Cleaning Shortcuts: The Look and Feel of Clean Without the Work

I hate to admit it, but my house is tethered to my stress level. I feel calmer and better able to relax when things are tidy. The paradox is twofold. First-fold:  I can’t be upright cleaning for more than three or four hours before my back goes out. Second-fold I am not a fan of actual cleaning.

Every now and again I’ll get a bug up my butt to do a deep spring-style cleaning job, but on a weekly basis, I am completely open to cutting corners. The bliss in this is that I’ve found that creating the appearance of clean can diminish stress just as much as actual cleaning, if not more so.

Here are my weekly shortcuts…

• Wipe down the kitchen counters, stove, microwave and just the part of the fridge door that I can’t seem to keep my fingers from smudging. Unload and reload the dishwasher and sponge out the sink. I cook a lot, so after a week, the kitchen really does need a spruce up.

 

• Dust off the coffee table.

 

• Maybe wipe down the downstairs bathroom mirror, counter and toilet, but only if it has been a while. Same goes for the upstairs guest bath.

 

• Spot dust the downstairs and dust the dressers and nightstands in our bedroom. While you’re at it, wipe down the office desk.

 

• If the sliding glass doors really need it, I’ll spray glass cleaner and wipe where the dogs’ noses have left marks.

 

• Put things back where they belong or coerce your family to not leave them out in the first place. If you don’t know where it goes, create a junk drawer or cupboard to shove unsightly stuff into.

 

• Throw the sprawled dog toys back in the dog toy basket.

 

• As for mail, which can easily creep everywhere, I keep two small baskets by the door we enter the house in. I sort the mail right away and place the junk mail in the recycling. I put mail that needs to be filed in one basket and mail that I need to do something with (i.e. pay a medical bill) in the other.

 

• In the master bath, I wipe down the sink, counter and mirrors and clean the toilet.

 

• Thanks to Amy at New Nostalgia, I have a new trick for the shower. I keep a kitchen scrub brush that holds cleaning solution in the shower. While I’m getting clean, I have a swipe at the shower walls and glass doors. As Amy suggested, I filled mine with 1 cup of vinegar and 1 tablespoon full of dawn dishwashing liquid.
  

  Makes the shower effortless

• I like to keep the bed made daily and since the dogs sleep with us, I change the sheets each week.
• If your closet is a mess, just shut the door.

 

• Empty only full trash cans.

 

• Now for the best trick in the book…I keep a hand-vac charged up and spot vacuum up the week’s pet hair and other unsightliness. Doing this means that I lug the vacuum through the house about every other week, well, unless I sweet-talk Phillip into it then I don’t vacuum at all.

I’ll usually pick one weekend morning to spend an hour or so cleaning. I do this in my pjs or workout clothes. By the time I’m out of the shower, both the house and I are clean.

Here’s the stuff I save for my cleaning binges:

• Actually cleaning windows, mirrors, etc…
• Dust everything.
• Sweep off the decks.
• Get all the laundry done. We usually have wet clothes in the washer, dry ones actively wrinkling in the dryer and at least two more loads in waiting.
• Deep-clean appliances.
• Actually move appliances to clean under them.
• Clean the oven.
• Clean-out closets, drawers, etc…
• File the mail that needs to be saved (about monthly)
• Wipe down windowsills and baseboards.
• Dust blinds.
• Wash dog blankets/bedding.
• Vacuum the couch & chairs the dogs get on.
• And probably more stuff that catches my eye.

Because of the back issue, I wait to do this type of cleaning until Phillip can help me and only if I know I can rest later in the day.

What are your cleaning shortcuts?

Shared at:
New Nostalgia