Here Are The Best Tips For A Clean Tidy Home For Spring 2019

It is inevitable that during the long, dark, cold winter months, the last thing that most of us want to do is to clean the most obscure areas of our house. Unfortunately, the chores that keep a house feeling comfortable and clean get left until the spring – hence the common practice of “spring cleaning”, whereby houses are cleaned top to bottom in late winter or early spring.

Some think this arose because of the fact that in cold northern climates of North America and Europe, people has to wait until March to open the windows for dusting, yet not let insects into the house. Other theories are that it came from the days when houses were heated all winter by coal fireplaces and furnaces, and when it became warmer these were shut down, and so it was he first opportunity to clean the soot from walls and furniture!

Whatever the reason, there is nothing better than the feeling of coming home to a clean and tidy house, and so let’s have a look at simple ways to quickly turn your home into a clean and tidy abode to feel proud of.

The advantages of spring cleaning 

The effect of decluttering, cleaning out a messy closet and open up clean tidy areas of the home has real benefits for mental health, clarity and acuity. Clutter has a direct correlation with increasing cortisol levels, (the stress hormone) especially in women, and a survey by the HuffPost has shown that the worry caused by having a messy and disorganized home is at number 5 in the list of stressors for most Americans   

In addition, psychologists have found a correlation between their clients having a clean and tidy home and an improvement in their clients’ general health, particularly in their being at a healthy weight: as Dr. Pamela Peeke, a clinical professor of medicine put it “If you can’t find your sneakers, you aren’t taking a walk”. In other words, a messy house is likely to lead to inactivity and inevitable weight gain.

Don’t try and clean the whole house all at one time 

Simple advice, but most of us just want to get the dirty tasks over and done with – but resist the temptation to pull out furniture in every room. You’ll overreach and feel so dispirited when you only get one or two rooms done when you had you had your heart set on transforming your whole house and you have to put all those things back without cleaning.

If you keep the cleaning manageable, and stick to room-by-room at a time at the weekend, in a couple of weeks the job will be completed ready for spring and summer.

Sort your belongings into categories 

It is a good idea to take a four-step approach to clearing that pesky clutter quickly and efficiently – go into each area of your house (including the attic and cellar) and make a list of items which are:

1. Trash - which belongings are beyond usability, and have no worth to anyone?

2. Giveaways – which belongings are not needed but are still use worthy, but are not valuable enough to sell – so donate them to the needy

3. Storage - which items can you store away for later use ready for next season (such as winter coats and boots, heavy duvets and so on)

4. Put-always items which you use frequently, so you need to find an easily accessible closet, drawer, or other home storage area for them. For everything else consider a storage unit.

Treat spring cleaning as a family activity 

Yes, no doubt you will get resistance from some members of the family, especially the children. But it is good thing that the children do chores, so long as they are age-appropriate. However, if you line up a treat for everyone afterwards, put on some fun music and take the time to chat during the clean-up, it will not seem like such a chore. Even inspire a little healthy family competition by giving an extra reward to the person who cleans and improves their area the most (hint: the winner will have to be one or all of the of the children, so don’t get your hopes up that it will be you…)!

And finally –change the family routines 

Every family has times when cleaning is not a priority. So try to change the family dynamic, and try to build new cleaning habits into the routine. Make a schedule of quick 15 minutes cleaning routines for the busiest areas of the house, and then perhaps even micro sessions spending a couple of minutes of wiping down surfaces, on a regular basis.

Once this becomes a habit, you’ll find that it will become far easier to keep your home cleaner and tidier all year round. This is particularly important if you are contemplating moving home, because you may want to list your home for sale at short notice to take advantage of the best time of year to list it: a clean tidy home will make it far easier and cheaper for your moving services company to provide you with an accurate estimate of removal costs.

“ Cleansing and clearing are two words which suit the essence of Imbolc, as this is February, the Roman month of purification. This can be a cleansing of the self, in undertaking a good ‘detox', or a clearing and cleansing of the home, in keeping with the tradition of spring-cleaning” ~ Carole Carlton