Spring cleaning is upon us and there are many ways to go about sprucing up your abode. Two of the ideas I want to share today are the following:
1. Use the ever so typical “Spring Cleaning List”. You can even go green with this one!
2. Take the time to evaluate you and your home with a little organization.
Here is a list that will give you the basics, deep clean and traditional tasks.
Basics
Dust all surfaces/edges
Vacuum all floors/edges
Wash all floors/baseboards
Wipe switches/door knobs
Clean appliances
Wash bathroom counters/scrub toilets, tubs and showers
Spot clean walls
Wash vents
Wash pillows & throw rugs
Clean washer & dryer
Launder & change bedding
Vacuum/rotate/flip mattress
Deep Cleaning
Vacuum Lampshades
Clean fans/lights
Dust door tops/wash doors
Clean carpets
Clean fireplace and hearth
Clean under appliances
Clean kitchen appliances
Traditional
Vacuum/wash porches
Change furnace filters
Defrost freezer
Wash curtains
Wash windows inside & out plus window tracks
Oil furniture
Deep clean oven
If you are going to go green this spring, here are a few basic “recipes” and techniques to get you started:
- Glass: Mix ¼ cup vinegar with 1 quart of water in a spray bottle. Spray on glass and wipe clean with old newspaper or a lint-free cloth.
- Countertops and bathroom tile: Mix 2 parts viegar and 1 part baking soda with 4 parts water. Apply with a sponge, scour, and wife away.
- Floors: Mix 4 cups of white distilled vinegar with about a gallon of hot water. If desired, add a few drops of pure peppermint or lemon oil for a pleasant scent. After damp mopping the floors, the smell of vinegar will dissipate quickly, leaving behind only the scent of the oil.
- Toilet bowl cleaner: Sprinkle a toilet brush with baking soda and scrub away! Occasionally disinfect your toilet be scrubbing with borax instead. Wipe the outside of the toilet clean with straight vinegar.
- Disinfectant: Mix 2 teaspoons borax, 4 tablespoons vinegar, 3 cups hot water, and ¼ teaspoon liquid castile soap. Wife on with dampened cloth or use a spray bottle. Wipe clean.
- Air Freshener: Sprinkle essential oil on a cotton ball, and stash it in a corner of the room making sure it is out of reach of kids. The oils are very strong and could irritate their skin. Ideas are lavender, cinnamon, clove and citrus. You can even try peppermint in your car, which may help you stay alert.
Let’s talk organization now. It doesn't have to cost a fortune to organize your home.
In fact, it doesn't have to cost more than a few bucks and a little work. And if your home is organized and tidy, you've already made the first step toward easier and faster spring cleaning.
If you prefer hooks over hangers, dropping over folding and bins without lids, then you're are categorized as a “shover”. You typically are broad organizers not granular ones. You prefer open space and believe that less categorization is better for you. In this case then you need to get products that work for your organizational style such as items that can sit on a desk or attach to a wall and are perfect for organizing tabletops. These ideas and tools can easily be found by checking out pinterest. For example, you can use your used cereal boxes for easy organization in your drawers.
If you haven’t used something or worn it in two years, then GET RID OF IT! These items take up valuable space and probably won’t be missed. There are a multitude of items that are sitting in your home right now that other people could be using, and right now they are just collecting dust. Take pictures of your used treasures and post them on craigslist, you may not even realize what your stuff is worth! You can do this by sorting and purging. If you can’t decide what to keep and what to toss, make like and don’t like boxes. Once you see your things next to each other that are similar, you might find it easier to get rid of.
Even if you think you've used up every last inch of storage, there's probably a little more space that's just hiding from view. Take for instance, that gigantic cooking pot that you used three times in the last seven years. It's great for stashing July Fourth, Christmas or Halloween paper goods. You can also use cake stands and covers for storing cake decorating tips and sprinkles; large Tupperware cake totes for stashing extra sugar and flour sacks; and empty space in pantry, linen and clothing closets for undershelf baskets.
Good luck this spring! !
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