) Crockpots are not crucial and I could manage with just one, but they are different sizes and they have been handy for parties.

 

Two cats are definitely necessary. :D

[Annie G]

Brooms. I have four! One for upstairs, one downstairs, one for the unfinished basement and one in the garage. 

[Baseball mom]

Nail clippers! When I was growing up, my family had only one set, and it was a hassle. It was an epiphany when I realized I could have multiples. No more hunting them down.

Santa brought everyone their own pair of nail clippers this year.  I am tired of looking all over for a pair of clippers.

 

We have multiple of lots of things.  Some I need to go through and get rid of.  Some I like having more than 1 of.

 

Like water bottles.  I like having them for sporting events, travel and when there is a yard full of boys. 

 

And we have way to many throws/blankets but I still won't get rid of them ;)

[HRAAB]

One thing on your list that I do have two of but could get along with one if I had to is a vacuum. One for upstairs and one down. I hate dragging that heavy Kirby up and down stairs. Not necessary but nice.

 

I have multiple pans of the same size, measuring cups/spoons, peelers, scissors. I use all of them.

[HS Mom in NC]

I own 3 veggie peelers.  We often have 2 in use at the same time and on Thanksgiving all 3 are peeling 10 pounds of potatoes at the same time.

[Ottakee]

We have multiples of a lot of things.

 

I have 6 pairs of boots.....muck boots, insulated riding much boots, old cowboy boots, newer cowboy boots and the new ones along with winter boots. They all have their purpose and I wear boots 1-8 hours a day every single day they are well used.

 

Same with winter coats....I have a parka (rarely used but needed for bad weather), insulated barn coveralls, insulated barn jacket and bib set, wind check barn coat, and a windproof lighter weight coat for skiing. Again, they all have unique uses and are used a lot.

[JoJosMom]

We have multiples of a lot of things.

 

I have 6 pairs of boots.....muck boots, insulated riding much boots, old cowboy boots, newer cowboy boots and the new ones along with winter boots. They all have their purpose and I wear boots 1-8 hours a day every single day they are well used.

 

Same with winter coats....I have a parka (rarely used but needed for bad weather), insulated barn coveralls, insulated barn jacket and bib set, wind check barn coat, and a windproof lighter weight coat for skiing. Again, they all have unique uses and are used a lot.

 

This. So this.

[PeacefulChaos]

I voted, here is what I think:

 

Scissors - two is good. Obviously it depends on the type of good scissors - I don't have 2 for cutting fabric but I do have 2 for cutting meat, so there is always at least one clean.

Measuring cups - use these for everything, so 2 sets.

Saucepan - 2 of each size except unusual ones, for the rare occasion that I need two the same size :)

Travel coffee mugs - an absolute must. In case my favorite one isn't clean when I need it again. And then one more - dh's favorite.

Throw blankets - one? Are you kidding? :lol: One per chair - yes. One per kid -yes. :D

Charging cords - not intentionally originally, but I love having an extra. That way there are can be one in the car, or one staying at the computer.

 

:)

[Tap]

Scissors, but I have certain ones for specific purposes. 

 

Measuring spoons because I purposefully leave full cup size in the flour, half cup in sugar, quarter cup in the brown sugar, etc.  

 

Coats...Im a North Face junky!  I have at least 10. I wear them all though, so they don't go to waste.  I often wear the fleece jackets all day long and then add a waterproof shell over that as needed.  

 

waterbottles, for obvious reasons.....we often need more than one at a time.

 

Charging cords.  We all have Samsung phones which use a standard micro USB, so there are cords all over our house and in each car.  They charge all the tablets, phones and various other things. 

 

[Arcadia]

I have a charging cord for my phone in my often used handbags. My phone battery is half-dead so flat by noon and we are usually out for the whole day. I charge my phone at the library while we are there.

 

I do have two hole punches, one for two hole A4 and one for three hole letter size. I counted as one of each.

 

I also have a car vacumm and a canister vacumm but I counted them separately. Looks like I need to re-vote.

 

I am scared of cold. Anything to do with cold weather I have at least triplicates.

 

ETA:

Re-voted since I count kitchen scissors and paper scissors separately too.

Edited December 31, 2015 by Arcadia

[Rosie_0801]

What do you use for pumpkins???

 

A domesticated beast with TEETH.

 

 

It's Titan brand. :)

[TechWife]

I have multiples of: 

scissors - because it is more efficient to have them where I am using them and not have to go hunting around for them

measuring cups - because recipes can be complicated and we often have two people cooking different things at the same time

measuring spoons - same reason as measuring cups

throw blankets - because there are three of us in the house, and I have some sentimental quilts, and the cats need their own

duplicate saucepans - same reason as measuring cups and spoons

cats - one per family member

 

One thing not on your list - am I the only person who has multiple pairs of reading glasses? I am resisting wearing them on a chain around my neck on the basis that it would make me feel old, so I basically have a pair in every room, plus one in my purse and one in my car. 

 

 

[Rosie_0801]

Bottles of vinegar and oil. I feel sad if I don't have at least six of each.

[prairiewindmomma]

ice-cream scoops

 

We have the a variety of ice creams in the house to accommodate food issues, and I don't want to have to keep rewashing scoops as I serve everyone.

 

 

[Reefgazer]

One water bottle; are they for real? We've got about a dozen!

[Whereneverever]

I'll fess to having six cats. They're not all inside, though, because some are barn cats. And since we live rurally that's not excessive, it's reasonable. ;) 

[zoobie]

There are 4 pair of scissors in the bucket next to my sewing machine. 3 next to my embroidery machine. Nobody touches Mama's scissors. There are eleventy pair of regular scissors wandering the house that they may use if they can find one.

[LMD]

We have billions of scissors, I can never find any though...

 

We have 2 vacuum cleaners! A main one and a little portable one for the car.

[Corraleno]

I checked everything except sunglasses (mine are prescription) and cats (but I do have more than one dog!).

Someday when I'm dead and my kids are clearing out the house, they will probably find 200 pairs of scissors. I have no idea where they go, I just keep buying more and they keep disappearing.  :confused1:

[Ms.Ivy]

I have multiple vacuum cleaners, but they are all small lightweight ones.  We don't have carpet, and with 10 people in the house all day, the floors get super crummy.  We have to do a quick vacuum every evening, and I usually assign a kid to each room with a little vac.  It's much easier for them to handle than a broom.    I also have a good dozen scissors and nail clippers and lots of throw blankets.  We don't have central heating in our house.  We may have a lot of multiples of items, but we have many multitudes of people to make up for it.  haha

[TrixieB]

Raincoats.

 

I have my nice, new, clean, waterproof raincoat that I can wear with good jeans, a skirt, etc.

 

And I have my no longer very waterproof raincoat that leaks around the neck (a thick scarf solves that problem), had a few run-ins with barbed wire and blackberry vines, and is great for geocaching a/k/a scrambling around in the woods.  Another rip, more stains, no problem.

Edited December 31, 2015 by TrixieB

[Slache]

None of the above! Do I win?

[HeWillSoar]

Cooking thermometers

[happypamama]

I have duplicates of regular scissors so I can keep them in multiple places but just one pair of sewing shears. Multiple pairs of kid scissors, but one is a lefty pair for my 4yo.

 

Duplicates of measuring cups and spoons, small paring knives, 2 qt. saucepans, stock pots, and 9x13 pans. It's not uncommon for me to use all three 9x13 pans in a day, like one for baked oatmeal in the morning and two for fish or chicken for dinner.

 

I have multiple cats, although that's not really my choice or preference.

 

I keep multiples of retractable tape measures because my toddler likes to play with them, and they don't last forever, and they get lost. I also keep multiples of knitting needle cords and row counters because I often have several projects going on and because things migrate into small corners.

 

One water bottle per person. The big kids and DH each have a couple of pottery mugs that they like and use interchangeably, but I'm partial to my one specific mug and use it every single morning.

 

Multiple charging cords. We have several of the one kind that several devices use, in different spots around the house, but even though my iPad is the only device that uses the one charger, I have at least three of them so I can charge it in different places (kitchen, at my desk in the schoolroom, and my side of the bed) without unplugging extension cords and all.

 

Multiple computers but only one tv. When we sold our last place, it was to a family with two little kids (like 3 and 7 or so). The whole house was only 1800 square feet, three bedrooms, and as they were unloading (we were getting the last of our things), they moved in a big screen tv for the living room, a tv for the family room, a tv for the parents' bedroom and a tv for the older boy's bedroom. I thought that was a lot of tvs!

[mamiof5]

Lol! We actually don't have that many from your list, just a few. We also have writing/coloring supplies, toys, flashlights, decorations (more than one Santa, Nativity set, just bought a second Christmas tree, etc). No cats here. The list is endless ;)

[Carrie12345]

Measuring cups/spoons and cats.

I do own multiple scissors, but one each for various functions, so I don't consider them multiple.

 

With 2 daughters, Christmas has brought in 3 LED nail lamps, but they're not mine.

[Carrie12345]

 plus a cast iron skillet (can't use it for everyday because I keep moving into houses with glass top ovens). 

 

Nonsense!

You just have to be reeeeeally careful about moving it around!