Lifestyle
Originally published on Tuesday, 3rd June 2008
A Helping Hand
You work hard; you play even harder. And somewhere in the middle of all the craziness, you’re meant to live a healthy life: eat properly, dress well, spend time with your family, manage your finances, stay in shape, have a gorgeous home… Oh, and did I mention making time for love, sanity and happiness? I didn’t? Well those too.
It’s a lovely idea to think that you can manage everything yourself. But sometimes we all need a little helping hand. Here, then, are a few of our favourite services that are essential to making life more bearable:
Errandsetc: Consider it done
Sometimes things just pile up on us – unreturned DVDs, unsent post, unpaid bills - if you’re a perpetual procrastinator now you can delegate those tasks online, no matter how big or small.
Errands Etc
Knowledge Dock,
4-6 University Way,
University of East London, E16 2RD
02070603234
The Bedmakers: Out of bed sleepy head
Too busy for clean socks and no time to de-crumb your sheets? Let the bedmakers do the dirty work; they’ll launder, dry-clean, and even change your bed linen.
The Bedmakers Ltd ,
53 Greencroft Gardens
NW6 3LL
0207 209 8776
Unflatpack.com: Fuss-free furniture
You wanted a bedside table, and, while suspicious of the flat box it came in, you remained optimistic and thought it might be a pop-up. Error – welcome to the world of flat pack, where nails, screws, instructions, and a good working knowledge of the Alphabet (insert screw D into hole G) are essential. Screw it and hire an expert to ensure your table gets its legs in the right place and you get to keep your sanity. Fair trade.
Unflatpack.com
0207 460 2600
The Handy Squad: Mister Fix-It
If you’re still struggling with the difference between a screw in lightbulb and a turn-and-click, let alone complicated home procedures like tiling, grouting, and general fixing, the handymen will come to the rescue for all your household needs. Behave ladies.
Handysquad.com
08000 121212
The Geek Squad: Technology Emergencies
Computer freezing, pop-ups plaguing, hair-tearing out internet exasperation? If you’ve control-alt-deleted yourself to the brink of madness call the geeks – they can fix things over the phone, come to your house, and even take control of your mouse remotely down your internet connection – you don’t even have to move.
Geeksquad.co.uk
0800 049 6190
British Invisible Mending Service: Clothing mending
Yes, that cashmere sweater is more holey than the Pope himself, but you love it and the emotional value of some things just make them worth keeping. These guys use a 200 year old method of stitching which magically restores clothes former lustre - 24 hour turnaround available.
Invisible Mending
32 Thayer St, W1U 2QT
0207 487 4292
Any Junk: Ridding you of rubbish
Professional waste disposal experts who will clear out any mess you’ve made in your house or garden, take it off in their van, and even dispose of it responsibly to charity shops and recycling facilities. And they promise to clean up after themselves so you’re not left with additional mess.
Anyjunk.co.uk
0800 0431 007
PA4Pets: Man’s best friend
Pets have needs to you know – this service will be there for them when you can’t be – from organising emergency vet visits and meeting your beloved with a pet taxi, grooming and feeding needs, to petsitting and bereavement counselling, they’ll even send you reminders about your pets vaccination dates and arrange appointments. And should you lose your best friend, they’ll help you look, make posters, and check with the police – or else they can give expert advice on finding a new furry friend.
PA4Pets.co.uk
0208 987 3153
Telewakeup: Wakey wakey!
If you’re useless as getting up in the morning let these guys give you a ring – they can also remind you of important dates, tell you when you need to renew your prescriptions, and let you know when that eBay bargain is hitting its final bidding minutes. They’ll even phone your friends to wake them up or remind them they’re seeing you tonight – what a treat.
Perfect Clean: Post party damage control
Hangovers are bad enough, the after party mess is just unfair. Call in the experts to sanitise, clear away and rearrange your things while you nurse your headache. They’ll also do after-builders cleaning, spring cleaning, end-of-tenancy cleaning, and should you become entirely dependent on them, regular house cleaning visits.
Perfectclean.co.uk
0800 195 7848