Spring Clean Tips

Prioritize Your Tasks

Having a priorities list is essential! If you have guests coming over to stay, you'll need to prioritize cleaning you guest rooms. If trash day is Tuesday, you'll need to prioritize taking the trash out early in the week.

This is also your chance to work small to large. The reason I place my smaller tasks at the top is they are easier to get done and I can sweep through them like a breeze. This then leaves room for your larger tasks and all of your focus is placed to tackle the bigger projects because the smaller ones are complete.

For example I cannot organize my master closet when there are dishes in the kitchen sink. My mind gets way too distracted and that makes it harder for me to complete my closet.

Write it Down

I don't know where I would be without my planner and whiteboards. I write everything down, in multiple locations, so that I am always prepared! I have my journal planner, my phone calendar/notes app and our big family calendar in our Catch All Zone.

Writing down what cleaning tasks need to be done in a single day serves as a reminder throughout the day. Having it on our family calendar is helpful to the rest of the house to know what needs to be done as well, so that I am not the sole cleaner of our family.

Divide the Work

Dividing our Spring cleaning tasks can be done in 2 ways.

#1 Amongst Family Members

Dad handles the garage, kids do the mopping or airing out the rugs, Mom cleans the windows etc. each person can be given tasks, and not just for Spring Clean but for your weekly chores as well.

#2 Between Days

No one is expecting all of the Spring cleaning projects to be done in one day... okay in a perfect world YOU would love for it to all be done in one day, but that isn't reality! Give yourself a month and each day a specific cleaning project can be worked on. Feel free to give yourself deadlines for your tasks to keep you motivated.

Basic is Best

If you've read my cleaning hacks posts before you know I love a good cleaning method, involving everyday household ingredients. Just type "Baking Soda and Vinegar Cleaning" and you'll find a dozen or more ways those 2 simple ingredients can clean your home!

I have resorted to making my own cleaning products because it tends to be 1-3 ingredients I already have on hand and it is cheaper to make than buying complicated chemical-filled bottles at the grocery store.

Last in Use, Rule

I like asking myself this during my Spring cleaning, "When was the last time I used this?" asking that question can resolve 90% of my clutter problems. If you haven't used it in awhile but can't bear to give it up see my next Tip...

Without a "Home," Technique

If items don't have homes, they can feel lonely and they aren't fulfilling their life's purpose shoved in the back of your closet!

If you can't bear to give up a specific item, or an item has sentimental value to you, give it a home. Find a shelf to display it or a shadow box to hang it in, place it in a glass case for safe keeping. If you really can't think of where to home an item consider storing it in a keepsakes box or get rid of it.

Large Appliances

Most of us remember to clean out the fridge and freezer for some Spring cleaning but let's not forget to add cleaning the dishwasher, washer and dryer, oven, and deep freezers. These appliances get looked over for most of the year so now is the time to tackle them.

If you are new around here, sift through some of my older posts in the "Cleaning" section of the blog I give tutorials on how to clean those forgotten appliances.

You can also purchase this guide I made on washing your washing machine here:

How To Guide: Cleaning Washing Machine

Buy Now

Hard to Clean Fabrics

Another thing that can get overlooked is the hard-to-clean fabrics around the house. Decorative throws, couch and chair upholstery, things you can't easily throw in the washer.

I love using this Tide, fabric freshener and disinfectant, but another way to really deep clean those areas is to

Get the Garage!

Where do you think you're going??? While I admire how fabulous your house looks I've been standing here with your garage and it feels left out!

All jokes aside, the garage is one of the biggest projects our family has during Spring clean. We shun our garages away for most of the Winter and it becomes a place for delivery boxes to live during the holidays, we eagerly abandon the chilly garage to get into our warm homes and it gets messy.

I have a post all about garage cleaning and you can read about it HERE

Sweep Through Rooms

The last tip I have for you today is to run through your house, scan it and remove anything that doesn't belong there. Papers on the nightstand, receipts on the counter, books on the kitchen table.

This is a great practice for every day tidying up too!