Are you overwhelmed because your house is a mess and you don’t know where to start?
Panicked because your mom just called to say she’s stopping by in a little while?
Frazzled by the mess in your home, but don’t have enough time or energy to commit to a thorough deep cleaning?
Don’t fret! Here are 10 things to clean right now that will help you tame the chaos if your house is a mess.
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1. Pick up clutter
Is your coffee table a mess of old magazines, papers, and random whatnot?
Is your kitchen table littered with backpacks, a stack of mail, random socks, and your overflowing purse?
The quickest route to a clean house is decluttering. Throw out what you don’t need and find a spot for everything else.
I don’t mean a major month-long deep decluttering (though that is awesome if you have the time). Just a quick 2-minute tidy.
Find a designated spot for the mail. Have the kiddos take their things back to their rooms.
2. Do the dishes
Get in the kitchen, roll up your sleeves and tackle the pile of dishes in your sink. Wash, dry, and put them away, or just stick them in the dishwasher for now and then forget about them until later.
If your house is a mess, taking care of the dishes will go a long way in making your home clean.
3. Clean off the kitchen counters
Are your counters cluttered? Cleaning them off will quickly make your kitchen look nicer.
Put as much as you can in the cabinets (salt and pepper shakers, clean dishes, etc.) or in the pantry (cereal box, the blender you only use once a month, etc.). Less “stuff” and more open space on the counters makes for a clean look.
Next, do a quick wipe down of the surfaces with a Clorox wipe or your favorite cleaner.
While you’re here, be sure to check out these posts from “Homemaking”:
10 Home Repair Skills Every Homemaker Should Master
10 Ways to Show Hospitality Outside the Home
4. Take the garbage out
By “take the garbage out” of course I mean the garbage in your garbage cans, but also the “other” garbage.
Make sure to grab the empty pizza box or the small garbage can in the bathroom.
Not only will this make your house cleaner, but it might also make your home smell better. 🙂
5. Pick up clothes
If you are prone to trying on clothes then changing your mind and throwing them on the floor, take care of them right now.
Put dirty clothes in the hamper and hang up or fold the clean clothes and put them away.
6. Pick up toys
If you have little ones in the house, I KNOW you probably have toys strewn everywhere!
Along the same lines as decluttering, picking up and putting away the toys is a very quick tidying fix that will go a long way to making your house look clean.
You can keep a toy basket in the livingroom for quick cleaning.
7. Quick clean the bathrooms
If you don’t have time to scrub the tub, that’s okay.
Just quickly clean off the counter by putting the toothpaste, curling iron, and ponytail holders in a drawer.
Throw away any garbage.
Wipe down the sink and counter with a Clorox wipe or your favorite cleaner.
Hang towels up neatly, or go ahead and throw them into the laundry room (you can wash them later).
Always have a toilet brush handy, so you can quickly scrub the toilet bowl.
Pull the shower curtain closed, and… bam. You’re done.
8. Make your beds
Once you’ve put all of your clothes away, it’s time to simply make the bed.
Since the bed is the focal point of the bedroom and is often the largest piece of furniture in the room, keeping it neat and tidy will go a long way to making the whole room look cleaner and more inviting.
9. Do a quick dusting
After all the clutter is put away and the clothes and towels are picked up off the floor, it’s time to dust.
Run a micro-fiber cloth over all surfaces like tables, lamps, and TVs. Don’t forget about picture frames and wall decor, either.
If you have a dust spray, like Pledge, that you like to use, great. But for the sake of a quick clean, it’s not necessary.
10. Clean the floors
The last step to a quick clean is to vacuum, sweep, and/or mop.
You’ll want to wait until all the other steps are completed before starting this, so that this will be a quick and easy chore.
Vacuuming seems to be easy enough, but mopping is more involved. I prefer Swiffer wet mops because they are so quick and efficient.
Final thoughts
If your house is a mess, don’t panic. You can quickly and easily straighten it up with very little effort if you just stick to the essentials.
Now go get ’em! You got this, mama!