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Spring cleaning feels amazing when it is complete, but the initial getting started isn’t always as exciting.
As a way to minimize how much I have to take on when this momentous event arrives each March and April, I am a big believer in cleaning my house every week without fail. However, as we know, there are a handful of things that must be cleaned, but thankfully only a few times a year. Martha Stewart breaks it all down in great detail in her Housekeeping Handbook, but you can also print off the specific list you want here on her blog.
With that said, while I’m meticulous, I also don’t have a house cleaner, so below is the list that works for me (click here for a printable version).
Daily
*Make the bed
*Pick up after yourself
*File incoming mail
*Clean as you cook (thank-you-for-coming bowl – a la Rachael Ray!)
Weekly
*Launder sheets, towels, bath mats – anything used regularly
*Clean the bathrooms – everything
*Dust – tables, televisions, lamps, etc
*Clean mirrors
*Vacuum and mop floors, vacuum upholstered furniture
*Empty all trash and wipe canister
*recycle old magazines, newsletters, etc
*Go through fridge – take stock and toss if necessary
*Clean all counters, microwave, toaster, sinks, vents, and ovens in kitchen
*Clean hand prints, pet prints from windows and doors
*Add fresh flowers to dining room, coffee tables, bed stands, etc.
Twice a Year
*Clean all windows – inside & out
*Flip mattress
*Clean pantry
*Clean refrigerator
*Clean oven thoroughly
*Launder pillows
*Wipe baseboards and moldings
Yearly
*Clean the fireplace
~For a downloadable version to print for easy use – click here.
I would love to hear how your approach cleaning your home, what works for you, what tips you’d suggest, etc. I’m all ears!
I’m a little obsessive about cleaning. In fact I really enjoy doing it, so much so I had to let my cleaning lady go as there was nothing for her to do.
I love cleaning when my husband is not around; I put on some music and off I go. I try to clean every Friday so that the weekend is free for pleasures! My only difference from your list is I clean the fridge and flip the mattress monthly. I also hoover/vacuum the mattress monthly as I am obsessed about bed-bugs (I saw something on Dr Oz that freaked me out!).
These are great tips… although sometimes it’s hard for me to follow… and I call the little mess I create “my artistic Chaos” 🙂
XoXo
Plami
http://fashion-thrill.blogspot.com/
I like to clean up as I go along and never try to let things go to the point of no return. Messes make me nervous and disheveled but even something where there is clutter there is always a method to my madness and I know just where everything is. At least once or twice a year you should also change/flip your mattresses over! Happy spring cleaning!
I MUST print this list out from Martha. I find that spending 10-15 minutes a day picking up and straightening up makes a huge difference in my peace of mind….but I still rarely do it.
Plus, being a young single gal, I tend to use the other half of my bed as storage for books/clothes/whatever I didn’t put away. I should really work on that.
I loathe clutter and untidiness, but it does seem to breed with alarming rapidity! I try to do the items listed in about the same frequency, but *confession, gasp* sometimes when things get hectic my cleaning schedule slides a little.
I like your list though. Thorough with out being too much. Printing it now. Thanks!
I’d like to print this list and hand it to my husband! :o)
What a great list that seems easy enough to follow…we’ll see if I stick to it this year!
I love this list and should probably print it out to help me along. I tend to clean up as I go and take at least one day a week to wash sheets, vaccuum, mop etc. but something always seems to get left out, so a list would help 🙂
xo mary jo
Thank you for the tips. I often use my toddler daughter as an excuse not to clean up, “she’s just going to make another mess…so why bother?”
I know this is wrong. Thanks. I will start picking up after myself again. I will also get my daughter to start picking up after herself too. Funny, her pre-school teachers often tell me that she’s very helpful and picks up her messes in the classroom. Oh if only she’d do that at home!
I think kindergarten teachers are very smart. They have “areas” for each activity the children play or work in then have everyone clean up before they move to the next activity. I used to let my girls play until lunch, then clean up, eat and nap. Then after naptime, they played until it was time for daddy to come home and dinner. Then after dinner, the same–play then clean up before bedtime. Worked for us and trained them on how to keep things tidy.
Reading this is like picturing my mom. She makes sure that every year her windows get clean. I also do the daily routines that you listed here and find that live is a lot easy when you keep up with things rather than re-doing everything.
We are pretty similar: the ‘daily’ things I do almost without thinking, and a couple of your ‘weekly’ items I do every 2 weeks coz, well, I hate housework 🙂
For the less frequent jobs, I confess I have made lists for each month, so that I only have to tackle a few at a time, but over the course of a year, it all gets done. Sorta-kindoff, that is 🙂
I follow my RULE OF THREEs – which is, everytime I’m in a room, I pick up or handle appropriately THREE things. Everytime I walk into a room. It’s a manageable number, and the house stays tidy.
A great idea! Simple and efficient. Thank you for sharing. 🙂
This is just a little something that I love, but, when I change the sheets I always spritz them with a little linen spray. I love the “fresh cotton” scent, and it just gives the bedding a really nice smell.