Unless you’ve been living under a rock—or under the weight of the piles of clutter in your home—you’ve probably heard about Marie Kondo’s new tidiness trend. The popular cleaning guru’s housekeeping tips have inspired people around the world to toss unwanted items and to clean their homes for good.
But if your home looks more like the “before” photo than the “after,” you might find yourself feeling embarrassed or even guilty when neighbors and friends get a peek at your rooms. When cleaning eats away at what little free time you have, how can you maintain a home that keeps you ready for unexpected visitors?
If this sounds familiar, we’ve got you covered. Here are some of our best tips to make you proud to welcome guests into your clean, clutter-free space.
1. Make House Cleaning a Habit
There’s no getting around it: the easiest way to keep your home clean is to make sure you’re clearing away clutter on a regular basis. For most people, the best method of doing this is to make a habit of cleaning. Of course, that can be easier said than done!
Fortunately, there are a few simple ways to get in the habit of cleaning.
First, make sure you’re putting things away as you use them, rather than setting them down to pick up later. Taking ten seconds to return each item to the place where it belongs can save you hours of cleaning time down the line!
Next, get in the habit of never entering or leaving a room without something in your hands. For example, if you’re heading out of your bedroom to start dinner, are there any dirty mugs you can bring to the kitchen? If you’re stepping out of the bathroom after your shower, are there any clothes you can bring to the laundry room?
It can also be a good idea to use triggers to make new habits.
One common time-based trigger, for example, is the act of waking up and starting your morning coffee. An example of a cleaning habit you could add to this trigger is the act of unloading the dishwasher. Making a habit of doing this each morning while you wait for your coffeemaker to finish its cycle can be a great way of getting some simple cleaning done.
Here are some other great examples of time-based triggers to get you started:
- Make your bed in the morning as soon as you leave it
- Start a load of laundry every evening when you come home from work
- Wipe down your bathroom sink, counter, and mirror after you shower
Your triggers can vary according to your needs, of course, so decide which cleaning habits you want to set to get started! Note that it can take around 66 days to form a new habit, so be patient with yourself as you work.
2. Do a Regular Weekly Cleaning
If you’re not yet using professional cleaning services, the chances are good that you don’t have time to do a deep cleaning every day of the week. That means that you may not be able to tackle some of the time-intensive tasks on your list during the regular workweek.
To fix this, it’s important to do a deeper cleaning every week.
Pick a day and time to block off on your calendar each week, and make sure to save this time for cleaning alone. If you don’t have time to do it on a weekly basis, or if your home doesn’t need frequent cleaning, you can opt to do this every other week instead. On the other hand, if your home needs more frequent cleanings, you can divide your checklist to tackle some deep cleaning tasks on multiple weekdays.
Be sure to follow a checklist to ensure that you don’t leave anything out of your cleaning regimen. Here are some of the tasks that you should consider doing each week:
- Do a systematic cleaning of each room of your home
- Do a deep cleaning of your bathroom, including the sinks, toilets, showers, and tubs
- Do a deep cleaning of your kitchen, including the sink and stove
Wipe down windows and mirrors - Change your bedsheets
- Dust obvious areas around your home
- Clean out your fridge
- Sweep, mop, and vacuum
Doing these cleaning tasks at least once a week can help you stay on top of your regular cleaning needs, meaning you won’t have to cringe if you need to welcome an unexpected visitor!
3. Take Advantage of Simple Cleaning Hacks
If you want to set yourself up for success when it comes to cleaning, it pays to consider your tools and methods with care.
First, consider putting together a portable cleaning caddy that you can fill with your desired cleaning supplies. This means you’ll always have what you need on hand wherever you go in your home, from microfiber cloths to latex gloves to all-purpose cleaner.
Next, make sure you’re using the right products for the job. You’d be surprised at how the right cleaner makes your task easier! Of course, if you opt for maid services, you can trust your team to have the right eco-friendly cleaning products for any task you have in mind, with less guesswork on your end.
Last, but not least, take advantage of the most essential cleaning tip of all: delegation! If you have other people in your household, make sure everyone is pulling their weight when it comes to cleaning so you aren’t tackling each task on your own. This can mean creating a simple chore chart for everyone in your family, or it can mean delegating deep-cleaning tasks to your professional house cleaners.
Try These Housekeeping Tips for a Clutter-Free Home
If you’re ready to have your guests peer around your home with envy, it’s time to try these housekeeping tips for a clutter-free home. Forming house-cleaning habits, especially, is a great way to get a clean home automatically and with less effort, making it the perfect way to maintain a polished house that impresses friends and neighbors alike. Be sure to start putting these tips into practice today!
Of course, if you’re ready to impress visitors without the time-consuming work, don’t forget that recurring cleaning services are also a great option. With professional cleaners on call, you can get the clutter-free home of your dreams without lifting a finger—and with a 100% satisfaction guarantee. To start enjoying a cleaner home, request a quote from us now.