When was the last time you tackled a huge project at home or work? Did you do it all at once in one big burst of awesome energy or did you take your time and complete stages until the project itself was finished? Cleaning and organizing your home is like any other big project. If you try to tackle the whole thing at once you are likely to get overwhelmed and frustrated. Instead, if you break down the project into small cleaning jobs, you will find that the cleaning takes no time at all and makes a world of difference.
Manageable Weekend Cleaning Tasks
Very few people want to spend the entire weekend cleaning. The good news is that if you pick two or three things off the list below each weekend and rotate the items you will find you have a cleaner and happier home with plenty of hours left over in your weekend for all the things you enjoy.
Dusting
Take a dust rag and the best cleaner for the surfaces that you are cleaning and lightly dust. Remember those easy to overlook places such as behind the TV and baseboards. You will be pleasantly surprised at how quickly dusting can be done and what a difference a small cleaning job like this makes. There is nothing like a layer of dust to scream to your guests, “this house needs to be cleaned!”. Conversely, a sparkling surface speaks to the cleanliness and care you invest in your home.
Laundry
While the entire process of laundry can take some time, you can use the time between cycles to go do something fun. Laundry becomes more manageable when you have a system. If you prefer to sort your clothes, setup two laundry baskets wherever you typically change clothes. Put your dirty clothes in the correct basket and have them ready to go on laundry day. This will save you lots of time trying to track down dirty clothes and you will have a system that makes laundry a breeze.
A box a day
If you like to collect things over time or use junk boxes as a way of decluttering, a box a day is just the strategy for you. Go through your garage or closets and pull out a box a day. Take out all the contents of the box and get rid of absolutely everything you can. Don’t be afraid to get creative. If you have old concert t-shirts that you can’t bear to part with consider taking pictures of them and making an album and then donating them. Use a discerning eye and creative approach to clean out the clutter, one box at a time.
Clean out the junk drawer
Similar to the box a day technique, tackling your junk drawer is a small cleaning job that can help you declutter and simplify your cleaning. If you have 15 minutes on a Saturday or Sunday, pull out your junk drawer and clear out the junk. This is a small thing that will make a big difference.
Put together the pantry
Have you ever gone grocery shopping only to realize that you already have some of the items you’ve purchased? Organizing your pantry will take about 15 minutes and save you money and headaches. In addition, taking a damp paper towel and wiping down your kitchen surfaces will have them sparkling in no time.
Windows
Your windows take up a sizable amount of space in your home and because they let in light, spots and dirt are very noticeable. Cleaning your windows inside and out should be a weekend job but take a little longer than the rest of the items on this list. The good news is once they are clean they should stay that way for awhile and you can enjoy looking outside at the weather, birds or anything else your heart desires.
Quickly Pick Up Your Home
Regularly addressing the items listed above will make your home so much easier to clean quickly in a pinch. Unexpected guests or the need for a meticulous home can be taken care of with relative ease when you stay on top of the little things. Organization can also be a life saver. If you need to quickly pick up the little piles of clutter or toys, clothes, etc. it is important that you have already put organizational items in place. Toy bins, laundry baskets, and mail organizers can all play small but important parts in keeping your home clean. If you can quickly declutter your home, and are maintaining a cleaning schedule a little bit at a time, you can pick up your home at a moment’s notice with ease.
Your St. Louis, MO Cleaning Services
If you find that you simply don’t have the time to take care of the little cleaning items, you may find yourself overwhelmed in short order. Call Two Ladies and a Bucket and let us take care of the cleaning for you. We can come and do a one-time deep cleaning to get you back on track or we can maintain your home regularly. Enjoy the fruits of our labor and rest easy knowing we’ve got you covered.
