Spruce up for Spring

If you have arrived at a place in your home where you think that any semblance of ‘style’ has disappeared under piles of toys and welly boots, then you’re not alone.

Many busy homeowners gradually watch their house disappearing under heaps of paraphernalia and then it all becomes too much to sort, so it becomes ’normal’.

So with spring around the corner, perhaps it’s time to have a rethink about dealing with the clutter. Set aside a whole day to do nothing but clean and tidy. It might feel like a drag but once it’s done you’ll be thrilled to have done it — not only will everything look so much nicer but mentally you’ll feel happier for the declutter.

Pick a day when the weather is nice and try to kick the rest of the household out for the day. It is much easier to get on with this without having small hands getting in the way, or having to keep stopping to feed the hoardes.

The best way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time and if your home has become a little bit like an enormous elephant in the room, the best way to tackle it is to do one bit at a time.

Start with your kitchen

This is generally where much of the mess accumulates and preparing meals or even making a cup of tea can become an unpleasant chore. If your worksurfaces have disappeared under piles of paperwork, fret not. Choose one area onto which you are going to, literally, pile all the mess. If there are dishes to go away, put them where they belong, but if it’s ’odd bits and bobs’ then don’t stress about where they will go, yet. Just make that pile.

Once you’ve done that you can then, at least, see what needs to be done. Clean down the rest of the countertops, wipe over the front of the cupboards. Buff the kettle, shine the sink and wipe down behind the toaster, coffee canisters and anything that is to remain displayed on the counter. Get the rest put away. Have a think about where it all goes. Do you have to walk across the kitchen to get a mug to then put the kettle on? Can you put your mugs closer to the kettle? Do you really need all your condiments out on the worktop or can some go away in a cupboard so that you only leave out a nice salt and pepper mill? The more things that you can find a home for, the less will need cleaning next time round.

Once you’re done with those jobs then go and tackle the pile. Pick up one thing at a time. If you don’t need it, get rid of it. Otherwise put it back where it should have been. It doesn’t hurt to have a basket or a drawer of ’bits’ if you really feel the need to have somewhere to chuck random stuff, but just promise yourself to clear it out regularly so you can still find things in there.

Give the worktop a wipe where the pile of things once was, put a fresh bunch of flowers in a vase and congratulate yourself on a job well done.

Move on to the other rooms

Then go and do exactly the same thing in the living room. Before you know it you’ll have gone around the house and it will all be spick and span. If you want it to stay that way, keep the doors locked and don’t let anyone back in! Otherwise make sure you keep on top of it — it’s much easier that way.