Happy New Year to you all! I hope you had a lovely festive break and are ready to take on the year ahead!
I don’t know about you, but I’m always a lot more motivated to clean my house in January than I am in the spring. Sure, we still have a couple months left of winter weather, but doing a deep clean in January also helps me remember to tackle some of those often overlooked tasks that can get missed. Today I’m sharing some dos and don’ts I’ve learnt over the years. Here’s to a fresh start and fresh bed linens!
DO start slow. Any big cleaning project can get overwhelming fast. The quickest way to ensure burnout is by biting off more than you can chew. Be gracious with yourself and realistic about what you can tackle in a given time frame. Prioritise cleaning first, worry about organising later. Start by cleaning what you have. Make a list of what you’d like to get done in each room, then take one room at a time. Make a note of possible organising projects, storage solutions, and household needs as you go. As long as you’re intentional, it will get done. Set a goal to have the house deep cleaned and organised by the end of January, not by the end of the day January 1st.
DON’T try to clean and organise your entire house at once. Be strategic, take baby steps, and know that it might get worse before it gets better.
DO purge what doesn’t serve you. Once you’ve scrubbed away the holiday stress (and ornament glitter) from every surface, you can start purging. Take a look through the kids’ toys, or any of your presents now that you’ve added Christmas presents into the mix. Give everyone’s wardrobe a glance. Any clothes that don’t fit should be donated or stored away. Same goes for anything the kids have outgrown. Any space that is bursting at the seams needs to be evaluated. Any items you just can’t seem to find a place for should be addressed. Don’t over-complicate it. Is it actively serving a need or adding to your quality of life? If not, it’s clutter and it’s adding to your stress level. Let it go!
DON’T get rid of everything you own, only to have to re-buy it later. If you are anything like me who is an over-purger. As long as you’re using something or may legitimately have a need for it in the future, then I would say keep it 😊
DO get the tools you need to get started. Before you start, make sure you have all your household cleaners, sponges, brushes, mop refills, etc. There’s nothing more discouraging than getting some momentum going only to realise you can’t complete your to-do list with what you have on hand. Make it a point to include any cleaning products you’re out of or running low on in your next grocery run along with any storage boxes or hangers that may help when organising.
DON’T spend a lot on organising bins. Before you tackle any organising projects in your house, step back and try and make a plan. What do you need to store in this area? What pain points are you hoping to address? Think about it in a problem/solution format instead of just thinking about how you want it to look. You may have to shop around and compare prices before committing to containers. Keep receipts and price tags in case you need to return products that didn’t end up working. You can very quickly end up spending an amount of money that doesn’t make sense for your needs. As eager as you are to have it done, take your time. Sort through your stuff, measure your space, and make a plan before you shop at least you then know what you have.
Now that you’re armed with those tips, go forth and clean! I’m cheering you on, and remember, you have all year to accomplish your resolution.
