Do These Things to Have a Clean House

Want to have a cleaner house and spend less time cleaning? Following these steps will help and it’s less work than you think it is.

Keeping a house clean and picked up can be really hard, especially if you have young kids. You clean up one mess and there is already a new one. 

You’ve likely tried all kinds of cleaning routines you’ve found on Pinterest or in magazines. If they still aren’t working and keeping up with housework is still a struggle I’ve got the answer for you.

The truth is there is work to be done before any cleaning routine will really work, even the intense 1950’s cleaning routine isn’t enough.

This post was inspired by a post from The Glamorous Housewife. Unfortunately, she stopped blogging and her site is gone. I loved the post so I want to share what I learned from her old post.

Steps for a Clean House

Assess Your Mess

Go around your home with a notebook and made the following notes-

• What are the most cluttered areas?
• Is there an area in your home that can be designated as space for messier things like hobbies and playing?
• What supplies do you need to get more organized?

Check Facebook sale groups, thrifts stores, and garage sales for budget-friendly baskets and other organizers that will help.

If you can’t find what you want to check out The Container Store. You can get cash back on your purchases with Ebates to make it a bit better for the budget.

Organize and Declutter the Mess

Now that you know where the mess is you need to be tough on yourself and get rid of those things you are hanging on to but really have no need for.

I know it’s hard but the more stuff you have the harder it will be to keep your home clean. Use the idea of a clean home as your motivation to really work through it.

You can use the Marie Kondo method or just work through spaces as you can make time. Don’t let this drag on for too long.

Have a Garage Sale or Donate the Junk

Now that you have decluttered don’t let that junk sit around! It’s time to let go of it for real. It’s too easy to put it back if it’s still in your home.

If you have enough, pick a sunny weekend this month to sell everything you can. You can use that money to buy some new organizers to keep things even tidier.

• Donate formal dresses to an organization that helps girls get prom dresses.
• Donate all of those extra blankets and winter clothing to a homeless shelter.
• Donate un-used makeup and personal care items to a women’s shelter. Women and children’s clothing can often go here as well. You may also be able to donate other baby gear and kid’s toys as well.
• Foster families are also in need of toys, baby gear, and other items needed for children.

Make a Place for Everything

Once you have decluttered and sold or donated everything it’s time to make sure everything you keep has a place and everyone knows where it is.

This is a good time to use the organizers you purchased or maybe ones you already had on hand. Use labels if that will help you or your family remember where things go. For young kids, you can use photos of what goes where as labels.

Plan Your Cleaning Schedule

Your cleaning schedule will be very personal to you. This is one of my favorite things The Glamorous Housewife talked about in her blog post that inspired this one. I even saved the quote to remember it.

“Go from room to room and write a list of the things that you want to do every week. Make a separate list for monthly and seasonal things. If you have pets, make sure to include things like a litter box or fish tank cleaning. If you have a porch, patio or yard, you can include those tasks on the list too. Even a small apartment entryway needs sweeping!”

Keeping Up With Your New Schedule

To keep track of the schedule you want to use you can use a simple notebook, your phone, your planner, or whatever works for you.

Another great option is my Cleaning Planner Printable Pack. It contains weekly, monthly, and seasonal cleaning sheets you can use to create these schedules.

You can keep it in your planner, in a binder, or a home management binder. You could even simply put them on a clipboard, whatever works for you.

Make Cleaning Up Part of Your Evening Routine

Taking just a few minutes each night to do a few simple tasks can really help you avoid a messy home. If possible get the rest of the family involved as well. Some tasks you should do include-

• Put laundry in laundry baskets or hang up clothes that can still be worn. 
• Put the dishes in the dishwasher and start it.
• Wipe down the kitchen counters.
• Have everyone take a couple of minutes to go through the house and grab the items of theirs that don’t belong. Make sure they get put back in the right place.

If you need help making your own evening routine I recommend checking out Make Over Your Evening. It’s really helpful for creating a really efficient. 

I hope these tips help you keep your home clean with less effort. When you spend less time cleaning you can spend more time doing the things you love.

Want some free cleaning supplies to help you keep your home clean? Get a FREE 4-piece Mrs. Meyer’s set.