Cleaning Tips

5 Ways To Get Ready For Unexpected Guests

by Jennifer | No Comments Tuesday, May 8, 2012

Imagine that the phone rings, and it’s your mother-in-law/aunt you rarely see/old friend from high school. She is in your part of town today and will be over in about an hour for a visit. You hang up, ask yourself why you answered in the first place, and then take a look around and realize the place is a complete disaster! It’s been a busy week for sure, and you have understandably let some things go. We all go through this. But before you panic, there is a way to get it all done (or at least done enough to make it look great!) And don’t forget to allow some time at the end to get yourself ready!

1. Close Off Rooms That Are Dirty.

You don’t have time to clean the whole house, so close the doors to rooms that you are sure you won’t get to, such as your children’s rooms, your room, etc. If your guest can’t see in there, they won’t know it’s messy!

2. Pick Up And Dust The Main Areas

The areas that you know will be seen, such as the living room, kitchen, family room, etc. just need a quick organizing (or just throw the excess in one of the closed off rooms, who will know, right?) Dust the areas that are the most obvious. Most people aren’t going to inspect every surface of your home, so focus more on the main parts of the rooms, such as the counters, tables, and shelves that are eye-level. Also, keep the lights just a little lower if possible.

3. Vacuum/Dry Mop Floors

Unless you have managed to spill everything and anything all over the floors, you don’t need to do a full cleaning. If you have carpet, vacuum the high-traffic areas, and if you have hard floors, go over them with a dry mop, such as a swiffer or microfiber to remove any noticeable dust or dirt.

4. Touch Up The Guest Bathroom

Close the shower curtain, clean the toilet, and wipe off the countertop and mirror. Then sweep and/or dry mop the floors. Voila! If you’re in enough of a hurry, this could take you 10 minutes total.

5. Clean Off Your Patio

You spend most of your time inside your home, so it can be easy to overlook the patio. But remember, this is the first thing your guest will see. Sweep it off and remove any unnecessary clutter. Make sure your porch light works, and turn it on, even if it is still daytime.

Now all you have to do is get yourself ready (hopefully that won’t be so challenging,) light a few candles to make your home smell nice, and voila! You are ready to go!

How To Remove Wax From Your Carpet

by Jennifer | No Comments Thursday, April 19, 2012

We have come across this problem many times, where a client calls saying the candle fell over, and now there’s bright red wax on the clean white carpet. It happens to pretty much everyone at some point, and we think it’s important to know how to remove it. It’s actually very easy!

All you need is paper towel and an iron. It is described well In This Article By The Same Name.  So don’t panic, and in no time your clean carpet will be good as new!

5 Steps To Cleaning Out Your Kitchen

by Jennifer | No Comments Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Your kitchen accumulates a great deal of clutter, aka tools and devices that are really neat, but just don’t get used. Well, it’s time to clean out that mess, and let your kitchen stand out as a beautiful and functional area of your home, not the place where the drawers don’t close and every cabinet you open is subject to spill out. Use this as a checklist to get started. The general rule here is: if it’s not special enough to use at least once a year, get rid of it!

1. Cabinets

Go through each cabinet, one at a time, pulling everything out. Then, put everything that you still use back in. Once you see how much nicer it looks in there, you will be less likely to try and stuff everything back in it. Get rid of the rest. Leave extra space where you can, because there is a really good chance you’re going to need a new home for some of the items on your countertops.

2. Drawers

Just like cabinets, go through each one individually, pulling everything out, and replacing only what you use. Is your silverware drawer overflowing? I get it, you hate doing dishes, so the more flatware the better, right? It’s ok to have extras, but if there are 4 people in your home, and you have 15 forks, you are not saving yourself any trouble. And keep in mind, you probably don’t need more than one food thermometor.

3. Countertops

Is your countertop full of appliances? Does it take a long time to clean, because you have too many items to move? Take inventory of everything you have on there, and get rid of or find a place that is out of sight for everything that doesn’t get used daily. Sure, the breadmaker makes you look really cool, but if you’re only using it a handful of times a year, does it really need to take up that much space? Or maybe you keep the blender up there thinking it will motivate you to make healthy smoothies every day. But if you’re not, put it somewhere you can easily get to, but is out of sight.

4. Pantry

The pantry is one of the easiest areas to clutter. You buy something because it’s on sale, or you convince yourself you will eat it, and then before you know it, it has been in the back of the pantry for over a year collecting dust. Throw out all food that is past it’s expiration date, and donate food that is still good, but has been there long enough to where you know you aren’t going to do anything with it. And be realistic, just because those canned beats are good for you, doesn’t mean you will convince yourself that you like them.

5. Decor

Just like any other part of your home, decor can be easy to bypass in your cleaning adventure, especially if it has been there for so long it just seems necessary because you’re used to it. Your decor puts the whole room together, it creates the feel of the area, so have some fun with it! But don’t overdo it, for example if you can’t see more than the edges of the windowsill behind the kitchen sink, you have more on there than you need! Try reducing it to just your favorite picture, or a little plant.

How To Get Your Kids To Help Clean

by Jennifer | No Comments Monday, March 19, 2012

It’s not always easy getting your kids to help out around the house. Their growing minds are going at a million miles an hour figuring everything out, and it may seem impossible to get them to focus on house cleaning, especially when it’s not as exciting as everything else. The trick is to make it a fun learning experience with them. Keeping the chores age appropriate is necessary. Go To This Chart as a guideline of what you can realistically ask a child/teen to do.

To keep your kids on track with their duties, try a chore chart with a rewards system! It will teach them a great deal more than an allowance alone, and you can be creative with what you decide to give them if they complete all their tasks. They will happily oblige if they know they are working towards something they can really look forward to! The reward could be strictly monetary if you would like (for example, you will give a dollor for every chore completed by the end of the week,) or add a bonus for the end of the month, such as dinner at a restaurant of their choice or a day at the water park. You know your children better than anyone, so use your judgement. If you want to create your own fun chore chart, Try This Link By Tipjunkie for some great ideas!

How To Deep Clean Your Bedroom In 8 Steps

by Jennifer | No Comments Thursday, March 15, 2012

It can be easy to skip out on deep cleaning your bedroom. After all, it’s not a kitchen or bathroom, right? Ok, maybe it’s not as intensive as deep cleaning one of those, but you spend more time in it than any other room, so it deserves some TLC here and there. If you are cleaning your home on your own, we recommend doing this deep clean quarterly, then keeping it up with dusting and spot cleaning in between. For this deep cleaning, we recommend opening your windows a little to keep the air circulating, so there will be minimum resettling of dust.

1. Use An Extendable Duster To Clean The Ceiling

Before you do anything else, dust the ceiling fan, crown moulding, and remove any cobwebs with an extendable duster. This way, everything will fall onto surfaces and your bed before they are clean.

2. Clean Your Bed

Strip your sheets and bedskirt, and throw in the washer. If anything is dry-clean only, take it a day or two in advance so that it will be ready today, and use your backup linens/comforter in the meantime. Take a spray bottle with a mixture of 2 tablespoons of baking soda filled to the top with water and spray on your mattress and pillows until slightly damp. This will remove unsightly odors and freshen up everything. You can add a little scent to the baking soda mix if you like, but if you are sensitive, just leave it as is. Make your bed at the very end of your deep clean, making sure the mattress and pillows are completely dry.

3. Clean Blinds, Windows, and Sills

Carefully dust your blinds and window sills with a microfiber rag, to minimize tossing dust up in the air. With a clean rag and a spray bottle with 2 tablespoons vinegar, a few drops of essential oil of your choice (optional) filled to the top with water, remove any spots from your blinds, windows, and sills.

4.  Doors, Door Frames and Switchplates

With the Vinegar solution, go around and clean all door frames, doors, door handles, and switchplates. These are commonly touched areas that can harbor viruses and bacteria. Vinegar is naturally anti-bacterial, anti-viral, and anti-fungal, so it will not only make those areas look sparkling, but will sanitize them as well.

5. Dust Wall Decor

With a microfiber rag, dust every item on your wall carefully. If possible, gently pull the decor away from the wall and dust behind it.

6. Dust Furniture

A good trick is to take every item off of your dresser and tables first. This way, when you put everything back, you are less likely to put everything back as clutter, and find a new home for everything you don’t need sitting out. Go around with a microfiber cloth and dust every piece of furniture, including the sides and any detail work. Don’t forget the headboard and footboard! As you put all decor and necessities back on your furniture, dust each item as well.

7. Wash Your Basebaords

Using the vinegar mixture and a rag, wash all basebaords. Move furniture away from the wall if possible.

8. Vacuum/Sweep And Mop Floors

If you have carpet, use the hose attachment of your vacuum to go around all edges, corners, and underneath all furniture before doing the main area. If you are sweeping and mopping, be sure and get every possible nook and cranny.