Spring Cleaning Tips

     Around here, in  Santa Barbara, California, it never really felt like Winter because of our extremely mild weather this year, but as I look at the calendar I can see it's almost  Spring. Time to air-out, de-clutter and scrub the old homestead clean.  Here are 10 simple tips to help you...
1. Get a vintage enameled bucket, some hand milled french soap, and cleaning solution that looks more like honey than soap, so your mess looks darling even if you don't get around to cleaning.
2. Hire someone to clean your house for you, top to bottom, and don't let them cut any corners.  You go to a spa and get some much needed R&R.  Now that's what I call easy!!
3. or...throw everything out, furniture and all, vacuum, paint and totally redecorate...talk about fresh.

Just kidding, though it does sound tempting....

1. Strip the beds.  Wash the linens, including the duvet cover, pillows & pillow shams, mattress pad and blankets. (let your sheets line dry if you have a place to hang them.) Take comforters to the dry cleaners or launder them yourself at the launder mat.  Fresh linen is such a treat.




2. Vacuum and air out your mattress.  If it is too difficult to get the mattresses outside, as it is at our house, just open all the windows and let in good old-fashioned fresh air!

Ahhh...

3. Vacuum under the bed and other furniture.  Dust really accumulates over the course of a year.  Use that nozzle and really get into the corners.  Your allergies might be alleviated!




4. On a sunny day, shake out area rugs outdoors and let them air for a few hours.

5. Check the condition of your bathroom and kitchen towels and replace them if they are looking to shabby.  Hand towels and kitchen tea towels can be revived by washing, line drying and ironing.  Throw away those burned and food encrusted potholders and invest in new ones.




6. Use that setting on your oven : Self-clean.  It's really pretty darn easy, you just need to be reminded to do it (-:  If your oven racks are still shiny, take them out before turning on the self-clean or they'll get a dull finish. Wash them by hand.




7.  Bring a little of the outdoors in.  Buy a potted tree or flowering plant to add a little oxygen to any room.  I love fresh live greenery in the house, but must admit it will only be a short while before I kill them.  It won't stop me from optimistically trying again, but maybe this will be the year I sprout a green thumb.




8. Clean out that stinky old refrigerator! Don't be lazy, wash out those old bottles of marinade, salad dressing, bbq sauce, etc., and  recycle when you can, that includes putting old veggies and fruit into the compost bin, and scrub that thing until it sparkles.   It's amazing how much more motivated to cook I am when I know what I have and my surroundings are clean.  My refrigerator is 15+ years old and sometimes I want a new one, but like I've said in the past, I love the look of things that are well used and have a patina.  My refrigerator is so old it's almost cool.  One less thing in the landfill!

Maybe one day my frig will
seem as neat as this one.

9. Purge your pantry.  Take everything out and wash down the shelves.  Use or get rid of things you haven't used in 6 months.  The food pantries are in desparate need of food, so take your extras to them and do a good deed while you unclutter.   Buy a couple of new boxes of baking soda: one for your pantry and one to open in your nice clean frig to soak up odors.  Poor the old box down your garbage disposal drain to get rid of bad smells.  An added bonus is all the extra room, which is at a primeum at my house.  When everything is simplified and put back in an organized way, it is thrilling to have so much extra space.  I know I'm probably a little weird, but I can't stop looking at my clean refrigerator and pantry...fabulous!




10. Clean out your closet and dresser drawers.  Less is more.  One of the reasons doing laundry is such a pain, is because it is always so hard to put everything away.  I realized that I could never have all the laundry done at once because there isn't enough room to put everything away.  If there was room in the closet and dresser to easily put my clean clothes away, it would be no problem.  So like the pantry, if you haven't worn something in a year, bye bye.  Get rid of it.  Pull everything out, and only put back what you really need and love.  I try hanging the stuff in my closet, by color.  It's easier to find what your looking for that way and it looks good, too.  You can donate your unwanted clothes to the local shelter or sell them to a consignment shop.  If you're like me, it will seem like you have a whole new wardrobe because of all the old clothes you rediscover.

This list of chores may seem like an overwhelming hurdle to tackle.  Just pick a couple of things per weekend and before you know it, your house will be clean and organized...ship-shape and Bristol fashion.

Good luck and happy cleaning!