How to Clean Your Home: The Easy Way
1. Start outside: Is your grass trimmed and edged with a sense of pride and ownership? Grass should be maintained on a regular basis to achieve a well groomed appearance and reduction of unmanageable lawn over growth. This may take a bi weekly effort of mowing the lawn, edging, and trimming the plants, bushes, etc. Do you have a fragrant tree or vibrant flowers to accent your property? You can add these wonders for very little cost, depending on your preferences. Some of the high priced neighborhoods invest in red bark mulch, and bright flowers that last throughout most of the year. Depending on your property size and interests, you can mimic this look for cheap, as you will find in shopping around to different stores nearby. Pressure washing is a good idea to have done on a regular basis as well. Your sidewalk, driveway, walkways, and porch should be clean of dirt and other unsightly debris. Note- People notice the outside of your home first.
2. Hire yourself as the housekeeper! House hold chores can be among some of the least desirable activities, especially when you are the one who has to do them. If you act as if you are a hired housekeeper/maid, you will feel more diligent in completing the chores with, hopefully, little or no distractions to prevent you from starting and stopping the job numerous times. You may want to write two days into your calender that you can dedicate solely to household chores. Go as far as jotting down a time frame like, 08:00am-1:00pm house cleaning. Don’t forget to pay yourself by the hour or job!
3. Laundry,Laundry, Laundry! We either love or hate it, don’t we? The easiest way to combat this never ending chore, is to tackle it with force. Take all of your laundry, linens, and anything else that you want in the washer. Make two huge piles in the main living area in your home. Separate the colors with darks and lights. It may take anything from one to dozens of loads to complete, based upon your cleaning needs. If you reserve a whole day to just this, you probably wont feel as much pressure to get other duties done all at once. You will appreciate the breaks in between washing, drying, and folding the loads. Don’t forget your curtains and drapes too.
4. Prepare for a garage sale! Grab some plastic bags or boxes and clean out the house. So many of us hold on to items that we will never use, but think that we will one day. As a rule of thumb, if you don’t use it regularly, it can probably be thrown away or given to someone else that can really use it. Garage sales are a lot of fun, and allow you more room to adopt the phrase, “Out with the old, in with the new.” You may be pleasantly surprised at the money you can make in selling your things. For example, if you sell thirty small items, you may make enough cash to purchase a couple of new things to add to your house hold decor.
5. Speaking of decor: Find a new style! Buying a sofa/love seat cover for your living room can make a huge impact. This will inspire you to hang a nice piece of artwork, hang some plants, display some of those nick knacks that you cannot seem to part with. Find a small matching area rug, and place it next to the coffee table. Shop around for an inexpensive pair of curtains, if you don’t already have some. Lamps are a great way to soften a room, and make them feel more comfortable. You can find these at garage sales also, for real cheap.
Now that you have a few simple ideas to get you started, I’m sure that you will find many more as you go through the process. Best of luck, and happy house cleaning!
