I have struggled with this for a long time. I like my home to look nice and be organized but it’s inevitable that we all have to clean.

And it’s good to take care of your space; not only in a hygienic way but also it’s good for the mind to not see all those “have to’s” or “need to’s” when you come home. So after talking to some friends about their methods and see what would work best for me, this is what I have come up with:

1. Make it convenient!! – Seriously, why make something that you don’t want to do be more of a hassle? You will talk yourself out of it yet still won’t be happy with the results.
   Here are my tips:
   • I bought empty spray bottles and filled them with my glass cleaner. Then, I purchased extra rolls of paper towels so I could have a roll under along with glass cleaner under every sink in my house. This way, if the counter top or window need cleaning, I can clean in less than a minute, instead of thinking, “I’ll get it later.”
   • Suggested by my dear friend, I also purchased disposal wipes that look like they are in a baby wipe tube. These things are great for cleaning my toilet, the chrome on my faucet and even spills on my floor. I also found a site on how to make cleaning wipes
2. Consolidate the time your time – if cleaning something will take you 5 minutes and you had this process for your whole living situation, you would constantly be clean!
   • So instead of using a glass cleaner and then a furniture/wood polish and a granite surface polish, etc. Find a cleaning solution that works for you on ALL the surfaces.
     • Vinegar and water has been a great mixture for cleaning and if you want something more soap like, try Castile soap. It has 18 different uses. Also by using one solution for multiple surfaces, you save money, space in your place, and time searching for all the “right ones.”
3. Multipurpose your routine – I know what you are thinking…..but hear me out…..what I mean by this is try to buy things that you can reuse or wash or your own instead of using the dry cleaners. This will save you from finding time that is works into your schedule for that trip to and from the cleaners.
   • I have a reusable coffee filter in my machine. I always have coffee and never have to worry about running out of filters = save money. It was less than $5 at Wal-mart.
   • Old face clothes become rags to wash my car.
   • Dish towels, I use for my work out towels.
     Be aware of you have certain items for certain activities.
     If you let this idea go and use items for a multitude of activities in your house,
     you will spend less, have less clutter, use it more and also clean it more.
4. Be organized – once you are organized, it’s easy to stay clean but until everything has a home. You don’t know where to put it so it goes into the “pile” or closet, etc. Then you have a mess waiting for you for another day. (I do like the out of sight, out of mind method but if everything has a home, you probably will not do this again)
   “Don’t put it down, put it away.”
5. Live in every space – this is just like multi-purposing your routine but more in regards to the space your live in: from displaying your chotchkies (what I call dust collectors) or having furniture or other pieces in your life that is for display or those special occasions.
   • When I lived in Vancouver, space was very valuable and apartments were tiny like San Francisco or New York. Everything you owned had serve more than one purpose.For instance, having an ottoman that you can put blankets or pillows in it (another cleaning quick tip).
   • If you have collectibles, put them in a shadow box for display or another arrangement so you are not dusting every porcelain figurines every week.
   • Also, when you use every space, dust is not able to collect since you are constantly moving them. (i.e. you have glasses in a china cabinet or bar).
     And lastly,
     USE the fine china in your cabinet/closet!!
     Make every sit down dinner memorable, not just one.
     🙂

Hopefully you have found some things that will help simplify your cleaning regime so when you arrive home, you are home; instead of, facing all those “have-to-do’s.”