Spring Cleaning For 2017.
Spring Cleaning Tips & Tricks.
Is this the most boring post I've ever published on here? Maybs. Will it still be useful? I hope.
March/April for me means a lot of things. It means lambs and daffodils and Mini Eggs and sunshine and blossom and sadly it also means the dreaded Spring Clean; a task so feared it needs capital letters.
Maybe it's the prematurely middle aged woman in me, maybe it's my insatiable need to have a MASSIVE clean when the house gets too much of a pigsty, maybe it's just something my Mum instilled in me but whatever it is, this time of year makes me want to tip the house upside down and clean it.
I think every year there comes two points where you just need to bite the bullet and knuckle down to one of them deep cleans that takes like a week but makes you feel like you have a whole new house. The first is just before Christmas where you clean the place from top to bottom to make way for all the decorations, have a sort out to make way for all your new presents and make it presentable so you can actually face having the family around.
The second time is now. Admittedly they're not very evenly spread throughout the year but hey, who really wants to be cleaning in the January slump or in the summer? Ain't nobody got time for that.
This time of year is perfect for the Spring Clean - hey it's even in the name. It's a bit blustery and windy so you can open all the windows and air the whole house and dry all the washing outside on the line, the sun is maybe shining so it feels like less of a task and if it's raining at least it's a good excuse not to venture outdoors and get your hair all minging.
With that in mind and with The Big Spring Clean of the Craddock/Rees household pencilled in for the next few weekends, here's my fail safe tips and tricks for surviving the mayhem.
1. Plan In Advance.
I have been known for overplanning. My need to organise everything extends to my Spring Clean but hey if you don't clear the diary you'll never get it done right? Get planning, work out when you realistically have the time (it's probably going to take you all weekend) and then have a root through your cleaning kit. See what you're running low on, see what you've run out of and stock up on all the creams, sprays, wipes and cloths you need to see you through. Loads of supermarkets cash in on our need to clean this time of year and often have a 'cleaning event' where everything is reduced or on offer. Now is the time to stock up.
2. Stock Up On The Little Things.
Similarly, if you're stocking up on your cleaning equipment, don't forget the little things that might not make it onto your grocery list but you need anyway. Save the newspapers for a week or so before hand, make sure you have enough bin bags and brushes/scourers and don't forget a few snacks or treats to reward yourself as you go along cos #adultinggoals.
3. Get Someone In To Help You.
These things are always more bearable if you're doing it with some company (read making someone else suffer the misery you're going through). Get your partner or roomie or whoever to help out, split the tasks and whack the radio up loud to get you singing and dancing whilst you hoover.
4. Do The Chores You NEVER Do.
This is the whole point of the big Spring clean. We all whack the hoover round or maybe flick a duster in the general direction of dust once in a while sure but this event (yes I said event) is for the bits and bobs you never do the rest of the year. I'm talking all the weird things your Mum does like washing the curtains, cleaning the grouting of the shower with an old toothbrush etc. Get into every nook and cranny of the house and give it the best darn shining it's ever seen in it's life.
5. Have A Sort Out.
Whilst you're physically cleaning the *ahem* less sparkling bits of your home, you may as well go the whole hog and have a sort out of your life too. Pull everything out of your wardrobe and have a massive clear out. Chuck those things you haven't worn in yonks, donate everything to charity or sell it on Ebay, get rid of those shoes with the holes in that wreck your toes on a night out. Have a huuuuge sort out of your possessions and chances are you can make a bit of extra cash from them too.
6. Similarly, Food.
Along the same lines as your belongings, DVDS, clothes etc etc; your kitchen needs a clear out too. Get everything out of your cupboards, empty the fridge, de frost the freezer and get sorted. Chuck out anything past it's sell by date, donate anything you KNOW you won't eat to a food bank, clean the fridge and freezer within and inch of their lives and then go through your crockery and get rid of the chipped and broken pieces too.
7. Rearrange.
This is undoubtedly my favourite bit about a Spring Clean or any other major home upheaval. I mentioned a few times before that I loooove changing things; my blog layout, the way the apps are organised on my phone, my house...errthang. When it comes to a deep clean you've probably had to pull everything out from the corners and take things off the shelves and the house is looking a bit like a (clean) disorganised bomb site. Now is the perfect time to move the furniture, rearrange the shelves, reconfigure the way the room works.... Now is the perfect time to make a change to those niggling things you think haven't been working in your house for a little while and when you're done it'll feel like a whole new beautiful place.
8. Treat Yo Self!
Yesss what's better than rewarding yourself for a job well done? I mentioned snacks above to keep you going whilst you're working but when it's all done a girl gotta do what a girl gotta do. Eat obvs. The LAST thing you want to do when the clean is over and your home is looking spick and span is to ruin it by cooking (and you're probs too knackered to whip up a 3 course meal Heston would be proud of anyway) so get in the shower, clean all the dust and grime off you and go out for food to reward yourself. You deserve it pal.
Good luck with your Spring Clean my trusty grime busting warriors, we're all with you.
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