Tis the season to clean and purge. Before the holidays cave in on you like a ton of bricks, and family and friends come knocking, it’s a good idea to spend some time getting your house clean and organized.
Here are some tips to get you started:
Stuffed Animals: It’s a zoo in here. My daughter owns more than 100 stuffed animals, and while experts suggest that I vacuum them on a weekly basis, I prefer to throw them in the dryer once a month at a high-setting to kill germs.
Countertops: Laminate and solid-surface areas are easiest to clean with all-purpose cleaner. However, to cut down on cleaning time opt for countertops with a granite-look or flecked pattern, which do a great job of hiding stains and spills.
Blinds: Mini blinds are dust magnets, which can be cleaned with dust cloths or paper towels sprayed with Pledge. However, to reduce cleaning time, replace mini blinds with roller shades, Roman shades or cellular (honeycomb) shades, which often are treated with a dust-resistant finish.
Hooks: Consider replacing the towel bars in your bathrooms with pegs or hooks. It eliminates having to keep towels neatly folded. Plus, your kids will be more likely to hang towels on hooks rather than trying to get them to stay on bars.
Consolidate: Instead of scattering your collection of glass figurines around the room, display them together in a centralized location, be it a hutch or an ornate tray. The display will be more appealing and the collection easier to clean. Or consider reducing your collections. It takes a lot less time to clean one big snow globe than five little ones.
Scents: If you can’t make it look clean, at least make it smell clean. Keep scented dryer sheets in closets and drawers; you could even place them behind sofa cushions. You can also place scented soaps in the bathroom or kitchen to make the areas smell like fields of lavender.