Author: Brittany

Spring is here which means it’s time to wash away the staleness of winter. Spring cleaning doesn’t have to be a daunting task and it’s actually something I have learned to, dare I say, enjoy? I do a major deep cleaning twice a year, once in the spring then again in the fall, and the last few times have actually gone pretty smooth. It’s no longer this overwhelming, loathsome time of year and it helps me to mentally prepare for the change in season. I’m deeply affected by the weather and use my autumn clean to prep myself for the cold months ahead, while the spring clean is to kind of pull myself out of the winter slump. Well, spring is here baby and I’m ready! check out my 5 tips for painless spring cleaning so you can shake off the winter with ease.

1. Declutter then clean.

If I had known this when I first moved into my own apartment I would have saved myself many, MANY, years of distress. I know it sounds oversimplified but the less you have, the easier it is to clean. Eliminating clutter means eliminating junk that you need to shuffle around everytime you need to dust a surface or sweep a floor. Just biting the bullet and ruthlessly decluttering any items that don’t serve a reasonable purpose will make the act of actually deep cleaning considerably easier. So grab a few Glad garbage bags (durability is important) and get to sorting. What can be rehomed, repurposed, or reused, and what just needs to go?

2. Do one room at a time.

It’s easy to jump from room to room as you move stuff around or try to multitask but you’re actually doing yourself a disservice. Focusing all of your energy on one room at a time will ensure you don’t miss anything, and you can easily pick up where you left off when need be, instead of trying to recall what has been done already in which room. Also, the satisfaction of completing an entire room is fantastic motivation to continue on to the next.

3. Clean from top to bottom, left to right.

I remember speaking with a professional house cleaner once and we got to talking about little-known tricks of the trade. She told me that working from top to bottom and left to right will ensure nothing is missed or overstepped and will prevent you from having to repeat steps. The example she used was if you sweep your floor but then remember you need to dust, you’ll just have to sweep the floor again once you’re done. It resonated with me and now I always make sure to use this method. My last 2 steps are always to sweep then mop.

4. Use quality products.

I’m all for using natural cleaning agents and ingredients around the house, but I usually limit that to my everyday light maintenance. When it’s time to really get down and dirty, during spring cleaning, for example, I like to use stronger products so I can be certain that germs and bacteria won’t survive. For this, I turn to Clorox Disinfecting Bleach Cleaner and Clorox Disinfecting wipes. There’s no chance of gross winter flu germs following us into spring and putting a damper on our plans with this stuff. It kills 99.9% of bacteria. I like those odds.

5. Get the whole family involved.

Your family helps to make the mess which means they need to help you clean it. Period. It doesn’t matter what age category your Littles are in, there is a job for them. Delegating age-appropriate tasks to other family members will help to take some of the load off your shoulders and allow you to focus your energy on tasks that actually require and adult.