Get your home ready for the holidays with these tips and tricks. You can also use the free Christmas cleaning checklist to help you stay on track and get it all done.
It’s time to get our homes ready for the holidays. A clean and organized home will help reduce holiday stress so we can enjoy the season more. I think we’d all rather curl up on the sofa with some hot cocoa and watch a Christmas movie instead of looking for our Christmas gift bows or cleaning.
Once you have your home clean and set up for the holiday season you can do just that, relax and actually enjoy the holiday season. Every year I hear about people stressed around the holidays and so often it’s because they didn’t take the time to get their home ready and plan for the holiday season.
There are other stresses that can come up but this is one we can control. We can have a plan and prepare ahead of time. It will at least reduce some of the stress and take some things off of your plate.
Even if you are reading this with not a lot of time left don’t worry, read through this list and print off the checklist, and do what you can. Do a few power hours and try and knock it out quickly. And make a note in your planner or put a reminder in your digital calendar for around October 1st of next year to get your checklist out and get ready!
Preparing Your Home for Christmas
A good first step for preparing your home for Christmas and the holiday season is to get it cleaned and decluttered. While it’s best to do this before you decorate for Christmas it’s okay if you have already decorated. Do what you can and remember to prepare earlier next year.
Gather Your Supplies
When you are getting ready for any big clean you want to make sure you have all of the supplies you will need. You don’t want to start a project and find yourself searching for the things you need or having to make a run to the store.
One of my favorite places to order cleaning supplies is Grove Collaborative. They carry great natural cleaning products and supplies that I love.
My favorite cleaning products to use around the holidays are from the Mrs. Meyer’s peppermint line. They smell amazing and work well. They are also very affordable.
If you have never shopped with Grove Collaborative before you can get a free Mrs. Meyer’s cleaning and caddy set!
Get your free products and stock up on anything else you may need for the holiday season. They carry all kinds of household products as well as personal care items.
Homemaking Tasks To-Do
Once you get that done there are a few other tasks that can help make the holiday season a lot easier. These are some of the tasks I recommend.
- Deep clean your home. If you just did fall cleaning there will be less you need to do but some tasks are still good to get done before the holidays get here. You’ll find a checklist to help you with your cleaning below.
- Clean out the fridge and freezer– You want to be sure to have room for all of your holiday cooking and baking.
- Clean out the pantry– While cleaning be sure to take note of supplies you need to stock up on. This is also a good time to donate to your local food bank.
- Clean up the front porch– Before decorating it’s a good idea to give your porch a bit of a cleaning. Sweep, clean the door, clean out flower pots, store away anything you don’t want out during the winter, and get it all ready to decorate.
- Declutter– Make a few passes in your home and have your family do the same. Donate things you aren’t using now to make room for the new things you will get during the holidays. Talk to your kids about how their toys can help make a less fortunate child’s Christmas better to help encourage them to donate the toys they no longer play with. (Get a Free Decluttering Checklist)
- Put away fall decor– Make note of things you want to buy for next year. Fall decor is on sale now if there is anything you want to pick up now.
- Set up a wrapping station– Have a clear area you will use for wrapping and make sure all of your supplies are in one place, if possible.
- Check your wrapping supplies– While setting up your wrapping station, check to see what supplies you will need.
- Check your holiday linens– See if any linens need to be replaced, cleaning, or repaired.
- Clean your holiday decor boxes– These are likely stored in a place that doesn’t get cleaned often, before getting them out be sure to give them a good wipe down.
- Make holiday music playlists– Use iTunes, Spotify, Amazon music, or something like that? Go ahead and start on some holiday playlists. Check out my Classic Christmas Music Playlist for some ideas or to save you a bit of time.
- Make your shopping lists– Start your lists now, it will help prevent you from forgetting things later. Using my Christmas planner is a great way to keep these organized.
- Get your cards/newsletter ready– Order or make your cards now so you don’t have to rush to get them out later. Also, make sure you have the addresses you need and stamps.
- Plan or buy holiday outfits– You don’t want to get to the day of a Holiday event with nothing to wear. Decide now what you want to wear to the events you already know about and buy things if you need to. Be sure to check out my Christmas dresses post for some ideas.
Getting these extra chores done now will help you relax later. Be sure to print off this Christmas cleaning checklist to help you stay on track. This printable also works perfectly with my Christmas planner.
Get a Free Printable Christmas Cleaning List
This printable Christmas cleaning checklist breaks down Christmas cleaning tasks by room making it easy to gradually work through your list and get everything done. There are also blank spots for you to add your own tasks.
It’s a great add-on to my Christmas planner which has other to-do lists that can also help you get your home prepare for Christmas and the holiday season.
Lindsay
Wow, you are SO organized! I am more of a fly by the seat of my pants kind of lady, but as I get older the more I realize it helps to plan a bit. Thanks for the inspiration 🙂
Lisa Sharp
I have to make myself be organized, it doesn’t come naturally. As I’ve added more to my plate this year it has become essential. 🙂 Glad it could serve as some inspiration.
Lori Popkewitz Alper
I agree with Lindsay- you are so incredibly organized! I’m generally do things last minute. Everything seems to work out, although my stress level is probably pretty elevated. I’ll have to print out your checklist and leave it out. Maybe that will inspire me to do things in a more organized fashion.
Lisa Sharp
If I didn’t force myself I’d also do things last minute. That has caused too much anxiety and stress so trying to be an organized person now. Still a work in progress but getting better. Hope the list helps, a visual reminder is often helpful and there is something so rewarding about marking things off of a list.
Betsy (Eco-novice)
I’m so old school I just bust out the holiday CDs. We are really going to try to declutter this year. Very important before all the new junk enters!
Lisa Sharp
I have a lot of holiday CDs but I love that with Spotify I can have a huge range of artists on one playlist, it brings mixed CDs to a new level. And yes, decluttering is a must, I have a bag out for me to toss things into as I find things we don’t need anymore.
the gold digger
The best thing I (and my husband) ever did to make holidays less stressful was to decide not to visit his parents or my mom over Thanksgiving or Christmas.
The not visiting the parents thing did not go over so well with his mom and dad – they called him a “Bad Son” and his mom threatened suicide one year, but life is easier when you are not listening to your drunk father in law scream at your niece and nephew because they took all white meat (from a 25 pound turkey for seven people) and telling their mother she is a Bad Mother.
The holiday music is easy – I just leave Christmas CDs in the player year round. 🙂
giulia lombardo
agree with the entire post also if i use my xmas holidays from work to sleep more relax more read more and spend quality time with friends and family!!!